'Year of the Tiger' concerts celebrate new year
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| The Windpipe Chinese Ensemble of Hong Kong performs the world premiere of “Tiger Sketch” in Chicago in a concert organized by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York. |
To celebrate the Chinese New Year and showcase Hong Kong's artistic talents, the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, New York (HKETONY) hosted two concerts in Chicago and Atlanta on February 25 and March 1, respectively.
The multimedia concert in Chicago featured the U.S. debut of the Windpipe Chinese Ensemble of Hong Kong. The “Hong Kong at the Fulcrum Point Celebrates the Year of the Tiger” concert was held at the Thorne Auditorium of Northwestern University in Chicago, following the HKETONY’s annual spring reception.
Partnered with the Fulcrum Point New Music Project in Chicago and performed to a full house, the concert was a fusion of Chinese and Western music with two world premieres commissioned specifically for the occasion. One composition, “Tiger Sketch,” was accompanied by a video presentation of award-winning Hong Kong manga comic artist Lee Chi-ching creating a unique tiger-themed painting with montage of Hong Kong scenery.
The second premiere, “Drumming Ridge,” evoked the time of the Qing Dynasty, in which villagers beat a huge drum on the hilltop to alert fellow villages to invasions.
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The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York (HKETONY) took Chinese music to two Chicago public schools with the Windpipe Chinese Ensemble from Hong Kong. The educational programs are part of the ensemble’s U.S. debut tour, which was organized by the HKETO.
Through initiatives of the HKETO, the nine members of the Windpipe conducted two educational programs in Chicago at the Alexander Graham Bell School on February 23 and at the Alexandre Dumas Elementary School on February 24.
At both schools, about 500 students, teachers and school staff attended the demonstrations and performances, where members of the Windpipe played traditional Chinese instruments such as the sheng, yangqin, zhonghu, yehu and dizi. Members of the Windpipe ensemble also explained the acoustic theory of each instrument and demonstrated what it sounded like by playing a few measures of music. They also performed some traditional Chinese music.
Both demonstrations were met with enthusiastic response from the students, who plied the musicians with a lot of questions and expressed interest in hearing more Chinese music in the future.
“The Windpipe performances in Chicago are an amalgamation of East meets West that are truly a reflection of Hong Kong as a city rich in mixed culture and traditions, a legacy inherited from our colorful past,” the Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York, Monica Chen, said. |
The concert also featured a multimedia finale entitled “Cat and Rat - Legend of the Chinese Zodiac,” based on the illustrated book by Caldecott Award winner Ed Young, and including a reading and video performance. The story was narrated by Chicago NBC5’s Nesita Kwan, an Emmy-winning anchor and reporter.
Wishing the audience a happy new year, Donald Tong, Hong Kong Commissioner for Economic and Trade Affairs, USA, said that the tiger is a symbol of energy, strength, great stamina and opportunities. And the Year of the Tiger is perceived as one that will bring health, wealth and personal achievements.
Mr. Tong said the concert offered a new look at contemporary Chinese music, which is a “fruition of the tireless exploration by Hong Kong musicians of new frontiers in a world of unlimited creativity.”
“Hong Kong is a vibrant city much ornamented by its rich traditions and culture, a legacy inherited from our colorful past,” Mr. Tong said. “Today, Hong Kong is truly Asia’s world city, not only famously known as an international financial center, but also for our potential as Asia’s art and cultural hub.”
“Embracing this future position, in our development blueprint, art and culture are featured highly among our major investments,” Mr. Tong said, adding that Hong Kong is pressing ahead with the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) project, whose phase one development is scheduled to open in 2014-2015.
The WKCD, a 40-hectare prime site on Hong Kong’s beautiful harbor front, is to be developed into an integrated art and cultural district with world-class facilities, distinguished talent from all over the world, iconic architecture and quality programs.
The Director of the HKETONY, Monica Chen, added, “This inimitable performance here in Chicago is an amalgamation of East meets West that is truly a reflection of Hong Kong as a city rich in mixed culture and traditions.”
While in Chicago, the Windpipe Chinese Ensemble also conducted two educational programs, one at the Alexander Graham Bell School on February 23 and the second one at the Alexandre Dumas Elementary School on February 24.
The Windpipe Chinese Ensemble enchanted a full-house audience in its Atlanta debut on March 1 in a concert organized by the HKETONY to celebrate the Chinese New Year.
The “Hong Kong Celebrates the Year of the Tiger” concert was held at Fernbank Auditorium in the Fernbank Museum of Natural History in Atlanta, following the HKETONY's annual spring reception.
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| The Windpipe Chinese Ensemble of Hong Kong had its debut concerts in the United States, organized by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York, with two educational programs in two public schools in Chicago. Photo shows the ensemble performing at the Alexander Graham Bell School. |
In the best embodiment of the “East meets West” tradition, the concert featured a program of traditional and contemporary music played on Chinese instruments, including the specially commissioned piece “Tiger Sketch,” which featured the traditional Chinese instruments of sheng, sanxian and percussion and was accompanied by a video of award-winning Hong Kong manga comic artist Lee Chi-ching creating a unique tiger-themed painting with montage of Hong Kong scenery.
The blend of traditional Chinese music with a cutting-edge video presentation drew the concert to a festive conclusion and marked the end of the Windpipe ensemble’s successful U.S. debut tour, organized by the HKETONY.
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