a r t i s t : Wu Fei
t i t l e : A Distant Youth
d a t e : 2007
l a b e l : Forrest Hill
g e n r e : Avantgarde
r l s. d a t e : Apr/2010
t r a c k s : 18
b i t r a t e : VBRkbps
s i z e : 60,0 MB
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Wu Fei is a master player of the guzheng, a Chinese string
instrument that is more than two thousand years old, and known
today mostly as the parent instrument of the Japanese koto.
Fei began her musical studies at the age of six in Beijing,
later studied composition in Mills College in California, and
now splits her time between Beijing and New York. She has
collaborated with composers and improvisers such as Alvin
Curran, Joelle Leandre, Elliot Sharp, Meredith Monk, Pauline
Oliveros, Ikue Mori, Cecil Taylor and Fred Frith, who featured
her in his recordings Eye to Ear II (Tzadik, 2004) and The
Happy End Problem (ReR, 2007).
Her debut recording features her original compositions for
guzheng and vocal, rooted in the Chinese musical tradition, as
well as her contemporary improvisational approach with fellow
master improvisers: Frith, violinist Carla Kihlstedt and
Norwegian percussionist Helge Andreas Norbakken. The latter
improvisations are the most striking ones, as they feature the
swift and subtle reflexes of Fei and her collaborators,
especially Kihlstedt and Frith, who succeed in expanding and
abstracting the arsenal of sounds of the guzheng.
Kihlstedt does so beautifully on the opening track "Cloud of
Birds," where her sustained touch of the strings triggers a
gentle counterpoint approach by Fei. Kihlstedt's wise plucking
of the violin strings is a perfect accompaniment for the short
vocal piece "Ping Tan." Frith and Kihlstedt begin "Diao Chan"
with an unstructured, open improvisation that forces Fei to
adapt to Frith's fast, phrase-based percussive approach. Frith
leads "Dawn" with economic, evocative guitar lines; and his
subtle interaction with Fei and Kihlstedt offers a mysterious
cinematic atmosphere. All three are featured on the
beautifully nuanced improvisation of "Mukamu."
Frith's affinity for patient and abstract improvisation, his
rich vocabulary of guitar sounds, and his adaptability to
almost any musical genre are best featured on "Yu Yin" and
"For Yuxi," where his guitar sounds like a distorted ancient
Chinese instrument. "Nothingness" is a non-idiomatic and
thought-provoking improvisation between Fei and Frith, and
it's almost impossible to know who produces what sound, as
their language has become so close. "Mad Season" features a
playful abstraction of a traditional Chinese theme, and Frith
challenges Fei for a fast improvisation that leaves behind the
original theme. Frith's percussive playing on "Break Away" is
answered cleverly by an imaginative Fei. Norbakken, who is
featured on one track only, "Hunan," rubs the skins and
alternates between rhythms in a way that challenges Fei for a
balancing textural answer.
Fei's solo compositions for the guzheng incorporate elements
from her Western studies, in the way that she slides and rubs
the strings, jumping between what sound like traditional
themes to a more adventurous plucking of the strings, or
introducing an almost distorted sound of the strings. This is
a most original recording by a daring composer and improviser
that deserve a wider recognition.
Track listing: Cloud of Birds; Chun Song; Yu Zhou Chang Wan;
Ping Tan; Diao Chan; Hunan; Summer Palace; Three Kingdoms;
Dawn; Qu Qur; Feng Huo Tai; Wu Yin; Little Open Hands; For
Yuxi; Nothingness; Mad Season; Mukamu; Break Away.
Personnel: Wu Fei: guzheng; Fred Frith: guitar; Carla
Kihlstedt: violin; Helge Andreas Norbakken: percussion (6).
(www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=29433)
(www.wufeimusic.com/aDistantYouth.htm)
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01-Cloud Of Birds [02:55]
02-Chun Song [04:09]
03-Yu Zhou Chang Wan [04:15]
04-Ping Tan [01:05]
05-Diao Chan [04:26]
06-Hunan [02:38]
07-Summer Palace [02:56]
08-Three Kingdoms [01:02]
09-Dawn [02:51]
10-Qu Qur [03:29]
11-Feng Huo Tai [02:01]
12-Wu Yin [03:04]
13-Little Open Hands [01:21]
14-For Yuxi [02:57]
15-Nothingness [02:23]
16-Mad Season [02:48]
17-Mukamu [04:54]
18-Break Away [01:44]
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50:58 min