The Sheng is a mouth-organ like no other; rooted for over three millennia in Chinese culture, but – in the hands of a virtuoso like Wu Wei – capable of opening up whole new continents of sonic imagination. Unsuk Chin’s ravishing Å ³Ü takes its inspiration from ancient Egypt; performed by the artist for whom it was written, it’s a revelatory pairing for the kaleidoscopic colours and uproarious comic fantasy of Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegel and the deep romance of Schumann’s noble Second Symphony. Conductor Markus Stenz is as masterly in new music as he is in the heartlands of the Romantic German repertoire: expect deep insights and glorious sounds.
Prelude: 6.45pm in the Recital Room
In a change to the originally advertised speaker, Jonathan Cross, Professor of Musicology at the University of Oxford, will introduce the music of Unsuk Chin. Free to ticket holders, subject to seating availability.
Post-concert Coda
(approximately 10 minutes after the main concert)
Wu Wei plays his own short solo work for sheng, ‘Dragon Dance’.
