Clima(c)tic Consensus
for flute and guitar

Kangyi Zhang 2021
Demo using Cakewalk.
Photography: Ding Ding

According to the 2021 UN World Meteorological Organization Report, climate disasters killed 115 people and caused US$ 202 million in losses daily over the past 50 years. Each decade from the 1980s has been warmer than all the decades that came before, and 2019 concludes the warmest decade in records since the mid-19th century. The number of billion-dollar climate catastrophes has increased from 29 events in 1980s to 119 in 2010s.

During the conception and composition of this work, news headlines were reporting on wildfires in Australia, the Amazon and the US west coast. Severe fires also hit Greece, Turkey, Spain and Siberia, while once-in-a-century flooding wreaked havoc in Europe and Asia. Further delay in mitigating climate change will lead to greater deaths, property destruction, and dire economic impact.

Motifs in this first movement are derived from Spanish Vaqueirada folk tunes. The beginning speaks of calm before imminent storm. Beneath the beautiful flute melody is an uncertain changing tonality. Next, fast tempo dominates with an almost perpetual motion to depict the calamities of floods and wildfires. The music progresses eventually to a climax where the Vaqueirada melodic theme is finally presented in a grandiose fashion. The climactic percussive ending represents a sudden plunge into an apocalyptic world.

Clima(c)tic Consensus for flute & guitar

This piece was partly inspired after watching the TED talk “The Neuroscience of Decision-Making: Are We Foul or Fair?” by Kimberly Papillon. Facial features, accents or just a name can change our decisions dramatically. Two equally qualified persons can be either accepted or rejected for a job due to implicit associations of their names. Accents can create unconscious bias of intelligence and competence. Facial features can skew us in our judgement of someone’s trustworthiness.

Judging can be taken at multiple dimensions. The score starts off with repetitive quarter notes before progressing in complexity. My challenge was to convey the idea “Never judge a music by the score”. I wanted the players to perceive classical Mozart as equally challenging as modern complex scores like Ferneyhough and Xenakis. I have encountered numerous complex scores involving quintuplets, septuplets etc. which are impossible to be precise and in-sync with other human players. Here, I challenge myself to limit this score to the basic rhythms: duplets, triplets and quadruplets.

Another judging dimension occurs in the performance aspect. A tight-knit duo is mandated by the precise interactions between the violinist and pianist. This creates the vision of two players as one single entity.

Judging from the opening music, the listener (with no access to the score) forms preconceived notions about the minimalistic approach of the remainder of the piece. This is similar to how we rapidly form definitive first impressions about someone from non-verbal observations. Each listener holds a different schema and judges how the music will progress - as anticipated or with surprises. My belief of the ideal would be a healthy balance of both.

Always Judging for Violin and Piano

Le Boeuf: Don't Say A Word

Taken from the soundtrack to 'Tabu'.
Released via Gizeh Records on December 16th 2016.
www.christineott.fr/disques.html

The live soundtrack "Tabu, a story of the south seas",
created in 2012 on the movie by F.W. Murnau & Robert Flaherty
All tracks composed & performed by Christine Ott
with Torsten Böttcher on 2, 6 & 9
Christine Ott : Piano, Ondes Martenot, Percussions
Torsten Böttcher : Hang

• • •

1. First Chapter - Paradise
2. Reri
3. Consolation
4. Course Vers La Mer
5. Hitu, La Grande Montagne
6. Sorrow / Lover's Dance
7. The Warning
8. Paradise Lost
9. Oriental Dance
10. Mandat d'Arrêt / La Perle
11. Hitu's Appearance
12. Cursed Lagoon
13. Hitu's Shadow
14. Le Sourire de Matahi / Consolation (Var. I)
15. Comptoir Chinois
16. Consolation (Variation II)
17. Rêve & Perle Noire
18. Tempête / The Tabu

• • •

Christine Ott is giving us, with this new album, her first inspiration to the screen - spontaneous and sometimes fragile. There is indeed a secret link which joins together Reri, daughter of the water, to Christine, sister of the Ondes Martenot. In these pure moments when Ott’s piano becomes a waterfall, a river, an ocean. In these heartbreaking moments when the composer, without ever over-playing manages to simply let go, thanks to a very mysterious and fascinating instrument, the tears that the audience may not always dare to have. [Thierry Méranger, Les Cahiers du Cinéma]

Le Sourire De Matahi - Consolation (variation I)

10th December 2017, 7.30pm, Victoria Concert Hall
Postcards from Singapore
premiered by Soh Wei Qi
2017 National Piano & Violin Competition (Singapore) 
Prize Winners Concert
Set piece for senior category

In this work, I share three different facets of Singapore which I find unique. Music materials are derived from several Malay folk-songs popular in the Malay Archipelago (Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia etc.) – Dayung Sampan, Chan Mali Chan, Rasa Sayang. The work begins with “Civilian War Memorial” to highlight the trials and tribulations suffered during WWII. Located prominently in the heart of the central business district, this memorial reminds us of the war atrocities, particularly the Sook Ching massacre. The peaceful melody of Dayung Sampan gradually gains momentum and a sense of grief.

Next, I write about “Hawker Centres”, a fast polyrhythmic section where Rasa Sayang melody is juxtaposed with Chan Mali Chan. I have always been impressed by how overseas Singaporeans are willing to drive long distances for great Asian food. At our local food paradise, the atmosphere is joyful amidst the intense noise and chaos. Singaporeans fight aggressively for seats and “chope” the tables with tissue packets or other objects. To symbolize this, the pianist taps the piano loudly. As I was writing this work, a couple was charged over a shoving incident at Toa Payoh hawker centre. Such an ugly spat is rare but it reminds me of the competitiveness of Singaporeans.

The view of Marina Bay is a popular feature on many Singapore postcards. Against all odds, this young nation rapidly rose from third world to first. I imagine the skyscrapers, which are monuments of success, rising above the waters. The arpeggios at the beginning returns and the Rasa Sayang theme appears prominently. Finally, I included a short coda “Honoring our Forefathers”. The best way to honor them is to appreciate their contributions and strive for greater success.

Postcards from Singapore premiered by Soh Wei Qi

Garritan Personal Orchestra 4: Arthur-Kieran - Ottarine

Trois histoires

1. Monsoon Storm
2. Sunrise through the Trees
3. Song of the Rainforest
4. Fire, the Giver and Destroyer of Life
5. Dance of Oneness (including some Rice Wine)
6. Canopy Dreams

STIRRINGS within the Rainforest somewhere in Southeast Asia (6 movements)

Talented trombonist Wes Lebo sits in to discuss his unique path to become a professional musician as well as his experiences on and off the stage in Columbia during the 2018 season of Hot Summer Nights. (Selections from Rosa Parks and the Freedom Riders and I Have a Dream from Kangyi Zhang’s “Let Freedom Ring” Concerto in Singapore).

102 - Hot Summer Nights with Trombonist Web Lebo

Unknown album (9/17/2018 8:23:10 AM)

Incantation

Da Chara

Kangyi has performed on various stages in Singapore, Malaysia and the United States. As a composer, his music are often programmatic and based on personal life and experiences. He also aims to raise public awareness on important historical events. 

For full list of performances and compositions, please visit www.kangyizhang.com .

Clima(c)tic Consensus for flute & guitar

Kangyi Zhang

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