Jonathan Fox, Philharmonic Chamber Choir, Singapore, Shanghai Quartet, Singapore Symphony Orchestra - Long: Rhymes (Orchestral Music) (2004) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Poems from Tang: I. Hut Among the Bamboo, by Wang Wei (701-706) [Version for string quartet and orchestra]
02. Poems from Tang: II. Old Fisherman, by Liu Zongyuan (773 - 819) [Version for string quartet and orchestra]
03. Poems from Tang: III. Hearing the Monk Xun, Play the Qin by Li Bai (701 - 762) [Version for string quartet and orchestra]
04. Poems from Tang: IV. Song of Eight Unruly Tipsy Poets, by Du Fu (712 - 770) [Version for string quartet and orchestra]
05. The Rhyme of Taigu: I. Andante
06. The Rhyme of Taigu: II. Lento and Accelerando
07. The Rhyme of Taigu: III. Presto
08. Da Qu: I. San Xu (Prelude in Tempo a piacere)
09. Da Qu: II. Zhong Xu (Middle part in Adagio)
10. Da Qu: III. Po (Development and Coda in Presto - Andantino)
11. Da Qu: The Future of Fire

While Zhou Long's colorful orchestral music purportedly reflects Chinese aesthetics and culture, particularly the nation's music and poetry before the Cultural Revolution, it is almost equally a product of Western orchestral tradition and exoticism, in which things Chinese are imagined and romanticized. By his own admission, Long hearkens back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907 C.E.) for much of his inspiration and subject matter, but this idealization of a bygone golden era is difficult to square with the music, which seems patently modern and more than a little derivative of European Impressionism and lavish Hollywood film scores. Such atmospheric pieces as Poems from Tang, The Rhyme of Taigu, and Da Qu may suggest Chinese instruments, ancient performance styles, and even Buddhist rituals, but there is little reason to suppose Long's symphonic fantasies are based on anything more than speculation. The Future of Fire, Long's choral anthem, is perhaps the least Chinese sounding and the most overtly Western in its sentimentality and bombast. Yet this album is pleasant and inoffensive, and it is possible that Long's music will gain greater exposure and popularity for its brilliant orchestration and eclectic blending of styles. The Singapore Symphony Orchestra, under Lan Shui, is enthusiastic and fully committed, and BIS provides fine sound.

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