Huang Ruo: Chamber Concerto Cycle (2007)

In the late twentieth century, a wave of Chinese composers affected by the Cultural Revolution emigrated to the U.S., passed through the American university system, and established prominent and interesting careers integrating the music of their homeland with the advanced techniques of European art music. The first generation of composers included Tan Dun, Bright Sheng, and Chen Yi. Huang Ruo, who was born in 1976, the year the Revolution ended, continues the tradition of discovering new ways to bring together the ... Read More

In the late twentieth century, a wave of Chinese composers affected by the Cultural Revolution emigrated to the U.S., passed through the American university system, and established prominent and interesting careers integrating the music of their homeland with the advanced techniques of European art music. The first generation of composers included Tan Dun, Bright Sheng, and Chen Yi. Huang Ruo, who was born in 1976, the year the Revolution ended, continues the tradition of discovering new ways to bring together the techniques and aesthetics of two very different cultures. On the basis of this CD, Ruo has a distinctively original voice and is no imitator of the composers who preceded him. Using only Western instruments, his music is recognizably the work of a Chinese-American composer and is remarkable for the high drama he creates and for its brilliant and often astonishing orchestration. The lineage of the four chamber concertos here can be traced to those of Berg and Ligeti. They are intended to be... Read Less