Image via www.melbournerecital.com.au
In a musical landscape of rapidly expanding genres, classical music is renowned for its constancy. But it is too often a narrow and hegemonic constancy that confines itself to the Eurosphere by evoking names like Beethoven, Rachmaninov or Chopin and relying on string, wind and brass sections. Treasure of a Nation leads you out of Europe, down the Silk Road to a different, but no less rich, classical music tradition, which like its home, offers a delight of new sounds, images and stories.
Under the calm and confident direction of Hong Xia, the Chinese National Orchestra brings its latest program to Australia along with some of its finest soloists. To those uneducated in the Chinese classical tradition, you will find not just new music but new instruments too, instruments that offer a rare texture and aesthetic. Gone are the rows of violas and violins. In their place is the Erhu, a two-stringed ‘Chinese violin’ and in the first chair, concertmaster, Bai Miao. To the right are the delicate pipa (‘Chinese lute’) players.
Regular concert-goers will find the cellos and double basses in their regular position, the wind and percussion section too, but their composition and purpose, delightfully novel. The larger and more active percussion section, in particular, lends an added drama and energy and the Yangqin offers a more subtle string presence centre stage.
It’s difficult to fault what was a performance of the highest quality though the highlight was undoubtedly Lovers’ Bridge in South China. Ma Yunhe showed why she enjoys such a prodigious reputation as a soloist, with a display of grace and power, to take nothing away from the exceptional cohort of soloists fronting the orchestra.
The inaugural Asia TOPA has brought an impressive collection of contemporary performers from all over Asia to Australian audiences and underpins the value of cultural exchange in fostering connection and interest between regional neighbours. Treasure of a Nation is the perfect example of the overlap between countries and musical traditions with as much in common as contrast. At a distance, it’s only the differences that we see. Together, in a music hall, we see the shared space too and are reminded that it’s the interplay between the two that is fertile breeding ground for a beautiful artistic experience. So it was a fitting end when Hong Xia turned to conduct the audience’s rousing applause before a final encore, crescendo and taking a bow.
4 ½ stars out of 5
Treasure of a Nation: Chinese New Year Concert
Chinese National Orchestra
Melbourne Recital Centre
8 February 2016
