one thousand curves, ten thousand colours I (1996-97) for soprano, violin, bass clarinet / clarinet,
piano and aXiØ (CD) 18' [performed by Ensemble Resonance, Michelle Todd, soprano]
piano and aXiØ (CD) 18' [performed by Ensemble Resonance, Michelle Todd, soprano]
SCORE EXCERPT:
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The initial spark for one thousand curves ten thousand colours came from Marguerite Yourcenar's story, How Wang-Fo Was Saved, based on a Chinese legend. Wang-Fo is a Han Dynasty painter who is able to see to the very essence of nature and paint it with an astonishing vividness. His paintings adorn the walls of the imperial palace where the Emperor's son grows up in splendid isolation. On the death of his father he becomes the emperor and leaves the palace to see his empire only to find ugliness in the real world. He then summons Wang-Fo with his disciple Ling to the palace to have him complete one unfinished painting of an ocean scene before he is blinded and behanded as punishment for deceiving the emperor. On hearing this, Ling attacks the emperor and is immediately beheaded. As Wang-Fo then paints this ocean scene, water gradually rises about him in the chamber of the palace. A boat, rowed by Ling gradually approaches. Wang-Fo then steps into the boat and is rowed away into his painting by his disciple.When Wang-Fo asks how Ling could still be alive, Ling responds: 'You being alive, how could I have died?'. Wang-Fo then steps into the boat and is rowed away into his painting by his disciple.
The predominant idea which attracts us is the the blending of fantasy and reality through the painting of Wang-Fo, as opposed to the surface perception of the emperor. The intermingling of fantasy and reality is an integral part of the creative artist's perception and understanding of the world. The artist's work acts as a door which we pass through to reach a more profound understanding of ourselves and the world in which we live. one thousand curves ten thousand colours is a musical & visual environment in which acoustic and electroacoustic music, poetry, drama and animated visual images and now dance, are unified to express and amplify the story in a manner which is relevant to and reflects our time. The project was premiered in Calgary in 1997 and performed again at the Pacific Space Centre in Vancouver and the Discovery Dome of the Calgary Science Centre. The next production for the 2001 Cantai Festival production was reconfigured with soundfiles recorded live on the aXiØ (a new digital instrument), DVD video and original choreography. - H.L. & D.E.
We wish to thank Mr. Sunny Hsu for his original Chinese calligraphy and Mr. Yang Mu for the permission to use his poetry. Extracts from Comment Wang-Fu fut sauvé by Marguerite Yourcenar ( Gallimard) are used by permission. DVD rendering and transfer was done by King Huang at the Learning Commons, University of Calgary. Special thanks to Mike Mattson, Learning Commons, University of Calgary. The assistance of the Video, Audio and Computer-Integrated Media section of Canada Council, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, a beneficiary of the Lottery Fund of the Government of Alberta, Calgary Region Arts Foundation and the Government of Canada through Canada’s Year of Asia Pacific is gratefully acknowledged. Travel funding for Ensemble Resonance was generously provided by the Government of Canada, Department of Foreign Affairs.
The initial spark for one thousand curves ten thousand colours came from Marguerite Yourcenar's story, How Wang-Fo Was Saved, based on a Chinese legend. Wang-Fo is a Han Dynasty painter who is able to see to the very essence of nature and paint it with an astonishing vividness. His paintings adorn the walls of the imperial palace where the Emperor's son grows up in splendid isolation. On the death of his father he becomes the emperor and leaves the palace to see his empire only to find ugliness in the real world. He then summons Wang-Fo with his disciple Ling to the palace to have him complete one unfinished painting of an ocean scene before he is blinded and behanded as punishment for deceiving the emperor. On hearing this, Ling attacks the emperor and is immediately beheaded. As Wang-Fo then paints this ocean scene, water gradually rises about him in the chamber of the palace. A boat, rowed by Ling gradually approaches. Wang-Fo then steps into the boat and is rowed away into his painting by his disciple.When Wang-Fo asks how Ling could still be alive, Ling responds: 'You being alive, how could I have died?'. Wang-Fo then steps into the boat and is rowed away into his painting by his disciple.
The predominant idea which attracts us is the the blending of fantasy and reality through the painting of Wang-Fo, as opposed to the surface perception of the emperor. The intermingling of fantasy and reality is an integral part of the creative artist's perception and understanding of the world. The artist's work acts as a door which we pass through to reach a more profound understanding of ourselves and the world in which we live. one thousand curves ten thousand colours is a musical & visual environment in which acoustic and electroacoustic music, poetry, drama and animated visual images and now dance, are unified to express and amplify the story in a manner which is relevant to and reflects our time. The project was premiered in Calgary in 1997 and performed again at the Pacific Space Centre in Vancouver and the Discovery Dome of the Calgary Science Centre. The next production for the 2001 Cantai Festival production was reconfigured with soundfiles recorded live on the aXiØ (a new digital instrument), DVD video and original choreography. - H.L. & D.E.
We wish to thank Mr. Sunny Hsu for his original Chinese calligraphy and Mr. Yang Mu for the permission to use his poetry. Extracts from Comment Wang-Fu fut sauvé by Marguerite Yourcenar ( Gallimard) are used by permission. DVD rendering and transfer was done by King Huang at the Learning Commons, University of Calgary. Special thanks to Mike Mattson, Learning Commons, University of Calgary. The assistance of the Video, Audio and Computer-Integrated Media section of Canada Council, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, a beneficiary of the Lottery Fund of the Government of Alberta, Calgary Region Arts Foundation and the Government of Canada through Canada’s Year of Asia Pacific is gratefully acknowledged. Travel funding for Ensemble Resonance was generously provided by the Government of Canada, Department of Foreign Affairs.