Chinese New Year Celebration: Performer Insight
2019 is the Year of the Pig—a symbol of success and luck. On Feb 2 at NJPAC in Newark, the NJSO hopes to spread success and luck as it presents its first-ever Chinese New Year Celebration. This concert is full of Eastern and Western musical gems, blended in luscious harmony.
We had the opportunity to speak with Wan Zhao, the alto soloist for Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy. Zhao is pursuing a Professional Studies Diploma at the Mannes School of Music in NYC; she told us that she is very happy and honored to be a part of this concert:
“It’s very special and meaningful to me as an international student from China celebrating Chinese New Year in America; it makes me feel the diversity and global culture here.”
Zhao moved to the United States in 2015 to study voice. She is among the unique array of performers that will be led by the NJSO Music Director Xian Zhang for this special evening.
“Getting to work with Chinese conductor Xian Zhang is very exciting! Having such a dynamic conductor who is also Chinese is a perfect match for this New Year concert.”
The eclectic program attempts to unite different styles and cultures. The NJSO hopes that this concert will bring the community together. Zhao told us how meaningful it is for her to celebrate the New Year in this way:
“We don’t get to spend this holiday with family in China because school has always already started at this time, but to perform such a special concert with a fantastic orchestra is such an honor—what a wonderful alternative way to celebrate!”
Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, a testimony of art’s divine power, is an important early example of combined musical elements that create a greater whole. Zhao explained:
“Even though Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy is a Western piece of music, it definitely fits the New Year concert theme alongside other Chinese pieces on the program. My interpretation of the Choral Fantasy in this concert is celebrating … the vividness of the New Year.”
The program also features pieces by Chinese composers—Li Huanzhi and Tan Dun—as well as excerpts from Italian operas featuring Chinese and Japanese choruses—Puccini’s “Jasmine Chorus” from Turandot and “Humming Chorus” from Madame Butterfly.
Wan Zhao and this concert exemplify how when a variety of cultural identities are shared through music, they become seamlessly blended colors on the tapestry of human expression. Wan wished to emphasize that she “truly feels that music is a borderless language”—and we couldn’t agree more. You do not want to miss the NJSO’s first-ever Chinese New Year Celebration.
Post by Michael Rosin
Chinese New Year Celebration Concert
2018–19 Season
Start a new tradition at the NJSO’s first-ever Chinese New Year celebration, conducted by Xian Zhang. Musical riches abound in this program that blends Eastern and Western musical traditions. Li Huanzhi’s Spring Festival Overture is beloved in China yet almost reminiscent of Copland’s America. Songs and arias from opera and traditional Chinese culture show that music bridges all cultures. Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy with pianist Min Kwon brings all elements of this sumptuously crafted program together in a joyful performance.