Review
“A fascinating account of musical life in San Francisco's Chinatown district. From the first immigrations of of Chinese during the Gold Rush years and well into the 20th century, the musical life of San Francisco's Chinese has been been heavily involved with Catonese opera. ... Riddle's book is a satisfying combination of field study, close analytical study of musical customs, and interestingly written accounts of Chinese Americans. There is a very helpful bibliography.... Flying Dragons, Flowing Streams is a valuable addition to the growing number of studies of music of various ethnic communities in the US. Recommended highly for public as well as academic music libraries, lower-division undergraduate level and above.”–Choice
“It is a rare treat to encounter a book that is as carefully researched, as thoroughly documented, as intelligently written and as fascinating and enjoyable to read as Ronald Riddle's book on music in the life of San Francisco's Chinese.... Riddle has amassed a truly astonishing amount of material with fascinating details on the lives of the performers, audience, staging, musical instruments, and the theater itself--all presented against the backdrop of the turbulant social history of the early Chinese Americans and their interaction with the `mainstream' society. His elaborations, generalizations, criticisms, and conclusions on the subject matter are intelligent and convincing, reflecting his vast knowledge and deep understanding of the Cantonese opera as well as a compassion for the community and its culture. ... Riddle's enlightened comments gently and discreetly put issues into proper focus and perspective.”–Ethnomusicology
“It is a rare treat to encounter a book that is as carefully researched, as thoroughly documented, as intelligently written and as fascinating and enjoyable to read as Ronald Riddle's book on music in the life of San Francisco's Chinese.... Riddle has amassed a truly astonishing amount of material with fascinating details on the lives of the performers, audience, staging, musical instruments, and the theater itself--all presented against the backdrop of the turbulant social history of the early Chinese Americans and their interaction with the `mainstream' society. His elaborations, generalizations, criticisms, and conclusions on the subject matter are intelligent and convincing, reflecting his vast knowledge and deep understanding of the Cantonese opera as well as a compassion for the community and its culture. ... Riddle's enlightened comments gently and discreetly put issues into proper focus and perspective.”–
