Tan Dun: On Taoism, Orchestral Theatre 1, Death and Fire

Dun (Artist, Composer, Conductor), BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (Artist, Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
• Conductor: Dun
• Composer: Dun
• Audio CD (October 23, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Koch Schwann (Germ.)
• ASIN: B00005NIBI
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,246,499 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. On Taoism

2. Orchestral Theatre I

3. Death And Fire: Portrait

4. Death And Fire: Animals At Full Moon

5. Death And Fire: Senecio

6. Death And Fire: Ad Parnassum

7. Death And Fire: Self-Portrait

8. Death And Fire: Twittering Machine

9. Death And Fire: Earth Witches

10. Death And Fire: Intoxication

11. Death And Fire: J.S. Bach

12. Death And Fire: Death And Fire

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Early works, but Dun's combination of modernism and Chinese tradition shines through even his immaturity, April 28, 2009

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tan Dun: On Taoism, Orchestral Theatre 1, Death and Fire (Audio CD)

This Koch disc, now out of print, is of note for featuring Tan Dun's breakthrough piece. "On Taoism" for orchestra (1985) was written as the Chinese composer was finishing his studies in China, before his move to New York where he swiftly fell in with John Cage and the minimalists alike. The piece opens with the wild meaningless vocalisms of a shaman-like singer, who seems to invoke the orchestral music into being. He then remains silent until the climax of the piece, and the orchestra produces sudden violent sounds separated by highly suggestive silences. There must be some measure of inspiration by Toru Takemitsu here. "On Taoism", while clearly a youthful effort, does make a great impact on this listener through the combination of a somewhat modernist language and a palpable ritualistic atmosphere.

"Orchestral Theatre I" (1990) is the first in a little series of pieces where Dun brought this concept of ritual to maturation. (The second piece can be heard on an Ondine disc). Here the music initially consists of isolated gestures that sound for all the world like Helmut Lachenmann: the squeak of a distorted cello tone, a voice making a hushing sound, a harp note repeatedly plucked. Only a few minutes in does the composer make a more overt reference to Chinese tradition with a pentatonic flute melody and Peking Opera-like percussion. The piece is entertaining enough, but like the ones following it I feel you probably have to see them live to really get them. The composer revised this piece in 2000, but I don't know how much it differs from this 1994 recording.

The only truly low point of the disc is "Death and Fire" (1992), a hommage to the painter Paul Klee, nine of its ten movements alluding to a specific work or general aspects of his art. This wide orchestral scope is often unfocused, and I find it a generally unremarkable piece, as colourful as the touches of nocturnal animals' calls are.

Tan Dun's work is inconsistent. For every great triumph like "The Map" or the "Water Passion" he has produced some cringely bad pieces that do little but pander to the public. But if the composer really intrigues you, you'll want to hear "On Taoism" eventually, and this disc looks like it's still the only place you can do that.