Commissioned music creates cultural bonds

Beijing audiences receive auditory feast as Western techniques enhance Chinese traditions, Chen Nan reports.

In 2010, composer Zhou Long was commissioned by the Beijing Music Festival and Boston Opera House to write Madame White Snake, an opera based on a famous Chinese folk tale that earned him the Pulitzer Prize for music in 2011.

Soon after, when Zhou met his old friend maestro Yu Long, founder of the Beijing Music Festival, Yu initiated the idea of commissioning the composer to write a new piece based on Jiu Ge, or Nine Songs, a classical Chinese poem series by patriotic Chu state poet Qu Yuan during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC).

"Yu showed great passion for the idea sparked by Jiu Ge, an ancient text that has long fascinated him. As our conversation went deeper, I was equally enthralled," recalls Zhou, who is known for using traditional Chinese motifs while applying the techniques and structures of Western opera traditions, a combination that defines his international reputation.