Chapter 13
Resources for Further Listening
(Note: Beyond the specific items listed below, consult music reference works such as The Rough Guide to World Music by Simon Broughton et al. [London; New York: Rough Guides, 2006-] and Ethnomusicology: A Research Guide, by Jennifer Post [2nd ed., Routledge, 2011] for citations for additional audio recordings. Use internet music providers such as Smithsonian Global Sound for chapter-related listening and see the Internet resources sections of this Online Learning Center).
The Rough Guide to the Music of China. 2003. World Music Network.
Offers an interesting sampling of Chinese musical diversity, with Cui Jian’s Chinese rock anthem “Nothing to My Name” (“Yi Wu Suo You”), an Uighur traditional song, and a classical qin zither piece (“The Green Brook Running”) being noteworthy among its seventeen eclectic tracks.
Eleven Centuries of Traditional Music in China.1988. Legacy International CD 311.
Provides a traditional perspective on Han Chinese instrumental music, including, among other interesting tracks, a introduction to the qin.
Classical Chinese Folk Music. 1999. Arc Records EUCD 1564. 2 CDs.
Features Chen Dacan on erhu, Li He on the dizi (flute) and Cheng Yu on pipa (lute).
Classical Folk Music from China. Arc Records EUCD 1908. Heart of the Dragon Ensemble plays erhu (fiddle), pipa (lute), dizi (flute), xiao (flute), sheng (mouth-blown ‘organ’), guzheng (harp) and yang-qin (dulcimer).
Master of the Chinese Erhu. 2001. Arc Records EUCD 1666. Zhou Yu & Ensemble play erhu (fiddle), yang-qin (dulcimer), xiao (flute), pipa (lute), gu-zheng (harp), ruan (lute), sheng (mouth-blown organ).
The Art of the Chinese Erhu. 1999. ARC EUCD1555. Zhou Yu, erhu with accompaniment: pipa (lute), yang qin (dulcimer), ruan (lute), and others.
Chinese Masterpieces of the Pipa and Qin. 2007. ARC Music EUCD 2074. Cheng Yu plays pipa (lute), qin (zither), xiao (flute) and dizi (flute).
Art of the Chinese Lute. 2004. Arc Music EUCD 1864. Performed on ruan and pipa by virtuoso performer Miao Xiaoyun and accompanied by acclaimed yanqin (zither) performer Xu Pingxin.
Classical Chinese Folksongs & Opera. 1997. Arc Records EUCD 1388.
Selections from traditional repertoire performed by Wei Li, soprano.
China. 1998. Rounder Records CD 5150. Anthology of World Music. Originally issued in the UNESCO collection. Includes biographical, technical, and historical notes (29 p., illus.).
Classical Traditions of the Uyghurs. 2004. University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies SOASIS 06. Chinese maqam music performed on tanbur and dutar by Abdulla Mäjnun from Khotan. Notes (10 p., illus., map).
Turkestan Chinois, Xinjiang: Musiques Ouïgoures. 1990. Ocora C 559092-93. 2 cds. Classical Uyghur muqām and traditional folk music recorded in 1989 by Jean During. Extensive notes.
The Uyghur Musicians from Xinjiang: Music from the Oasis Towns of Central Asia. 2000. Globe Style Records. Music from two distinct regions, the Ili valley and the oasis towns of Turpan, Detailed liner notes by Uyghur music scholar Rachel Harris.
There are many options for sampling Tibetan Buddhist chant and music.
Freedom Chants from the Roof of the World. 1989. Rykodisc CD 20113.
Features the monks of the Gyuto monastery recorded on an American tour with Philip Glass, Mickey Hart, and Kitaro.
Tibetan Chants for World Peace. 2008. White Swan Records. Gyuto Monks Tantric Choir sing multiphonic chants from Tibetan Tantric Buddhist rituals.
Tibetan Folk Music: Traditional Songs and Instrumental Music. 1999. Saydisc CD 427. Recorded by Robert Zollitsch in Tibet, winter 1997/1998. Compilation of Tibetan folk music includes historical and descriptive notes.
The Silk Road: A Musical Caravan. 2002. Smithsonian Folkways SFW CD 40438.
A 2-CD set featuring selections of music representing cultures along the historic Silk Road, including Chinese, Japanese, Mongolian, Uyghur, Iranian (Persian), Kazakh, Armenian, Uzbek, Tajik, Kyrgyz, Afghan, Bukharan Jewish, and other traditions. Notes by During and Ted Levin, with introduction by Yo-Yo Ma.
A very different take on the Silk Road musical experience is provided by another 2-CD set, Silk Road Journeys: When Strangers Meet. 2001. Sony Classical. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma and an ensemble of contemporary musicians representing diverse “Silk Road” cultures (including China) collaborate in neo-traditional and experimental music making.
Ning. 2002. Celebrity Music. Zheng solos by Haiqiong Deng.
(contact the artist directly at [email protected]).
The Art of the Chinese Harp: Guzheng. 2004. ARC (EUCD 1877). Features Xiao Ying on guzheng with other performers playing erhu, yehu, dizi, and sheng.
The most accessible route to hearing the music of composer Tan Dun is via the soundtracks of popular Chinese films he has scored, such as
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. 2000. Sony. Music from the motion picture composed by Tan Dun. Yo Yo Ma is featured on cello.
Hero: Music from the Original Soundtrack. 2003. Sony. Music composed and conducted by Tan Dun, violin solos by Itzhak Perlman and Tan Dun. Other performers include the Kodo Drummers of Japan and the China Philharmonic Orchestra and Chorus.