Programme Note

Hundred Antiques is inspired by a traditional Chinese style of decorative arts and textiles known as the Hundred Antiques. As a decorative pattern, it was especially popular as it was incorporated into patterns of rebuses for auspicious wishes. The tradition of using patterns and images to symbolize purposes and meanings that are otherwise not seen on the surface is still extremely popular in modern China, as we see from military parades to decorative patterns on the dresses that people wear and furnishing textiles at homes. As a composer, I found the symbolic nature of the Hundred Antiques fascinating, and wanted to create a musical work that uses contemporary music styles to reflect this lasting tradition and passion. In fact, the choice of combining two of the most popular Chinese traditional instruments (erhu, pipa) with two Western instruments of equal status (violin, cello) is a symbolic gesture to highlight the mosaic of cultures in this new work. I am honored that the Freer Gallery of Art at Smithsonian graciously granted the use of bianzhong (an ancient Chinese musical instrument consisting of a set of bronze bells) from its collection as one of the percussion instruments in this work.

The 15-minute piece is consisted of two movements: Silhouettes, a meditation of lyricism; and Ritual, a fast and rhythmic dance. Hundred Antiques was commissioned by New York-based ensemble Music from China, and Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art in Washington D.C.

—Zhou Tian