An ‘unplugged’ New Year’s Concert, featuring Guangdong folk music, is to be performed by the Guangdong Music & Folk Art Troupe at Guangzhou Opera House this Sunday night, December 29th, 2019.

A poster of the concert [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

The concert features a series of traditional Cantonese instruments, including gaohu and xylophone. Gaohu is one of the major instruments used in traditional Cantonese music. With its intensely lyrical sound, the gaohu is often used for highly expressive musical passages. By contrast, the xylophone’s sound is wooden, yet bright and clear.

Xylophone (L) and gaohu [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

Cantonese music is a romantic take on Cantonese, with performances conjuring poetic imagery. Take the plucked-string ensemble’s 'The Dancing Droplets on the Lotus' as an example. This piece depicts a duet between the water drops and the lotus. On a mid-summer day, after the rain, the lotus petals and leaves are covered by a multitude of raindrops. A nice breeze comes, the and the raindrops start dancing along with the lotus, an ecstatic ode to a mid-summer day.

The concert will be held at the Experimental Theater, a small and cozy venue with only 350 seats and amazing acoustics, aiming to bring the audience close to the performance. Without amplifiers or electronic sound effects, this concert will bring the audiences closer to the original sound of Cantonese folk.

Cantonese Music performance [Photo provided to Newsgd.com]

Time: 7:30 pm, Sunday, December 29th, 2019

Venue: Experimental Theatre, Guangzhou Opera House

Tickets: RMB 180, 280, 380

Duration: 90mins (without intermission)

* Concert with commentary in English.

* Each ticket can only be used by one person. Children under 1.2m aren’t allowed to attend.

Scan the QR code or call 020-38392888 to buy ticket.

Programme

1. Instrumental Ensemble, City of Goats, City of Spring

2. Zhutiqin Solo, Tipsy Man Fishing for The Moon

3. Guangdong Music Quintet, United We Go & Orioles Singing among the Billowing Willows

4. Plucked-String Ensemble, The Dancing Droplets on the lotus

5. Dizi Solo, The Harvest Sickles

6. Xylophone Solo, Billowing Waves & Horse Riding

7. Gaohu, Zheng, Dizi Trio, Spring in the Lychee Bay

8. Pipa Solo, Spring Comes to Baiyun Mountain

9. Hard-bow Ensemble (Traditional Cantonese Ensemble), Lost in Music

10. Gaohu and Orchestra, Birds Returning to the Woods

11. Instrumental Ensemble, Stepping High

Author: Monica Liu

Editor: Simon Haywood