Take the beauty and grace of traditional Chinese melodies, put them to jazz grooves, and you have the music of Sizhukong (絲竹空). The group, whose name reads “silk, bamboo and emptiness,” is a six-piece jazz ensemble formed by pianist and composer Peng Yu-wen (彭郁雯) who aims to create “a new kind of Chinese music” with “a soul of jazz.”
Sizhukong will present new material in a run of shows this month, starting tomorrow night at Witch House and on Sunday at Da-an Forest Park (大安森林公園) in Taipei.
The performances are billed as Samba Paradise, and audiences can expect to hear Latin jazz rhythms backing the distinctive voices of traditional Chinese instruments such as the liuqin (柳琴), a four-stringed lute, and dizi (笛子), a kind of Chinese flute.
“I want to bring the dance and groove [elements of jazz] to Chinese music,” said Peng. “Chinese music doesn’t always have to be calm or elegant.”
Sizhukong embraces the ethos of jazz fusion: its music takes established forms — jazz and classical Chinese styles — and gives them a new twist. In songs like Bathing in the Stream, the ensemble plays a joyful melody originating from Guangdong Province, but adds a modern groove with upright bass and drums. Soon enough, the song expands into more abstract territory, with extended improvisations on piano, liuqin and erhu (二胡). As the song returns to the melodic theme, the jazz and Chinese “voices” intermingle to create a sound both familiar and new.
Peng took an indirect path to conceiving this uniquely Chinese form of jazz. She studied Western classical music at a young age, but grew bored with it and eventually gave up. But after hearing swing jazz for the first time during university, Peng was inspired to return to music and earned a degree in jazz composition at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.
After returning to Taipei, Peng helped form a small jazz combo, Metamorphosis, which is known for recasting Taiwanese folk songs in modern jazz styles, including Latin jazz, be-bop and post-bop.
Seeking new directions in her music, Peng studied nanguan (南管) and beiguan (北管), two traditional music forms with roots in southern China and Taiwan. Her collaboration with renowned liuqing player Chen Yi-chien (陳怡蒨) set the stage for Sizhukong’s formation.
With Chen in mind, Peng created a samba jazz arrangement of Fengyang (鳳陽), a folk song from China’s Anhui Province. Chen’s performance skills left a deep impression: “I never thought that Chinese music could be this beautiful,” Peng said. And Chen turned out to be a natural with jazz. “The rhythm and syncopation — she caught on easily.” The pair built on their collaboration, and recorded Sizhukong’s first album, which was released last year.
Just as Peng has expanded her notion of jazz music by bringing in Chinese elements, she finds that the same has been true for classical Chinese musicians. Peng cites the example of one of her past students, a guzheng (古箏, Chinese zither) player who studied the instrument for 20 years but didn’t enjoy it until she started playing jazz.
And she has opened doors for jazz musicians as well. Saxophonist Jeff Chang (張哲嘉) of the US, who is playing with the group as a special guest this weekend, said that Peng’s music was something he had “always been looking for” as a musician with Taiwanese roots.
Ultimately, for Peng the jazz spirit lies in “exploring different kinds of music. My feel for music is changing, and my composing goes along with that.”
Sizhukong’s lineup includes Toshi Fujii (藤井俊充) on drums and percussion, Huang Chih-ping (黃治評) on dizi and dongxiao (洞簫, bamboo flute), Alex Wu (吳政君) on erhu and percussion, Chen Chih-ling on liuqin and zhongruan (中阮) and Belgian Martijn Vanbuel on bass.
They will be joined by special guests Mogauwane Mahloelo of South Africa on djembe and vocals, and Janelle Chang (張宜蓁) on violin and satar (薩塔琴), a traditional Uygur instrument.
The group is currently working on a new album expected for release at the end of the year, with each musician contributing their own compositions.
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
Despite the intense sunshine, we were hardly breaking a sweat as we cruised along the flat, dedicated bike lane, well protected from the heat by a canopy of trees. The electric assist on the bikes likely made a difference, too. Far removed from the bustle and noise of the Taichung traffic, we admired the serene rural scenery, making our way over rivers, alongside rice paddies and through pear orchards. Our route for the day covered two bike paths that connect in Fengyuan District (豐原) and are best done together. The Hou-Feng Bike Path (后豐鐵馬道) runs southward from Houli District (后里) while the
March 31 to April 6 On May 13, 1950, National Taiwan University Hospital otolaryngologist Su You-peng (蘇友鵬) was summoned to the director’s office. He thought someone had complained about him practicing the violin at night, but when he entered the room, he knew something was terribly wrong. He saw several burly men who appeared to be government secret agents, and three other resident doctors: internist Hsu Chiang (許強), dermatologist Hu Pao-chen (胡寶珍) and ophthalmologist Hu Hsin-lin (胡鑫麟). They were handcuffed, herded onto two jeeps and taken to the Secrecy Bureau (保密局) for questioning. Su was still in his doctor’s robes at
Mirror mirror on the wall, what’s the fairest Disney live-action remake of them all? Wait, mirror. Hold on a second. Maybe choosing from the likes of Alice in Wonderland (2010), Mulan (2020) and The Lion King (2019) isn’t such a good idea. Mirror, on second thought, what’s on Netflix? Even the most devoted fans would have to acknowledge that these have not been the most illustrious illustrations of Disney magic. At their best (Pete’s Dragon? Cinderella?) they breathe life into old classics that could use a little updating. At their worst, well, blue Will Smith. Given the rapacious rate of remakes in modern