Beijing, Inner Mongolia, Xi’an, Dabu, and ancient Xinjiang. These are destinations that you can expect to immerse yourself in when you join the Singapore Chinese Orchestra (SCO) at its forthcoming Enchanting Sceneries: Xu Zhijun and SCO concert.
Come 13 January 2024, Singapore's sole professional Chinese orchestra will take guests on a musical journey through China, during which they will encounter breathtaking mountains and rivers and discover the land's rich history and diverse cultures.
For the individual behind the curation of Enchanting Sceneries, SCO's pipa principal, Yu Jia, the event's theme was birthed after she noticed a common thread between the musical pieces that she had selected to showcase.
"When I was planning this concert, it was coincidental that the classical pieces that came to my mind were related to landscapes and sceneries in China. In Chinese classical music, the themes are not extremely diverse; they either depict characters, landscapes, or emotions. The pieces I thought of happened to be centered around landscapes, so I chose 'Enchanting Sceneries' as the main theme," she recalled in an interview with Bandwagon.
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The pipa meets the tanbur
During the 95-minute auditory trip, concert-goers can expect to experience the beauty of traditional Chinese music through the SCO's renditions of six compositions.
Interestingly, the concert's penultimate piece, 'Impressions of Loulan', which is also one of its highlights, made the final selection despite not being a traditional composition.
Of her decision to include the Wang Yunfei-composed piece in Enchanting Sceneries, Yu Jia said: "Even though it falls into the category of contemporary, it uses the composition styles of traditional pieces. The composition includes beautiful melodies and follows traditional structures, such as the “ABA” structure. Placing it in a concert of traditional classics doesn't make it feel out of place."
Making this particular presentation of 'Impressions of Loulan' even more special will be the team-up between Yu Jia and guest performer Marhaba Nurmamat, who will be bringing together the sounds of the pipa and tanbur, respectively.
A second-class performer in China who has played the tanbur since the age of 15, Nurmamat has performed as part of the Xinjiang Opera Troupe and Xinjiang Art Group Ethnic Orchestra since graduating from Xinjiang Arts Institute's Music Department in 2006.
Set to be the first collaboration between the SCO and Xinjiang instruments in the former's 26-year history, Yu Jia and Nurmamat's pipa and tanbur concerto performance will not only be an important segment of Enchanting Sceneries, but also a huge milestone for the orchestra.
On a more personal note, Yu Jia, who has been mentored by pipa master Li Guanghua, recorded four pipa albums with Taiwanese label Poem Culture, and worked with renowned international musicians, sees her link-up with Nurmamat as an opportunity to expose herself to a fascinating new culture.
"Since this piece is themed around Xinjiang, during this process, I can learn a lot from the Xinjiang artists we invited. Xinjiang's arts and music have their unique flavour, which requires dedicated study. I hope that through this collaboration, by observing and listening, I can grasp the authentic essence of Xinjiang's musical works from the tanbur player."
While Yu Jia noted that the tanbur differs greatly from the pipa when it comes to shape, she said that the former has a right-hand playing technique that is "quite similar" to that of the latter.
She also shared that she would be keen to learn to play the tanbur should the opportunity to do so arise.
Spotlighting traditional compositions
Aside from 'Impressions of Loulan', guests can also expect to be treated to performances of pieces such as 'Tune of Peking Opera', 'Symphonic Poem – Hymm of Mount Li', 'Gada Meilin Symphonic Poem', 'Beautiful Jiangnan', and 'Capriccio of River Dabo'.
Having observed the tendency of musicians to gravitate towards more contemporary styles, Yu Jia hopes to put the spotlight back on traditional works in Enchanting Sceneries.
This move was made deliberately to reflect the goal of the orchestra's 2023/2024 season. Collectively conceived by its artistic management, the new season seeks to assemble the artistry of masters and virtuosos to pay tribute to traditional Chinese classics, while moulding music unique to the SCO.
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Music speaks louder than words
Another highlight of Enchanting Sceneries is its finale piece, 'Capriccio of River Dabo', which will see the long-awaited return of a choir to an SCO concert after a three-year absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Due to stage restrictions, integrating a choir into such a performance is challenging, especially for the 86-member-strong orchestra. But the preparations for Enchanting Sceneries will pay off on the evening of the concert, during which guests will be treated to a performance where music speaks louder than words.
Yu Jia said: "In 'Capriccio of River Dabo', the choir actually hums throughout the piece, without specific or explicit lyrics or storylines. The continuous humming, especially with three-part harmony, better reflects the broad and continuous flow of the Dabo River."
A reunion after 16 years
As the curator of Enchanting Sceneries, Yu Jia was also tasked with identifying a suitable musician to wield the baton for the evening, and the name that came to her mind was that of esteemed Chinese conductor Xu Zhijun.
An esteemed musician, Xu has worked with Chinese and international orchestras and opera houses and helmed concerts at venues such as France's Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Greece's Acropolis of Athens, and the United States' Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. He is also the Principal Conductor and Chairperson of the China Conservatory of Music's Chinese Orchestra and the Dean of the conservatory's Chinese Music Department.
This will be the second time that Yu Jia and Xu will be linking up — they had previously presented a pipa concerto together back in 2007 — and Yu Jia believes that Xu's involvement in Enchanting Sceneries will enrich the overall concert experience.
She shared: "After planning the repertoire, I had discussions with him, and he felt that all the pieces were very suitable. So, this time, I hope our collaboration can go even deeper than the last one."
Enchanting Sceneries: Xu Zhijun and SCO will be held at the SCO Concert Hall at 7:30 PM on 13 January 2024. Tickets are available from SGD 20 here.
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