YangKo

Chen Yi

2005

Violin, percussion (2)

YangKo, originating in northern China, is a major folk dance form in mass performance popularized in the country. In a YangKo performance, people always play rhythmic patterns on the drums hung around their waists while singing and dancing. In my piece YangKo, I have imagined a warm scene of YangKo dancing in the distance. The solo violin plays a sweet and gracious melodic line imitation a beautiful girl’s singing, supported by the sound produced by the two percussionists, who play instruments and recite percussive words, with the evergoing pulse, imitating the warm scene of the dance parade in the background. Under request of Network for new Music ensemble, the piece is adapted from the second movement of my Chinese Folk Dance Suite for violin and orchestra, premiered by NNM at its dance program in Philadelphia on March 8 and 9, 2005.
—Chen Yi