Ming Zeng
Mu Dan Ting (CD)

FY8195

The music of Kunqu is a virtual treasure chest of classical Chinese music but much neglected by contemporary scholars and musicians. It is the eldest form of Opera, and has influenced deeply other form of Opera like Peking Opera.
Kunqu music is originally composed to accompany the singing of drama poetry, to enhance feelings of joy, sadness, bravura, as well as depict landscapes and scenic beauty. This music has survived for five hundred years because of the elegant and sophisticated poetry of its lyrics, appreciated more widely as works of literature. In stage performance, audience members are more often mesmerized by elegant stagecraft, beautiful costumes, soaring vocalization, and flowing choreography. But the intrinsic beauty of Kunqu music frequently goes unrecognized and unexplored.
The bamboo flute is the obligatory accompaniment for singing Kunqu, it must support the singer, but not be overpowering, Zeng Ming is a skilled accompanist, but he is also able to bring out the unique flute style of Kunqu, as well as his superior artistry. ZENG Ming is a recognized master of Kunqu flute. His combination of contemporary concert bamboo flute techniques with the “early music” style of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), brings the beauty of Kunqu music into sharp relief. To record an anthology of unaccompanied Kunqu flute music, however, has never been attempted before by any other flutist, the results are astonishing.
The Chinese bamboo flute dizi is a deceptively simple instrument: a bamboo tube 37-41 cm in functional lengths sizes depending on the required range. It has a blowing hole; a membrane covers an hole down from the blowing hole; the membrane is very delicate and when the flute is blown the membrane vibrates to give the flute its distinctive timbre and penetrating sound. Dizi is the only instrument in the Chinese orchestra that does not require amplification when played with full orchestration.
ZENG Ming, is a master of Kunqu Opera flute and bamboo flute who performs in Asia, Europe, and North America. He graduated at the Jiangsu Province Opera Institute, with a specialization in Kunqu opera flute, when he was 20 years old. He studied with famous dizi flute masters ZENG Yulin, LIN Keren, YU Xunfa and ZHAO Songting. From 1993 to 2005, he performed as First flutist of the Jiangsu Province Kun Opera Troupe while Associate director of the Opera Ensemble. He further specialized in traditional Kunqu flute music under the guidance of great Kunqu masters Chuanyue Ni and Chuangang Xue. From 2006 to 2008, he was professor of chinese bamboo flute at the Jiangsu Drama Institute, and invited teacher for chinese flute and Kunqu music at the University of California, Berkeley.
Since 2009, he is professor at the Jiangsu Institute of Educational Science, Jiangsu Institute for Education. In 2012, he was invited by the University of music of Geneva , for a collaboration with the famous international Pipa Master Yu Lingling, together, they gave Masterclasses, workshops and performed as duo and solo for Kunqu Opera music and Chinese classic music in Europe.

Published: 2013

Genre: Asia & Oceanic
Label: Felmay