Rise
(2018) | 7 minutes
Commissioned in honor of the 100th Anniversary of the end of World War I, by The Allentown Symphony Orchestra, The Spokane Symphony, and The Erie Philharmonic, with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts
SCORING 3(picc) . 3(corA) . 3(Bs.Cl) . 3(cbn) / 4331 / timp / 3 perc: glockenspiel, cymbals, snare drum, tam-tam, bass drum / hp / pno / str
Reduced scoring available: 2222 / 4231 / timp. / 2 perc. (2nd opt.) / hp / str.
PREMIERE 10-11 November 2018, Miller Symphony Hall, Allentown, Pennsylvania. The Allentown Symphony Orchestra conducted by Diane Wittry
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Programme Note
“Rise” was inspired by diary entries of American soldiers during World War I. While visiting the Library of Congress, I was drawn to the personal and unmediated experiences and emotions that the soldiers themselves wrote on the battleground. Whether it is a brief note about the weather, a long entry about losing a comrade, or a touching moment when a letter from home arrives – such as ‘letters from home are like the heavens breaking through depressing clouds,’ penned by First Lieutenant Quincy Ayres – the soldiers’ stories moved me deeply. “Rise” attempts to convey the emotions of the simple servicemen – their fears, frustrations, love and awe – through the intimacy and power of the symphony orchestra. To me, this is a musical postcard from 100 years ago.
“Rise” features many solo musicians, who, sometimes playing against the orchestra and sometimes rising above it, are musical narrators of different soldiers’ stories. Although the piece begins darkly, it gets brighter and more hopeful during its 7-minute duration, ending on an uplifting note.
“Rise” was commissioned in honor of the 100th Anniversary of the end of World War I, by the Allentown Symphony Orchestra (Diane Wittry, Music Director), the Spokane Symphony (Eckart Preu), and the Erie Philharmonic (Daniel Meyer), with a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Arts. The work received its world premiere by the Allentown Symphony under Diane Wittry on 11 November 2018, the 100th Anniversary of Armistice Day.
©Zhou Tian
周天（1981-）
《昇華》 | 時長：約7分鐘
由美國國家藝術基金會聯合艾倫城交響樂團、伊利交響樂團、斯波坎交響樂團委約，為紀念第一次世界大戰結束100週年（1918-2018）而作。作品於 2018 年 11 月 11 日，即一戰停戰 100 週年當日，由黛安·威特里指揮艾倫城交響樂團首演。
《昇華》的靈感來自第一次世界大戰期間士兵的日記。在參觀國會圖書館時，我被士兵們自己在戰場上寫下的親身經歷所吸引。日記中，無論是一條紀錄天氣的簡訊，還是寫下失去戰友的悲痛之情，抑或是來自家人的信件到達時的感人時刻（例如昆西·艾爾斯中尉所寫的“來自家的信件就像天堂衝破陰雲密布的天空”——士兵們的故事深深地打動了我。《昇華》試圖通過音樂來傳達人在此特殊時刻的情感——他們的恐懼、挫折、愛和對和平的祈望。對我來說，這是一張來自 100 年前的音樂明信片。樂曲彷彿在一聲砲擊後開始，在其 7 分鐘的時間內慢慢變得明亮，最後在充滿希望的意境中結束。— 周天
Reviews
“In attempting to capture the bittersweet emotions contained in letters and diary entries from the battlefields of World War I, Zhou exhibits both impressive command of writing for orchestra and a distinctive voice. He is able to convey complex and elusive emotions to his listeners, regardless of their level of musical sophistication. The opportunity the Spokane Symphony has given us to sample contemporary concert music shows us that we live in a new Golden Age of musical composition, and fully as worthy of our attention as the great works of the past.”
—The Spokesman-Review
“Zhou is one of those rare composers who, like Jennifer Higdon, one of his teachers, creates music that is accessible and colorful, and begs to be heard over and over.”
—The Morning Call (Pennsylvania)
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