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Divergence, Concerto No. 3, for Five Players
HUANG RUO
Born 1976, Hainan Island, China
Program note from the composer:
Divergence, Concerto No.3 for Five Players is the third piece for my first concerto cycle, which I have been working on since 1999. The other three works are: Yueh Fei, Concerto No.1 for Eight Players; The Lost Garden, Concerto No.2 for Eight Players; and Confluence, Concerto No.4 for Fifteen Players. "Concerto," in old Italian, means "to bring together," and was used to describe works in which individual lines were assembled into a harmonious whole. The whole concerto cycle not only focuses on different individual instruments, but also the ensemble as a dramatic whole, and instrumental various combinations. The cycle is linked together both musically and theatrically. Musicians and conductor are asked not only to act with body motions and movements, but also to sing, chant and speak. Therefore, these concertos are not just for instruments, but for performers. Thematically, they can be divided into two circles. The first two are written for eight players with the same instrumentation; the last two complete the circle from divergence to confluence. All four concertos can be performed individually, or in any combination. Together they represent a journal of my traveling in both the Western and Eastern worlds from the past through today, and to the future.
In English, "divergence" means departing away into many directions. Its equivalent in Chinese is "Fen liu". However, the more important thought is where the streams are going after they have diverged. Therefore, music doesn't just simply end on the last note, but travels in a journey which I will spend my whole life to compose.
Divergence, Concerto No.3 for Five Players, has two main sections but is played without pause. At the end of the piece, an ancient Chinese poem is read by the musicians. The title of the poem is "Sheng Sheng Man" (Sounds Ever Slow), written by Li Qing-Zhao, a female poet who lived in Song Dynasty (ca. 1081-1141). I always attempt to merge the past and the present, the East and the West into my music.
Sheng Sheng Man (Sounds Ever Slow)
Sounds Ever Slow
Searching … and searching …
Seeking … and seeking…
So Chill and so clear,
Dreary, and dismal,
And forlorn.
That time of year,
A Warm spell - then it's back to cold,
Hard to find rest.
Two or three cups of weak wine ---
How can they resist the biting wind
That comes with evening?
The wild geese pass ---
That's what hurts most ---
And yet,
they're old acquaintances.
Chrysanthemum petals fill the ground in piles,
Haggard and damaged ---
As they are now, who could bring herself to pick them?
At the window,
Alone ---
how can I brace myself against the encroaching dark?
The plane tree, and on top of that
The drizzling rain,
On until dusk,
The dripping drop after drop.
These things, this moment,
How can one word --- "sorrow" --- say it all?
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