Yun Song (solo erhu): Night Wind by L. Mark Armanini
About the Music
This solo erhu performance is the first part of a longer suite for solo erhu, exploring the many shades and character of the instrument. Composed specifically for Yun Song, this virtuoso piece is interpreted freely by the soloist, creating maximum impact. A dark, changeable momentum flows through the work, and a cry for compassion propels the music to a roaring climax. At the very close, a whisper of sound brings the listener an intimate sense of delicacy, balancing the previous torrent of notes. – Mark Armanini
About the Artists
Yun Song (solo erhu) first established herself in China as one of the most prominent erhu performers of her generation. Her extraordinary musical gifts became apparent when, at age 17, she received the First Prize from the Traditional Music Grand Prix organized/hosted by the Ministry of Culture, China. With her brilliant technique and real emotional depth, she won numerous awards, including solo and concerto competitions in Beijing, and annual nation-wide TV string performance competitions in the following years. Yun Song received her formal training with Prof. Mingyuan Liu at China Conservatory of Music. Her teachers also included Prof. Yi Wang, cellists Boyong Xiao and Hui-fen Min, and Prof. Yue Zhang. One of her compositions, “The Memory of Qin”, has been included in the curriculum of China’s music schools. As a cultural exchange scholar, Yun Song performed in Japan, and was invited by Mr. Suzuki Jio, the well-known Director of Gagaku Orchestra in Tokyo, to join the orchestra as a guest soloist. During her stay in Japan, Victory Record Company published a series of albums featuring 300 Japanese folk music pieces played by Yun Song on erhu, which were very popular both in Japan and internationally.
L. Mark Armanini (composer) ( b. 1952), a native Vancouverite, studied with Elliot Weisgarber and Robert Rodgers at the University of British Columbia , graduating with a MMus. in 1984. Mark began composing for various intercultural combinations in 1990. Major works included concerti recorded with the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic and Qiu Xia He (pipa soloist) in 1995 (album title: The Spirit Emerges) and with the Latvian National Symphony in 2003 (album title: Rain in the Forest) featuring Vivian Xia (yangqin), Heidi Krutzen (harp), Khac Chi and Bic Hoang (dan baus), all conducted by John Zoltek.
In 2015 Mark produced Fingertips to Freedom, an improvised piano concerto with Paul Plimley in Prague. In November 2018 he travelled to Hanoi for the third Asia Europe Music Festival where his piece Dance of Many Colours was given its Vietnamese premiere by Bic Hoang. In 2019 Mark attended the Voix Etouffees European Festival in Brussels where his piece …of Wind and Water was performed by Qiu Xia He (pipa) and the Selini Quartet.
Mark is presently the Artistic Director of the Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra, and an associate of the BC Chinese Music Ensemble. He is also a faculty member at Capilano University.
Video Production Credits
Videography – Alistair Eagle, assisted by Don Xaliman & Camillia Frey
Audio Engineer & Mix – Sheldon Zaharko
Filmed and recorded on June 8, 2021 in the Historic Theatre at The Cultch, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
For the Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra:
Artistic Director & Producer – Mark Armanini
Composer-in-Residence & Senior Project Manager – Farshid Samandari
Production Manager & Communications – Melanie Thompson
Marketing & Production Assistant – Gina Hernandez Sanchez
Operations Manager – Devni De Silva
View the whole Global Soundscapes Festival: Digital Edition 2021 programme.
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