Rock and Symphony,
the two very different music forms, will sing together tonight at 2017
MISA, in the hands of Tan Dun who has always been looking for new
possibilities in music. The Chinese composer and conductor will be
joined by Chinese rock band Hanggai and Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.
“Symphonic
rock is a complete new art form which we have been working on for 2-3
years,” said Tan Dun, “We want it to be a conversation and comparison
between the two music types, rather than having one serving the other.”
Audiences
will hear both the orchestra and the rock band collaborating in
Hanggai’s hits like The Rising Sun, Horse of Colors and The Beautiful
Prairie, My Sweet Home as well as Tan Dun’s Contrabass Concerto Wolf
Totem and Passacaglia: Secret of Wind and Birds.
The concert will
also premiere “Shanghai Semiconductor Receiver”, which tells the story
of people on the prairie first heard the outside world through the
Shanghai-made semiconductor receiver in the 1960s.
A
semiconductor receiver will be put in the center of the stage, playing
famous Shanghai singer Zhou Xuan’s “White Light”, while the Orchestra
and Hanggai will join in, taking audiences from the old-time to the 21st
century prairie and Shanghai.
Rock, in Tan’s view, has always
been a pioneer in music that directly dialogues with the society,
challenges what is going on and triggers on changes; while classic music
has more often played a role of tradition guardian in the recent dozens
of years, which he does not appreciate much.