Review: Tan Dun's Nu Shu opens the Hong Kong Philharmonic's season
Tan's music communicated a refreshing blend of simplicity and complexity, and an entirely original world of sound
In a gutsy move, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra opened its season with two recent works by a living artist, Hunan-born composer Tan Dun. His music communicated a refreshing blend of simplicity and complexity, and an entirely original world of sound.
The rose from nothingness with ghostly scrabbling in the strings. Chimes intoned the three titular notes, "la si do", followed by the same for brass chorale. Inventive variations on this simple idea ensued.
The players sang and shouted the three notes with conviction. Metallic percussion (suspended discs nicknamed "brake gongs") and struck metal pipes added bright notes. Chinese-style slides were gracefully done.
featured the bold playing of harpist Elizabeth Hainen along with clips filmed by Tan of women from Hunan province singing in a secret language now on the verge of extinction.
It's a challenge to balance the elements in a multimedia work. A scene of women and girls washing clothes in the river had an exhilarating rhythm under a sweeping melody. However, the orchestra obscured the details of the singing, and the film distracted from the live players.
