China Arts and Entertainment Group Ltd.

EAST/WEST: A Symphonic Celebration

November 13, 2021, 7:30pm

Lincoln Center (Koch Theater)

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It was a lovely Saturday evening at Lincoln Center with China Arts and Entertainment’s EAST/WEST: A Symphonic Celebraton celebrating traditional and modern Chinese music to a full house. The NYC Ballet Orchestra was consistently excellent whether navigating the lush passages of Aaron Copland’s Appalachian Spring Suite or the equally sonorous regional Chinese dance drama selections from Dragon Boat Racing and The Red Dress. The lyrical Cello, Violin and Erhu solos were beautifully played, and only somewhat hampered by amplification. Conductor Jindong Cai showed command of both East and West musical styles and artistry, and was able to make full use of the orchestra’s familiarity with each other and happiness to be playing together again.

Two concerti were featured, one Violin and the other Ehru. Shenghua Hu, who also serves as Principal Second Violin of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, showed extraordinary virtuosity and emotion in Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto, a Chinese folktale familiar to much of the audience. His dramatic storytelling expressed the lyrical, feisty, and tender pathos of the tale, while maintaining crystal clear articulation of the fastest runs.

The Great Wall Capriccio Erhu Concerto, composed for the traditional Chinese bowed two-stringed instrument, is an interesting mix of Chinese instrument, sound and expression, in a western harmonic and musical form. Jiebing Chen, who has brought the solo Erhu to worldwide classical and jazz audiences over her long career, demonstrated amazing technique while still evoking a mellow sound reminiscent of the human voice or the Theremin. Her emotional commitment to the piece and expressive bow work drew the audience in.

Three songs, ancient and modern, were presented to great audience appreciation by three young singers embarked upon opera careers. Esther Maureen Kelly sang Night By the Maple Bridge with a beautiful warm soprano, with graceful physical and vocal expression embodying the text. Holly Flack joined her with a remarkable bell-like extended-range coloratura, for the duet Singing of Goose and Song of Snow, which was not only musically beautiful but comedically clever and playful with the audience, with Chinese language quips that brought the house to peals of laughter. William Guanbo Su sang Eastward the River Rushes with a lustrous resplendent bass that he will be bringing to his Metropolitan Opera debut in 2022.

The passionate grande finale by all three singers and the Orchestra brought down the house. From Jasmine to Turandot arranged by Luo Maishuo, joined the folksong Jasmine Flower and parts of Puccini’s Nessun dorma from Turandot, linking East and West, and reaching across the Lincoln Center Plaza to the Met’s current performances of Turandot.

- Ellen Pearre Cason -