Concerts to showcase elegance and rhythm of nanyin music

Concerts to showcase elegance and rhythm of nanyin music
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The Leisure and Cultural Services Department’s Nan Lian Garden Music Series will present “Fujian Nanyin Concert” next week.

Nanyin is one of the oldest surviving forms of Chinese music. The tunes of nanyin are elegant and slow-paced, and at the same time they exude an old-fashioned charm. The music is performed by an ensemble made up of players of the pipa, the dongxiao, the erxian, the sanxian and clappers. Standard nanyin is performed in the Fujian Quanzhou dialect with clear enunciation and orthodox tones. Nanyin is also known as "nanyue" (southern music), "nanqu" (southern song), "xianguan" (string and wind music) and "nanguan" (southern wind music). It is the folk music of the south of Fujian Province along China’s south-eastern coast. The music style also remains among the Fujian dialect-speaking people in the Chinese populations of Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

Performing in the concert is the Xiamen Nanyin Troupe. The musicianship of the players is outstanding, in terms of the harmony, rapport and overall effect of each piece, as found in the melodic lines, rhythm, spirit and timbre. The vocalists are able to deliver accurate emotive control in the use of the voice, clear diction and orthodox tones. The troupe's performances therefore exude a quaint elegance and insight, which have won the group professional acclaim over the decades in the Mainland and overseas.

The programme of the matinee performance (2.30pm) includes "In the Courtyard", "Taking a Stroll", "Lover’s Yearning", "At the Gallery", "Parting at the Terrace", "Sadness in My Heart" and "Trial by Punishment". The programme of the evening performance (7.30pm) includes "Why Should I", "Listening to the Watch at the Gate Tower", "Embroidering a Lone Phoenix", "The Elopement", "Gazing into the Distance Where My Lover Is", "A Picture of a Hundred Flowers" and "The Plum Blossom Tune".

“Fujian Nanyin Concert” will be staged at 2.30pm and 7.30pm on March 16 (Saturday) at the Xiang Hai Xuan Multi-purpose Hall, Nan Lian Garden. Tickets priced at $220 (free seating) are now available at URBTIX outlets, on the Internet and by credit card telephone booking. Half-price tickets are available for senior citizens aged 60 or above, people with disabilities and their minders, full-time students and Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) recipients (limited tickets for full-time students and CSSA recipients available on a first-come, first-served basis). For more information about group and series booking discounts, please refer to the programme leaflet or the Nan Lian Garden Music Series programme brochure.

For programme enquiries, call 2268 7321; for ticketing enquiries, call 2734 9009. For credit card telephone booking,
call 2111 5999. Internet booking is available at www.urbtix.hk.
For more information, visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/music/program_115.html.

Ends/Thursday, March 7, 2013