On the evening of October 10th, the 24th Beijing International Music Festival A second concert was performed at the Pauley Theatre. This "Journey of the Soul" concert is a special commemorative concert and the highlight of the "Masters and Memorial" theme series of this music festival. Under the joint performance of conductor Huang Yi, China Philharmonic Orchestra, bamboo flute player Tang Junqiao and soprano singer Song Yuanming, the Beijing International Music Festival presented four symphonic works created in the 21st century to the audience in an all-round way. The world of symphonic music by Guo Wenjing.

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Concert scene

On the night of the 10th The concert was performed by the China Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by conductor Huang Yi, and bamboo flute player Tang Junqiao and soprano singer Song Yuanming also appeared on the stage. The concert opened with the Passacaglia "Mountain of the Sun and Moon" written for orchestra. Bamboo flute player Tang Junqiao collaborated with the China Philharmonic Orchestra to perform "Wildfire" for bamboo flute and orchestra, which continued to extend Guo Wenjing's thinking on modern music and traditional Chinese music. This work fully expands the character of traditional Chinese folk music, avoiding the melodious and clear side of the bamboo flute, and focusing on exploring the symphonic nature of this traditional instrument.

Performer Tang Junqiao accurately conveyed the composer's musical philosophy with superb skills. In the second half of the concert, the first movement of the second suite of the ballet "Dunhuang" was played first. The scene of the desert and the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang condensed the richness of history and civilization. In 2004, Guo Wenjing composed "A Journey" for soprano and orchestra with the lyrics of a modern poem by the poet Xi Chuan. This originally three-movement work was continued by the composer 17 years later. Four movements, performed in its entirety at this concert. Soprano Song Yuanming's singing voice is light and graceful, and she cooperates very well with the China Philharmonic Orchestra, fully displaying the poetry in music and the musicality in poetry. This is the first performance of the four-movement version of "A Journey" and is another testimony of Guo Wenjing's close cooperation with the Beijing International Music Festival.

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Guo Wenjing "is deeply honored and inspired"

In the afternoon of the same day, the Beijing International Music Festival organized the composers and musicians of this concert to meet with the media. At the press conference of the Beijing International Music Festival held two months ago, Mr. Yu Long emphasized that we should not only pay tribute to the deceased musicians, but also commemorate the living musicians, such as Chen Qigang, Guo Wenjing, Tan Dun, etc. For the living Chinese composers, "We should commemorate them more, so that they can see everyone's respect for them while they are still alive." In 2003, the world-renowned operas "The Banquet" and "Diary of a Madman" were staged at the Beijing International Music Festival On the stage, amid cheers from the audience and expectations from the industry, Chinese opera has returned home. Since then, composer Guo Wenjing has started an 18-year cooperation with the Beijing International Music Festival. As the first living music master to be commemorated, Guo Wenjing described his mood as "deeply honored and deeply inspired". Guo Wenjing, who has not been seen for a while, said that he very much hopes to collaborate with excellent singers, performers, orchestras, and conductors. "Why? Because they will surprise you. This is a genius and a great artist." What’s unusual about it.” The performances that night were all four works created by Mr. Guo Wenjing in the 21st century. The performance formats include pure orchestra, concerto, vocal music and other concentrated types, and even ballet.

Guo Wenjing focused on introducing his bamboo flute concerto "Wild Fire" composed in 2004. "This work expresses an idea that I have created in recent years. This is that China has developed into a force and existence that cannot be ignored in the world. Culture The same is true in terms of aspects. I think that in order to reflect today's China, the spiritual outlook of today's China, or what China wants to say today, I am afraid that it must transcend many folk customs while respecting and inheriting traditions. Therefore, In the process of creating this bamboo flute concerto, the bamboo flute is no longer a folk instrument, but a modern instrument. I hope it expresses my latest thinking, or that it can reflect the current China."

Regarding "Yuan Yuan", Guo Wenjing said that this is a work he wrote based on the poems of his old friend, the famous poet Xi Chuan, "I particularly like contemporary Chinese poetry , because it is different from ancient poetry. The ideological language of ancient poetry is very stylized, a bit like fossils. I feel that the verses and words of contemporary Chinese poetry are alive and full of life. "It's a big emotional bang." Regarding this new work, Guo Wenjing said that although he has traveled to many places around the world due to work over the years, this "Travel" has nothing to do with traveling. It is what he pursues. It is a spiritual level and a spiritual height, a true "soul journey". He said: "I listen to the music of Richard Strauss and the music of Brahms. They all described the Alps. When you listen to the music, you will think that the Alps are the highest mountains in the world, but in fact Not really. This was my idea when I wrote "Yuan Yuan", so that our Chinese music can reach a level of spiritual level, even the space of the universe. This symphonic vocal suite is like looking up from the starry sky. The starry sky sets off on a long journey, reaching the sea, and then rises to the starry sky above the sea level, and rises to the sky of the universe. ”

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Two female artists support Master Guo

The two female artists in this concert are particularly eye-catching. They are bamboo flute player Tang Junqiao and soprano singer Song Yuanming. Tang Junqiao recalled that her fate with the Beijing International Music Festival can be traced back more than ten years ago. She has been involved in the Beijing Music Festival since its establishment, often performing concertos, and also brought her bamboo flute orchestra to perform. Special concert. "This time tonight I am going to play the second theme concerto by Guo Wenjing. His first bamboo flute concerto "Shou Kong Mountain" has become well-known in major symphony orchestras across the country and around the world after more than ten years. With the performance of the orchestra, it has become a representative of Chinese national instrumental concertos. I am very proud that I have been the soloist of "Wild Fire" since it came out in the 1960s. From the late conductor Mr. Yu Long to the post-70s conductor Mr. Yang Yang, to the post-80s conductor Mr. Huang Yi, they all conducted this work respectively. I am really lucky. I have experienced conductors from three generations. Every conductor has left a deep impression on me, allowing me to find a new self and a new artistic life in this work countless times."

Soprano. Singer Song Yuanming participated in the Beijing International Music Festival for the first time, but he has long been an old friend with the China Philharmonic Orchestra and conductor Huang Yi, who he often collaborates with. He also met the composer Mr. Guo Wenjing because of his performance in the opera "Camel Xiangzi". She believes: "Singing Teacher Guo's works is a bit different. It is not just singing music, not only singing vocal music, but also singing the spirit and connotation of Teacher Guo's vocal music in the music. Singing Teacher Guo's works requires a long time of preparation. And preparation, and this preparation is not only the rhythm, pitch, etc. on the score, but also digesting the emotions he wants to convey to the audience in the music.

Teacher Guo’s literary accomplishment is quite strong, so if we can directly convey his works to the audience in terms of sound expression, I think this will be a challenge for me. ”

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Two juniors express gratitude to their seniors

Young conductor Huang Yi said that the Beijing International Music Festival is the best platform for young people, because many young musicians come to the stage from such a platform. “I am honored to be able to conduct Teacher Guo’s works because of Teacher Guo. I grew up watching it. My name has always been Guo Dada, and I am very excited to be able to conduct Guo Dada’s work this time. Before, I also recorded Teacher Guo's "Sorrowful Empty Mountain" with Teacher Tang Junqiao and Shangjiao, and I was deeply impressed. "Speaking of the China Philharmonic Orchestra, Huang Yi believes that this orchestra is the best institution for caring for young musicians, and he also grew up under such an institution. "The China Philharmonic Orchestra has completed a large number of classics. At the same time as the works, it also carries the interpretation and performance of a large number of modern works. It has also performed many Chinese premieres, Asian premieres and even world premieres of current works. It has also commissioned a large number of works. The China Philharmonic Orchestra has a strong reputation for modern works. The performance is also very skillful and unique. In addition, the orchestra itself has the sound of a German-Austrian orchestra, and Teacher Guo’s acoustic effects are different from traditional music. The result is such a collision. Brand new effects and concepts. "

Beijing International Music Festival Artistic Director Zou Shuang said that this concert is the official first performance of the theme session of this music festival "Masters and Memorials". As his She was touched by the work attitude of Mr. Guo Wenjing, an "uncle", "I particularly admire Teacher Guo, from the earliest time I decided the repertoire with Teacher Guo to looking at the arrangement, to the choice of the orchestra, to the communication with the conductor, to the selection of performers and Singers, Teacher Guo all recommend young people. At the same time, Teacher Guo is also very serious. He will communicate closely with us whether it is the selection of repertoire, the length of the repertoire, or the name of the repertoire. "Every year, China's latest creations are disseminated to the world's classical music platforms and audiences on the stage of the Beijing International Music Festival. This year, Mr. Guo Wenjing's concert is the only special one. Therefore, the gold content is very, very high. . In addition, Mr. Guo Wenjing was one of the most important creators when Yu Long attended the Beijing International Music Festival. Zou Shuang said that after completing this special concert by Guo Wenjing, there will be two more. One concert is Chen Qigang's dialogue with Saint-Sa?ns, and the other is Tan Dun's dialogue with Stravinsky. Each concert is more unique.

Written by Zhang Xuejun<. /p>

Editor Zhang Xuejun

Performance photos provided by BMF

Photos of the press conference taken by Zhang Xuejun

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