Suzhou Overture 管弦乐曲《苏州序曲》

for Orchestra, 10 minutes

Program Note

Suzhou Overture （10‘） was commissioned by the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, completed in August, 2019. The instrumentation is: 2 flutes (second double piccolo), 2 oboes (second double English horn), 2 clarinets, 2 bassoons (second double contrabassoon), 4 French horns in F, 3 trumpets in C，3 trombones, timpani, percussions (3 players), harp and strings. The premiere performance takes place on May 20, 2020 at Macao Arts Festival, Macao Cultural Center Theater Concert Hall, by the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra conducted by Xu, Zhong. The premiere recording was completed on August 31st, 2019, by the composer conducting the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra.

Suzhou is one of the oldest cities in China with nearly 3,000 years of history. Remarkably, not only the remains of the ancient city have been preserved to this day, the location of the city has not moved for thousands of years, and the prosperity not declined—quite a miracle in the history of world city. More priceless is the comparable development of Suzhou culture which has a profound heritage. This unique cultural chronicle enabled Suzhou to connect the past to the present (such as in poetry, painting, language, gardens, music, religion, embroidery, crafts, etc.). The people of Suzhou love and respect tradition with critical flexibility, evolution and renewal of cultural heritage. Suzhou culture is deeply rooted in the daily lives of the people.

The modern civilization of Suzhou is built under the same philosophy. Today, modernity and the past coexist and complement each other. The new regenerates the old and the integration of the two creates fresh power, ambition and inspiration. Like the world-renowned Suzhou double-sided embroidery, she is a city that fuses present and past, enjoys quiet and leisure in the vigorous 21st century modernization. A stunningly beautiful picture in deed.

In Suzhou Overture, I also tried to embody this old-new sentiment: traditional nostalgia and lyrical melodies move with modern rhythmic vigor, from slow to fast all in one long phrase, reflecting Suzhou’s continuous cultural creativity from the ancient to the present.

—Bright Sheng

管弦乐曲《苏州序曲》乐曲介绍 盛宗亮

《苏州序曲》由苏州交响乐团委約，与2019年8月底完成。曲长10分钟左右。乐队编制为两支长笛（第二兼短笛），两支双簧管（第二兼英国管），两支单簧管，两支大管（第二兼低音大管），四支F调圆号，三支C调小号，三支长号，定音鼓，打击乐（三位乐手），竖琴，弦乐队。该曲2020年 5月20日由苏忠指挥苏州交响乐团在澳门艺术节澳门文化中心综合剧院音乐厅世界首演。首演录音由作曲家与苏州交响乐团在同年八月31日完成。

音乐介绍

苏州现代文明的建设也是在同样的哲理下形成的。当今的苏州，现代与过去并存互补，相映成趣。现代使传统再生， 新、旧的融合产生新力量、新抱负和新灵感。犹如举世闻名的苏州双面绣，她是一个在轰轰烈烈的二十一世纪现代化中能闹中取静，悠闲自得的现代化古城，美轮美奂，浑然天成。

我试图在《苏州序曲》的音乐中体现这份古、今并进的情怀：传统的乡情与现代的节奏共鸣。全曲由慢到快，从抒情的旋律到激昂的节奏，一气呵成，以体现苏州文化和创意从古至今连绵不断，一脉相承

---盛宗亮