CU Chinese Orchestra Society 2009-2010 Annual Concert - Prelude to Spring - Details

We are expecting a large audience so please pre-book your tickets to avoid the queue and get a good seat! To book your tickets please click here. Alternatively, contact: Jeanne Chen Trinity College, Cambridge CB2 1TQ cucosticketing@gmail.com 07887848188 Ruize Zhao Jesus College, Cambridge CB58BL 07859067658 The Cambridge University Chinese Orchestra Society is proud to present our prestigious concert of the year: Prelude to Spring. Featuring a Western and a Chinese orchestra composed of talented musicians and soloists, we will be supporting Kenyi Wang, the exceptional violin soloist for the Butterfly Lovers (LiangZhu) violin concerto. We are honoured to be able to share our musical passion with you as we revive traditional folk songs and fairytales alike. This will be an evening of nostalgia and a celebration of spring; do not miss this chance to hear the Butterfly Lovers violin concerto performed in the magnificent West Road Concert Hall! In addition to the famous 'Butterfly Lovers' concerto, we are also honoured to be joined by another guest violin soloist, Amy Yuan from the Royal Academy of Music in London to perform 'Miao Mountain's Morning', a playful piece inspired by the folk songs from the Miao ethnic group in China. Another star to look out for is our guest Cantonese opera singer Flora Lai, performing a traditional Cantonese opera piece: 'the Beauty of Lychees'. Furthermore, there will be other exciting numbers in our annual concert, such as the Yang Qin solo 'Ode to Yellow River', Xiao and Gu Qin duet 'Yang Guan San Die' and many more. It is indeed an evening not to be missed! Venue: West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge (Free parking and disabled access available) Date: Sunday 28th February Time: 7:30pm Tickets: GBP 9 single/ GBP 7 for a group of 4 or above Or indeed any of our committee members! ===== More detailed information about our concert: Violin Soloist: Kenyi Wang Guest Soloist: Amy Yuan Conductors: Yige Huang, Anthony Leung, Justin Weng --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- About our guest performer, Amy Yuan Amy was born in Beijing and began to play the violin at the age of 4. Her first teachers were Zhilong Wang and Xiaozhi Huang. At the age of 14 Amy won First Prize in the 'Young Beijing Violinist Competition' as well as being appointed leader of the Beijing Youth Chamber Orchestra. In 2003 Amy began her study at Millfield School in Somerset. During her time at Millfield, Amy enjoyed considerable success. She was the 1st violin of the Millfield quartet and also the violinist in the Millfield Piano Trio, where both groups succeeded in getting through to the finals of the National Chamber music competition for three consecutive years. In the summer of 2006 Amy won a place on the London Symphony Orchestra's St. Luke's String Academy course. Here, she was able to work closely with Gordan Nikolitch and David Alberman, leader and principle second violin of the LSO. At the end of the course Amy was awarded the 'Candide Award' for the most promising musician. This was notable for the fact that she was the youngest violinist on the course, the other candidates being of post-graduate age. In the autumn of 2006 Amy was appointed Leader of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain and in this capacity has worked with conductors such as Richard Hickox, Mark Elder and Sir Neville Marriner and performed in most of the major concert halls in the UK. During June 2007, Amy opened the Concert Hall at Millfield School and at the opening concert, played Mozart's violin concerto in G major with London Chamber Orchestra under Christopher Warren-Green. In September 2007, Amy moved to London to study at the Royal Academy of Music with Maurice Hasson. Since then, Amy has taken part in chamber music groups and orchestras in the Academy and has also taken part in various projects with the London Symphony Orchestra. About our guest Chinese Cantonese Opera Singer, Flora Lai Cantonese opera is one of the many types of Chinese opera in existence. Like Western opera, Cantonese opera is a very traditional form of music, and as its name suggests, is sung in Cantonese. It is widely performed in Cantonese-speaking cities in China, including Hong Kong and cities in the Guangdong province. However, though called an 'opera', Cantonese opera is sung in a voice that is very different to the 'opera voice' in Western opera. The 'Cantonese opera voice' is divided into two broad categories: the 'male voice' Ping hou, and the 'female voice' Zhi hou. Zhi hou is not only sung by female artists. Similarly, Ping hou is often sung by female artists as well. Flora, a third year biology student at St. Catharine's College, is a Zhi hou singer. She has been learning Cantonese opera with the renowned Cantonese opera singer Mr Tak Ching Wong in Hong Kong since she was nine. She has performed in over a hundred concerts in prestigious venues in Hong Kong, such as the Hong Kong City Hall and the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, three of which were concerts of her own, where she raised money for various different charities. In her concert in August 2009, where she performed duets with professional opera singers from operatic troupes in mainland China, an equivalent of about GBP 50,000 was raised for a charity for patients with liver conditions in Hong Kong. Flora has also had chances to perform in other cities in China, and also in different places around the world, including the Sky City Theatre in New Zealand. About our Violin soloist, Kenyi Wang Kenyi was born in Chang Sha, China in 1989 and moved to the UK at the age of five. He studied the violin under Roger Hucle. He was a winner of the Two Moors Young Musicians Platform in 2004 and was runner-up in Young Musicians competitions in both Bristol and Bath. Previous concerto performances include the Mendelssohn's E minor and D minor concertos. Kenyi is an experienced chamber player, having attended several summer schools including EYSM, Pro Corda and Cadenza. About our Conductors: Chinese Instrument Department: Anthony Leung Anthony studied Music at University College School in London and also enjoys musical composition as well as production & editing. Western Instrument Department: Yi-Ge Huang Yi-Ge Huang is in his second year of Medicine at St. Edmund's College. He previously graduated in Biological Sciences from Somerville College Oxford, where he was Organ Scholar. Apart from conducting, he is also a keen pianist. Justin Weng Being a co-founder of CU Chinese Orchestra Society, Justin Weng is passionate in bringing the world of Chinese orchestral music to the western audience. His passion for classical music can be traced back to 12 years ago when he first picked up the French Horn and he has since played with major youth orchestras in China. He began his studies in England 6 years ago, when he went on concert tours in the UK with the Shropshire Youth Orchestra. He is currently reading Engineering in his final year at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge.