Chinese Temperaments

2010-02-14

As part of the Chinese Opera Weekend, the Huygens-Fokker Foundation, in collaboration with the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, presents a concert featuring the Chinese erhu and the Dutch 31-tone organ, to be heard in the BAM Hall of the Muziekgebouw. The Fokker organ is a typically Dutch instrument whose unique microtonal tuning allows intervals to be rendered with exceptional purity. The erhu, better known in Western countries as the “Chinese violin,” is a two-stringed bowed instrument frequently used both as a solo instrument and within ensembles and orchestras. Tracing its origins to instruments introduced in China over a thousand years ago, the erhu has developed a distinctive musical tradition and technique over the centuries.
During this concert, organist Ere Lievonen and erhu player Fang Weiling will explore compatible tunings together, improvising on a Chinese theme and performing a Chinese composition. The programme also includes variations on Adriaan Fokker’s Bagatelle “Chinees,” Henk Badings’ Suite of Small Pieces for 31-tone organ, and an entirely new work by Joke Kegel titled Imaginary City for erhu and Fokker organ.

Tickets

Programme

Adriaan Fokker – Variaties op Bagatelle “Chinees” (Variations on Bagatelle "Chinese")

Joke Kegel – Imaginary City (premiere!)

A Bing – The Moon Reflects on Erquan Lake

Huang Haihuai – The Horse Race

Henk Badings – Suite van Kleine Klankstukken

Fang & Lievonen – Improvisation on a Chinese theme

Fang WeiLing was born in China and completed her erhu studies at the Shanghai Conservatory. At the age of fifteen, she made her debut as a soloist during the closing demonstration ceremony for young performing artists in Shanghai. During her tenure as a principal instructor at the Shanghai Conservatory, she was several times sent abroad to promote Chinese music alongside other top musicians. In addition to performances in China, she has given concerts in Singapore, Portugal, England, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Finland. In the Netherlands, she has played with the Residentie Orchestra, the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, the Storioni Trio, and as a soloist with the Nieuw Ensemble. She has performed recitals at RASA and participated in projects including Global Rebop and The Ming Principle with jazz musicians, and was also selected to give showcases at the first edition of the Day of World Music, organised by MCN.
Regarding her collaboration with Snowflower, a Belgian pop band, Dirk Fryns of De Tijd wrote: “The way she merges Chinese classical music with pop and a hint of jazz sparks the imagination, just as the translations of ancient Chinese love poems offer a wondrous perspective on a universal phenomenon.”