Butterfly Lovers Piano And Violin
Dorian Aldrege
The Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto (梁山伯与祝英台小提琴协奏曲; often abbreviated simplified Chinese: 梁祝小提琴协奏曲; traditional Chinese: 梁祝小提琴協奏曲) is one of the most famous Chinese works of orchestral music. It is an adaptation of an ancient legend, the Butterfly Lovers. Written for a Western-style orchestra, it features a solo violin played using some Chinese techniques.
This concerto is written in traditional 5-note technique (pentatonic scale). It uses melodies from Shaoxing Opera, chord structures and patterns, and tries to imitate the playing techniques of Chinese musical instruments.[1][2] This gives the piece a distinctive "Chinese" sound, though it uses tonal harmonies.
The concerto was written in 1959 by two Chinese composers, He Zhanhao [zh] (何占豪, born 1933) and Chen Gang (陈钢, born 1935), while they were students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.[2][3] The work is a common feature in figure skating and in concert halls worldwide. This concerto is now often performed with Chinese instruments playing the violin part, the most common being Erhu, Pipa, and Liuqin. In such cases the soloist is often accompanied by an orchestra consisting of Chinese instruments.
He Zhanhao is more widely credited for the composition of the concerto. However, his main contribution was the famous opening theme while most of the development was in fact written by Chen Gang. This was revealed in an interview of by China Central Television with several artists contributed in the creation and popularity of this work in China and worldwide.[4]
The 1959 premiere of the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto featured 18-year-old violinist Yu Lina and took place in Shanghai as part of the celebration of the tenth anniversary year of the founding of the People's Republic of China. It was first recorded in 1959 with Yu as soloist and the Symphony Orchestra of Shanghai Music Conservatory conducted by Fan Cheng-wu, and later by Shen Rong in 1961 with the same orchestra and conductor. The latter recording was re-released in 1977 by China Record Company. [2] A recording of the work with Gil Shaham as the violin soloist that is conducted by Lan Shui leading the Singapore Symphony Orchestra is heard often on radio stations such as WSMR (FM), Sarasota Manatee Classical.[5]
The concerto is in one movement, but is broken into seven distinct sections. Each tells a different part of the story of the Butterfly Lovers. Some of the melodies come from the Chinese Opera of the same name or from traditional Chinese folk songs. The solo violin of the concerto is symbolic of Zhu Yingtai, the story's protagonist, and the cello part is symbolic of Liang Shanbo, her lover.
The concerto begins with two-fifths in D by the harp, after which a solo flute opens with a flowery melody, setting the scene of the story. A solo oboe enters with the strings in G major, after which the solo violinist enters and begins a simple melody. This melody comes from a Chinese folk song of the Yellow River (Huanghe), and tells the story of Zhu Yingtai's childhood. The solo violin is accompanied by a harp and other elements of the orchestra. On the road to Hangzhou for her studies, Zhu (disguised as a man) meets Liang for the first time; a cello solo intertwines with the violin, bringing a new, but still melodious theme and modulating to D major. As the cello exits, the orchestral tutti plays the same melody of the solo violin, with occasional violin entrances in between. As the first buds of love begin to blossom, a short violin cadenza using mostly the G-pentatonic scale expresses Zhu's joy of her and Liang's oath of fraternity.
The orchestra begins the next section in E major, the violin entering with a fast and jovial melody, representing Zhu and Liang's busy three years of school. Many examples of violin technique are represented, namely spiccato, fast playing over a wide range of notes, and even arpeggios, in a standard display of difficulty for a violin concerto.
As the end of their schooling draws near, Liang and Zhu grow sad as they realize that their time together is nearly over. Zhu invites Liang to visit her family and to court her sister. He doesn't know that Zhu is really inviting him to marry her. Liang promises to see Zhu again, but Liang waits before doing so.
When Zhu returns home, she finds that her father has promised her to the son of a rich family. The solo violin struggles against the forces of the orchestra, representing her protests against her father.
When Liang arrives, he sees Zhu and realizes that she is a woman, and they fall in love. The solo violin and cello solo play an emotional duet, one of the most famous and powerful sections of the work.
The love duet between the two is replaced by anger as Liang learns that in his absence, Zhu has been betrothed to another. The solo violin launches into a brilliant and difficult passage, supported by chords from the orchestra, but eventually returns to the original melody representing love, accompanied again by the cello solo. Liang becomes sick and dies as the duet draws to a close. Another virtuosic section for the solo and orchestra combines both the slow melodies and the fast energetic passages introduced before. The section ends with the suicide of Zhu as the solo violin ends with an abrupt high note.
The lovers' parts are united by a final section, with the solo violin and the orchestra redeveloping the opening theme to build to a triumphant climax. The concerto ends bittersweetly with a final melodic phrase from the solo violin, concluding mysteriously on a high D from the strings. In the legend, Liang's grave opens and Zhu throws herself into the chasm; the ending portraying the lovers' transformation into butterflies, never to be separated again.[8]
I am a Chinese, so I have heard of the Concerto. But since there are many violinists from other countries, I would like to ask about your opinions on the piece because it is totally different from violin concertoes in western countries.
Someone was talking about butterflies, and the most amazing violin solo was interspersed with the discussion. The music was absolutely suited to butterflies, and so brilliant it made me grab the radio.
No mp3s of Butterfly Lover's Concerto were in evidence. I wonder which of Siqing Lu's many recordings is the best. I also wonder how many other awesome Chinese violinists there are, and whether one of them might have made the most definitive recording of this piece.
I've studied this concerto before, and boy is it hard! The intonation has to absolutely perfect, the phrasing is hard to interpret...but in the end, I still love it! The conductor of a community orchestra that I auditioned for refused to do Butterfly because he said that the orchestral parts were too hard...I guess that is true.
I'd stay away from the MARCO POLO recording of Si-qing Lu with the Sanghai Symphony Orchestra...his intonation [and not to mention the orchestra's!] is shaky and rather noticeable in a few places, and his phrasing is rather, well...I can't describe it, but it just doesn't fit.
The HUGO recording of Zhao-hui Kong with the Central Philharmonic Orchestra of China is much better [at least I find]. Kong's playing is very lyrical, his intonation is very good, and his phrasing is superb and fits the piece very well.
Marie I think that would be the Concerto. This concerto in fact is totally different from other Western Concertoes, because of its style. It is a tough piece also with its beautiful and touhing melody.
I performed a concerto written for Ehru and Violin with a wonderful Ehru player from China. Her name is Jiebing Chen. I think she has recorded the butterfly concerto in China.. I enjoyed working with her. She is extremely talented and musical. This was my first experience with the Erhu and it was fun to hear the blending of the western violin sounds with the haunting eastern sounds of the erhu.
I have heard this concerto. A young fellow who knew/met the composer played it at the local university in LA. I remember remarking to myself at the time that the sound was very characteristic, and sounded like the orient, at least to me. I couldn't envision myself playing it though, and I only mean that in the sense that I would not be able to get the inflections as I heard it played. I believe it takes living in to thoughly absorb and environment. It sounded very much to me like the language! He must have been good at interpreting it, at least I hope that makes sense. For me it was a very interesting work and lucky for me to hear someone who knew first hand from the composer, from his own country, play the work with such authenticity. It was a pleasure :-)
You brought up an interesting idea though and perhaps alot of music appreciation comes from enjoying other cultures and sharing what each culture has to offer. Are we not ambassitors, so to speak, in music? It's nice to hear differences as it adds alot of color and variety to art. Wouldn't it be a dull world if we all sang the same song?
This is a bit off the topic, but I remember in a course I had at MSU, the professor played for us "White Hair Girl", an opera. Again, I was totally captivated by the way the soprano sang the work. Is it still performed? The opera was played on a PBS channel once about 20 years back, the last time I saw it. The artist who played the white hair girl was stunning, she sang exactly in the haunting sounds expressed above. The staging of the set also was very mystical. The music fit the words so well, (the Libretto goes first, music fitting words?), the audience is drawn into the story. Anyway, opera is that way, and from one appreciator I enjoyed it.
I do not know their Chinese names, so I will just call them Romeo And Juliet. In ancient times in China, girls were not allowed to leave home for school. Juliet wanted to attend a good school, so with her parents permission, she dressed as a guy to attend a boarding school. She met Romeo there. They became best friends, and R did not know J was a gal.
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