The Butterfly Lovers

Zhan-hao / Chen, Gang He (Composer), Huichang Yan (Composer), Xiaogu Zhu (Composer), Xiaogu / Zhang, Xiaofeng Zhu (Composer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Composer: Zhan-hao / Chen, Gang He, Huichang Yan, Xiaogu Zhu, Xiaogu / Zhang, Xiaofeng Zhu
• Audio CD (July 28, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Naxos
• ASIN: B000009OMB
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,762 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A comptent attempt, nothing more., October 3, 2003

By 

glengariffe (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Butterfly Lovers (Audio CD)

When the "Butterfly Lover Concerto" was first conceived, it was intended to distill the best of Western classical and traditional Chinese folk music into an well-paced and passionate narrative drama. To bring out its full color and texture, Chinese folk musical instruments were brought in. The concerto divides into "Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai studying together", "saying goodbye", "Zhu resisting the arranged marriage"), "Liang and Zhu meeting again in Zhu's house, and finaly "Lovers transforming into butterflies". The violinist here is the voice of the young lovers. In neither the Naxos or Marco Polo version could Ms. Nishizaki convey much emotion through her interpretation. Too many details, when emphasized and refined, would have significantly elevated the interpretation, were sadly neglected. The Bratislava Orchestra in the Marco Polo CD did not provide enough support, sounding perfunctory and all too timid. In contrast, the Shanghai orchestra in the Naxos CD did a much better job in maintaining the dialogue with the soloist. As for other pieces played by Nishisaki, I feel that she was competent, but lacked character.

To this date, Ms. Yu Li Na, the first person ever to play the Butterfly concerto, remains its best interpreter. Technically superb, she never let it overshadow the most important elements in the concerto: love, loss, and devotion. And she made it sound SO easy. Her attention to the details was exquisite and gratifying: I feel like I can hear the lovers murmur, the wills clash and butterflies fluttering in the storm. It takes a lot of guts to display such vulnerability and intimacy in her interpretation.

In a recording from the late 50s (which I think is available on cassettes), Ms. Yu also recorded the pieces which Ms. Nishizaki played in the Naxos and Marco Polo CDs. She brought much more vitality and intimacy to her music. You don't just hear the music, you see vivid images and hear laughters and shouts of joy.

I do not usually write such long reviews. But the "Butterfly Lover Concerto" is very close to my heart. Tapes of her music are usually available in Chinese bookstore. I sincerely hope whoever is interested in modern Chinese music also takes the time to discover Ms. Yu.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Elegant, charming, and fine., February 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Butterfly Lovers (Audio CD)

When compared to the version on the Marco Polo label, this performance of the famous Chinese programmatic concerto comes in a close second, even with the same solo violinist, Takako Nishizaki, and with the first conductor of the work. However, by itself, it is a very engaging performance. Fan Chengwu uses rubato throughout the piece to pull out the strong emotions. However, using it at the beginning with the already very sweet Chinese melody, itself already emotional, might have been a bit more distracting than helpful. The colors here are heard much more brightly than during the performance on the Marco Polo label, but some of it is a bit distracting, such as with the percussions, when not balanced totally. Chengwu's use of rubato during the development of the concerto, however, is very effective, and the ending, in contrast, is delicately moving. The other three pieces on here are just as beautiful, although, without doubt, not in the same epic proportion as the "Butterfly Lovers" Violin Concerto. The characteristics that make the "Butterfly Lovers" seem to be broken down and each condensed into the other pieces. The theme for "Love in Spring" is absolutely beautiful. "Street Musician" is graceful, while "Parting of the Newly Wedded" is both urgent and majestic. At a great price, this Naxos recording is a steal.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Butterfly Lovers Vin Con is the best of all in the CD., January 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Butterfly Lovers (Audio CD)

It is a Chinese folk song that relates two legendary lovers which is famous in the southern parts of China. It is very good and I would recommand it to anyone that is interest in Chinese music.