A new lunar year marked with music that rejoices in the coming of spring, in a blend of styles that burst to life under Chinese-Australian conductor Dane Lam.
The spring festival of Li Huanzhi’s overture is the Chinese New Year festival. Rollicking and jubilant, it’s the perfect start to a party.
Contemporary Chinese composer Ye Xiaogang’s concerto for marimba and orchestra Cranes Chirping is dedicated to our soloist, percussionist Le Yu, who gave its world premiere performance in 2024.
Cranes demands Le’s hands traverse the marimba at rapid-fire pace in an astonishing feat of technical brilliance. One of the leading percussionists of his generation, Le meets the challenge with ease, a remarkable feat seeing as he originally had just six days to learn the piece!
Then comes a calmer contribution from Ye Xiaogang, with The Backyard of the Village . Ye’s melodies evoke a sense of space which is both intimate and expansive, as if seeing the local villages and fields by the Qiántáng River.
Staying with the inspiration of folk music, though this time of the Spanish variety, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Capriccio Espagnol features lyrical phrases and lively dances – ending the program as it began, in sunlit festivity and joy.
