Si Ji (Four Seasons)

Xuefei Yang (Artist, Performer), Carlo Domeniconi (Composer), Gerald Garcia (Composer), Stephen Goss (Composer), Luting He (Composer), Evan Hirschelman (Composer), Stephen Funk Pearson (Composer), Thierry Rougier (Composer), Shuko Shibata (Composer), Dietmar Ungerank (Composer), Huiran Wang (Composer), None (Conductor) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Xuefei Yang
• Conductor: None
• Composer: Carlo Domeniconi, Gerald Garcia, Stephen Goss, Luting He, Evan Hirschelman, et al.
• Audio CD (September 13, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: GSP Records
• ASIN: B000AXWHEY
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,100 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Wang Huiran: Yi Dance

2. He Luting: Shepherd Boy with Flute

3. Dietmar Ungerrank: Intonation & 4 Sound-and-Image Compositions - Intonation

4. Dietmar Ungerrank: Intonation & 4 Sound-and-Image Compositions - Long Out-stretched Pier with its Shadows

5. Dietmar Ungerrank: Intonation & 4 Sound-and-Image Compositions - Wind on The Hill

6. Dietmar Ungerrank: Intonation & 4 Sound-and-Image Compositions - Waiting for Guests

7. Dietmar Ungerrank: Intonation & 4 Sound-and-Image Compositions - Land Circus

8. Traditional - Heavenly Bird

9. Tradional - Lantern Song

10. Traditional - Mayila

11. Evan Hirschelman: Meditation No.2

12. Evan Hirshelman: Meditation No.1

13. Stephen Goss: The Blue Kite

14. Stephen Goss: Yellow Earth

15. Stephen Goss: Farewell My Concubine

16. Carlo Domeniconi: I Ching - 1 T'ai

17. Carlo Domeniconi: I Ching - 3 Lin

18. Carlo Domeniconi: I Ching - 4 T'ung len

19. Carlo Domeniconi: I Ching - 5 Huan

20. Carlo Domeniconi: I Ching - 6 K'uei

See all 26 tracks on this disc

Editorial Reviews

Si Ji in Chinese is Four Seasons. We have chosen it to be the title of this 'China' inspired album. I hope this disc will leave you with an image of variety and diversity of colors, like the four seasons. As a musician, I feel a responsibility to communicate between different cultures and people through my music. As an artist from China, I would like to infuse the culture of my country in my music. As a guitarist, I hope to make a small contribution towards expanding the guitar repertoire, exploring new possibilities and enriching the techniques for the instrument. The guitar originated in the Middle East, halfway between China and the West. Chinese culture is refined, poetic, expressive and adaptable, like Chinese painting. These virtues can be usefully applied to the guitar. I was struck by the possibilities of the instrument after recording this CD - how ideas from the east have helped in exploring and enriching what is essentially western music. I make music from my heart as always, and I hope that you will respond in a similar way. - Xuefei Yang

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best solo guitar albums I have ever heard, October 5, 2006

By 

William N. Gross "BG" (Berkeley, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Si Ji (Four Seasons) (Audio CD)

One of the most original CDs I've ever heard. This CD is full of incredible music. Yang XueFei plays with sensitivity, creativity and passion.
When I played this CD for my guitar teacher, he commented that it was rare for him not to have heard at least one piece on any particular classical guitar CD, yet all these pieces were new to him. Carlo Domeniconi (who wrote the masterpiece "Koyunbaba") has composed an outstanding suite based on the I Ching. The 3 pieces by Stephen Goss, which are based on Asian films, are themselves cinematic: "The Blue Kite" is a work of minimalist beauty. There are many other talented composers lending their gifts to this CD. Most of the selections are either composed for Yang Xuefei or are arrangements by her. All are inspired by Chinese culture and music. My favorite piece is "Long Outstretched Pier with its Shadow" (by Dietmar Ungerrank); it is elegantly written and the execution is sensual and rich.
Yang XueFei's technical agility, especially the right hand, (as in "Yi Dance") goes beyond that of her contemporaries. As impressive as this is, the passion she imbues into each work is what connects her to the songs and ultimately to the audience. Technique is there to help her express what is inside of her. It is as if the guitar is her lover. This just isn't a great guitar album; it is a great album period. Its emotional complexity deepens with each listening. Buy it!
I've also purchased "Romance de Amor" which is extremely good as well (listen to her version of "Requerdos de la Alhambra" as compared to one of her heroes, John Williams on "The Guitarist"), but "Si Ji" is totally unique. Don't miss it.
As an aside, If you do end up buying and enjoying this CD, you might listen to Lily Afshar. The influence of her Persian heritage is similar in effect to "Si Ji" by Yang XueFei. Both artists have breathed life into the modern repertoire of guitar music.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Virtuoso playing and an unusual repetoire, October 25, 2005

By 

Stephen B. Kutzer "bijinesuman" (Falmouth, VA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Si Ji (Four Seasons) (Audio CD)

I am a classical guitar student, and an over-the-top consumer. So I have a lot (many dozens) of classical guitar CDs. They are for the most part quite good, but they tend to blend. I might be able to distinguish Tennant's Rodrigo or Barrueco's Scarlatti, but too many guitarists play an awful lot of the same repetoire, and they play it quite similarly.

This CD is quite different. The pieces are all Asian in flavor and by composers I had never heard of. And they are quite beautiful. Ms. Yang appears to be quite young, so this could be the start of a long and interesting career. But at least one of the pieces was written for her, so she has already apparently developed a solid reputation.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Successful crossing over from East to West, July 5, 2007

By 

Abel "AMY" (Hong Kong) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Si Ji (Four Seasons) (Audio CD)

Nowadays many classical musicians move to 'cross-overs' between Western classics to exotic works, and Chinese musicians and composers pioneer in cross-overs from Chinese music to Western.
Alas, not all attempts are successful. Either there has not been enough nurturing in the Chinese repertoire, or the western playing style has not yet been fully developed.
Ms. Yang is a young classical guitarist. Gathering from what she said in her own introduction to this disc, she is a musician with a great ambition. It is true that the classical guitar may not have a substantial repertoire as other western instruments like the violin and piano. Hence drawing materials from other culture in a guitarist's repertoire is both a necessity and an endeavour.
A guitarist from Beijing, Ms. Yang is familiar with classical Chinese instruments like the gu qin, the zheng and the pipa. These ancient Chinese instruments are like the guitar- all are played by plucking strings set on wooden surfaces. So as Ms Yang herself noted - the guitar originated from the Middle East, a 'cross-over' area of Eastern and Western culture.
In many of the modern works recorded in this disc, Ms Yang played the guitar to the effect of those ancient Chinese instruments, and this is quite stunning. Her familiarity with the Eastern musical style is fully demonstrated, adding the requisite flavour of authenticity to her interpretation. There are a number of great compositions of the gu qing, the zheng as well as the pipa, and I truly look forward to Ms Yang's transcriptions of those to the guitar in due course.
A highly recommended recording for guitar players, guitar lovers and Chinese music fans alike.