DZFE opens the year with a symphonic gala, presented to you in partnership with the WFMT Radio Network.
A new program from our partner debuts on January 8: THIS WEEK FROM CHINA’S NATIONAL CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS (Sat 1900). The National Centre for the Performing Arts Orchestra, led by its principal conductor Lü Jia, offers Western classical masterworks alongside creations by new and traditional Chinese composers. Founded in 2010, the internationally renowned Orchestra has collaborated with the likes of Lorin Maazel, Zubin Mehta, Valery Gergiev, Christoph Eschenbach, Rudolf Buchbinder, Lang Lang, Yuja Wang, Renee Fleming, and many others. The Orchestra is housed in the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in Beijing; and the radio series is hosted by George Preston who is also the executive producer of the series with Jennifer Hou Kwong.
The National Centre for the Performing Arts Orchestra inaugurates the series with the stunning Erhu Concerto from Tan Dun’s powerful soundtrack to the film /Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon/. The episode concludes with the Symphony No. 6 in F “Pastoral” by Beethoven, whose symphonic works are among the series’ highlights. More traditional Chinese instruments will be heard throughout the program, such as the dizi (a traditional flute) in Julian Yu’s Concerto on Chinese Themes, and a lively trio of percussion soloists in Xu Changjun’s “Dragon Dance”.
Look forward to a performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 “Emperor” with celebrated Chinese pianist Lang Lang in the latter part of the series. Cherished waltzes by Alexander Glazunov and Johann Strauss II, Claude Debussy’s “La mer” and “Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune”, and outstanding original Chinese compositions by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang, Zhao Jiping, and many more enrich the listening experience. The series closes with a brilliant showcase: Lü Jia conducts the NCPA Orchestra and Chorus in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 with soprano Song Yuanming, alto Zhu Huiling, tenor Xue Haoyin, and bass Liang Li.
Also this January from the WFMT Radio Network — Starting January 13, the doors of the Davies Symphony Hall open once again to DZFE listeners as a new season of the SAN FRANCISCO SYMPHONY broadcast (Thu 1500) begins. The Orchestra, with its current music director Esa-Pekka Salonen, presents fresh programs every week featuring traditional repertory and new music—their signature since 1911. The new season debuts with recordings of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 and Symphony No. 10, originally performed by the Orchestra with its former music director Michael Tilson Thomas.
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