Shantung Traditional Music and Music of the Cheng (1974)

Details

Description

This is a rare and historic Chinese music film showing members of the older generation of traditional musicians from China's Shandong province, entitled "Shantung Traditional Music and Music of the Cheng" (1974). The performance probably took place in New York City in April 1972.

The film was produced by the New York State Education Dept and the Asia Society of New York City. The film was produced by Jerry Silverstein, directed by Ed Devany, and introduced by Beate Gordon (1923-2012). Gordon was an Austrian-born American performing arts presenter who served as Performing Arts Director of both the Japan Society and the Asia Society.

This performance, featuring the Lu Sheng Ensemble of Taipei, Taiwan, captures the excitement from the province of Shantung (Shandong, 山东) in the People's Republic of China. Chinese instruments are shown in conjunction with beautiful scroll paintings that serve to illustrate the musical selections. Examples of this music are played on the suona (唢呐, shawm), dizi (笛子, transverse bamboo flute with buzzing membrane), sheng (笙, free-reed mouth organ), shuangguan (双管, paired double-reed pipe), zhuihu (坠胡, vertical fiddle with fretless fingerboard), yueqin (月琴, short-necked moon lute), and percussion. Two solos on the zheng (筝, bridge zither) contrast with the ensemble.

The performers include:
● Liu Feng-Sung (刘凤松), sheng, suona, and shuangguan
● Liu Wen-Tsai (刘文彩), percussion
● Liu Feng-Tai (刘凤岱, born c. 1915), sheng and suona
● Chen Yu-Kang (陈裕刚), dizi
● Liu Chi-Sheng (刘基生)
● Ko Min-Chiou (葛敏久)
and
● Liang Tsai-Ping (梁在平, zheng and director)

Sponsored by the Asia Society, Liang Tsai-ping directed the Shantung Music Ensemble in 50 recitals in the United States in the spring of 1972, including concerts in New York City and Ann Arbor, Michigan. In 1972 Nonesuch Records released the LP "China: Shantung Folk Music & Traditional Instrumental Pieces," performed by the Lu-sheng Ensemble, Liang Tsai-p'ing, director.

Liang Tsai-Ping (梁在平, b. Gaoyang County (高阳县), Hebei, China, February 23, 1910 or 1911; d. Taipei, Taiwan, June 28, 2000) was a master of the guzheng (古筝), a Chinese traditional zither. He is considered one of the 20th century's most important players and scholars of the instrument.

The Lu Sheng Ensemble (鲁声国乐社) or Shantung Music Ensemble (山东古乐团), although based in Taipei, was made up primarily of traditional musicians who had migrated to Taiwan from Laiyang (莱阳市), Yantai (烟台市), on the Shandong Peninsula in northeastern Shandong province in mainland China around the time of China's 1949 revolution.

The Asia Society was founded in 1956 by John D. Rockefeller III, with the mission of promoting greater knowledge of Asia in the United States.

More about this program:
http://ums.aadl.org/ums/programs_1972...
http://media.aadl.org/documents/pdf/u...

More about the group's 1972 LP:
https://www.discogs.com/Lu-sheng-Ensemble-China-Shantung-Folk-Music-Traditional-Instrumental-Pieces/release/2856428
http://www.worldcat.org/title/china-shantung-folk-music-traditional-instrumental-pieces/oclc/276866571&referer=brief_results

More information:
https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%8E%B1%E8%A5%BF%E9%BC%93%E5%90%B9%E4%B9%90