Bang Di solo + 3.3.3.3./4.3.2.1./timp/3 perc./arpa/archi Dur. ca. 7' min.
Skrevet til og uropført af Qian Jun og Shanghai Symphony Ochestra under ledelse af Terje Mikkelsen 11/05/08
Shanghai Grand Theatre
EWH

Of fire and Earth - Concerto for Bang Di and Symphony Ochestra
Skrevet til Shanghai Spring International Music Festivals komponistkonkurrence, hvor den vandt 2. pris.

Programnote

Koncerten er baseret på den kinesiske folkemelodi "The Shoulder-Pole of Boxwood" (som selvfølgelig ikke er mere kinesisk end dansk er, men jeg kløjs i oversættelsen). Deraf et meget pentatont og, ja, kinesisk lydbillede. Fokus er på instrumentalisten som udfolder sig oppe i de høje luftlag, som en sprudlende ild, kommenteret af det dybe slagtøj og messings jordklange.
SHN 2008

Bang Di solo + 3.3.3.3./4.3.2.1./timp/3 perc./arpa/archi Dur. ca. 7' min.
Written for and premiered by Qian Jun og Shanghai Symphony Ochestra conducted by Terje Mikkelsen 11/05/08
Shanghai Grand Theatre
EWH

Toggle sound to hear the premieres last minutes

Programnote

Short version
Written for Shanghai Music Festival 2008, based on the chinese melodi "The Shoulder pole of Boxwood" The title refers to the musics twosidedness with furious wild rythmic gestures in the trebble and sinister movements in the bass. And in this landscape the Bang Di unfolds its lines.
SHN 2008.

Long version
"Of Fire and Earth" means either something "made of" fire and earth, or a story of fire and earth. Or maybe something else. The title refers to two different layers in the piece: The violent rushing high notes (fire?) and the solid bass (earth). In between these two kinds of music plays the flute. That is, it actually plays very high pitched notes, and therefore lies mostly in the "fire"-area. I chose the flute because I liked its sound, and because I like the extreme registers - the high sounding notes and the deep basses.
All of the music is based on the melody "The shoulderpoles of boxwood". If you play the melody very fast you get a nice dancing rythm, which is used most of the time. Also the melody is very nice, with its many thirds. Both rythm and melody appealed to me very musc, and that is why I chose it. In a way "Of Fire and Earth" is all about getting close to the melody, which present itself most clearly in a solo cadenza towards the end of the piece.
What do I wish to express in the music?? I think it is irrelevant. The question is: what does the listener experience? Only the listener can tell that!