Convergence (Encounter) is more than just a collaborative performance; it is a profound meeting of distinct musical backgrounds and interpretive perspectives on a single stage. Conducted by Wang Zhan, Chair of the Department of Music at National Kaohsiung Normal University, the Tainan City Traditional Orchestra explores a musical dialogue that bridges Western analytical thought with the unique sonic systems of traditional Chinese instrumentation, traversing various forms and cultural lenses.
The concertos illustrate the intersection of the individual and the ensemble. The Erhu Concerto Crossing (Du) adopts a first-person narrative to depict a journey of resilience and transcendence. The double percussion concerto Zest (Jin Jin You Wei) weaves traditional operatic rhythms with modern percussion idioms to evoke vibrant local scenes. Meanwhile, the legendary Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto offers a lyrical narrative born from the seamless blending of Eastern and Western musical languages.
The ensemble pieces highlight the convergence of culture and acoustics. Green: Song of the Wind captures the vastness of the Mongolian grasslands and the spirited nature of its people. Makatao Rhapsody draws from the ritual chants and prayers of Taiwan's indigenous Makatao people, integrating world music rhythms to create a soundscape that is at once deeply rooted and modern in expression.
Under Wang Zhan’s unified vision, these diverse musical philosophies are juxtaposed, transforming the concert into a live site of encounter between the individual and the collective, the traditional and the contemporary, and the East and the West. We invite you to experience this extraordinary cross-cultural musical dialogue.
Performers:
Guest Conductor: Wang Zhan
Erhu: Tsai Chen-yu
Percussion: Wu Kuo-hsuan, Lin Chih-wen
Violin: Hsueh Chih-chang
Orchestra: Tainan City Traditional Orchestra
Program:
Zhang Zhao: Green: Song of the Wind (from the suite The Harmony of Seven Colors)
Feng Kuo-chun: Crossing Erhu Concerto
Wang Danhong: Zest Double Percussion Concerto
Chen Gang & He Zhanhao: Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto (Arr. Chung Yiu-kwong)
Lee Che-yi: Makatao Rhapsody
