Lunar New Year
with the Minnesota OrchestraSat Feb 5, 2022
Orchestra Hall
Lunar New Year is a two-week-long festival celebrated across Eastern Asia that encourages family and friends to gather together. In this performance, with artistic guidance from our own Principal Bassoon Fei Xie, conductor Junping Qian leads the Minnesota Orchestra in music that honors family traditions and themes of unity and health. It features Assistant Concertmaster Rui Du, Gao Hong on pipa, jing hu master Zhengang Xie and yue qin master Mei Hu. This program is presented as part of The Great Northern.
A Few Things to Know
- This program features the world premiere of the orchestral version of Circle of Unity, originally written as a song by the late composer Trinh Cong Son and recently arranged by Jaakko Kuusisto.
- Lunar New Year is all about family, which makes it even more exciting that Minnesota Orchestra principal bassoonist Fei Xie’s parents, who are Peking Opera musicians, are two of the featured performers in this concert.
- Join us starting at 6:30pm on the Mezzanine for Chinese music and dance performances and more, all curated by ACCA (Alliance of Chinese Culture & Arts USA).
Program
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CHOI
Arirang Fantasy
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CHEN/HE
The Butterfly Lovers
Violin Concerto -
SON/J. Kuusisto
Circle of Unity
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WU
In the Dark Night
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TANG
Sketches of Singapore
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GAO
Guangxi Impression for Pipa and Orchestra
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LI
Spring Festival Overture
Artists
The Grammy Award-winning Minnesota Orchestra, now in its second century, ranks among America’s top symphonic ensembles, with a distinguished history of acclaimed performances in its home state and around the world; award-winning recordings, broadcasts and educational engagement programs; and a commitment to intentionally build concert programs to feature more works by composers of color, exploring music both contemporary and historic. This fall, Danish conductor Thomas Søndergård begins his tenure as music director.
Conductor Junping Qian, having just completed his second year as the Assistant Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, also serves as a Visiting Faculty member at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
His recent engagements, aside from his busy schedule with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, notably, include conducting the Covid-19 recovery rehearsal camp of Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra, a China Tour with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Teatro del Giglio Lucca, his South American debut with Orchestra SODRE in Montevideo, Uruguay, his North American professional debut with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, an open-air summer concert in “Summer Classics” Festival Sibiu and re-invitations from Toronto, Macau, Kunming, Xi’An, Bucharest, Iasi, and Tirgus Mures. He served as the Strategic Advisor and Residential Artist of the Shanghai & Royal College of Music London Joint Institute from 2018 to 2020.
Dr. Benhong Rosaline Tsai is Vice President, Talent, Learning & Org Effectiveness at Thrivent, a Fortune 500 financial services firm based in Minneapolis. In this role, Roz leads talent acquisition, talent management, leadership development and organization effectiveness efforts in support of Thrivent’s bold transformation and growth objectives. Previously, Roz served as vice president of HR and chief learning officer at Ecolab, leading performance management, career development, leadership and enterprise learning initiatives for its 49,000 global workforce. Roz has also held transformative leadership roles in Honeywell, Lawson Software (now Infor) and Northern States Power Company (now Xcel Energy). With her extensive cross-functional experiences across multiple industry sectors, Roz has developed a unique and strategic approach to creating diverse, inclusive and high-performing teams that drive enduring business impact. Outside of work Roz is a long-time community volunteer for youth development and arts & culture organizations, most recently completing her term as Board Chair for Minnesota non-profit BestPrep. A native of Tianjin, China, Roz completed her undergraduate studies at Nankai University and obtained her Master of Science degree at St. Cloud State University. She holds a doctorate degree from University of Minnesota, where she currently serves as adjunct faculty for the Carlson School of Management, teaching Global Talent Management for global business executives.
Rui Du, appointed assistant concertmaster of the Minnesota Orchestra in September 2015, had previously been a member of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra; he won fourth chair in the first violin section in 2012 and soon after was named acting assistant concertmaster. He had previously been concertmaster of the Annapolis Symphony, associate concertmaster of the Aspen Music Festival Orchestra and concertmaster of the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra. In addition, he has served as guest concertmaster of the Qingdao and Hebei symphony orchestras in China.
Du has won numerous competitions, including grand prize at the 2006 Canetti International Violin Competition. He has performed as soloist and recitalist in locations including France, Turkey, Finland and Singapore and China, in addition to appearing in solos with the orchestras mentioned earlier and the orchestras of Shanghai and Fuzhou in China. Also an accomplished chamber musician, Du has performed with renowned artists at the Tanglewood, Canetti and Aspen music festivals, among others, and in 2011 was featured in Aspen’s Baroque Evening Concert Series under the direction of Nicholas McGegan.
Born and raised in Heifei, in China’s Anhui Province, Du began violin studies at age 6. He studied initially with Zhou Bin-you at the Shanghai Conservatory, then with Qian Zhou at the National University of Singapore’s Yong Siew Toh Conservatory, where he won the artistic achievement award. He emigrated to the U.S. in 2008 and studied with Victor Danchenko and Herbert Greenberg at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, earning a master’s degree and graduate performance diploma.
Rui Du plays on a 1750 Nicola Gagliano violin, generously on loan to him from the Rin Collection.
Chinese performer and composer Gao Hong is a master of the pear-shaped lute, the pipa. She began her career as a professional musician at age 12, and later graduated from China's premier music school, the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing. Gao has received numerous top awards and honors, including first prize in the Hebei Professional Young Music Performers Competition; an International Art Cup in Beijing; the prestigious Bush Artist Fellowship; five McKnight Artist Fellowships for Performing Musicians; numerous grants and fellowships from the Minnesota State Arts Board; and a Sally Award. Gao has performed throughout Europe, Australia, Argentina, Japan, Hong Kong, China and the U.S. in solo concerts and with orchestras, jazz musicians and performers from many cultures. She is a guest professor at the Central Conservatory of Music, China Conservatory of Music, Tianjin Conservatory of Music and Hebei Vocational Arts College. She teaches Chinese Musical Instruments and is director of the Chinese Music Ensemble and Global Music Ensemble at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. Gao’s most recent recording of live compositions and improvisations with oudest Issam Rafea, From Our World to Yours, was released in 2020 and was awarded Gold Medals in two categories by the Global Music Awards.
Jing hu master Mr. Zhengang Xie and yue qin master Ms. Mei Hu, a husband and wife team, are listed as members of the elite group among the musicians in the Directory of Current Chinese Artists of 1998, which Ms. Hu participated editing. While in China, as the top “Cheng” style Peaking Opera fiddler, Mr. Xie and Ms. Hu performed and recorded as solo jing hu and yue qin players with many top Beijing Opera houses, including the Beijing Opera House and National Opera House. In addition to performing transitional Peking Opera repertoire, Xie has participated in many new opera productions, such as the Peking Opera TV show Cao Xueqin and the new opera The Legend of The White Snake. Xie has also performed in the Great Hall of People in Beijing during a Lunar New Year celebration, and was greeted by the Chairman Jiang Zemin, among other top Chinese government officials.
Since moving to the U.S. in 1999, the couple has brought Chinese music, particularly Peking Opera, to their community. While living in Cincinnati from 2000 to 2020, Xie and Hu performed in concert halls, schools, and universities around the region. In collaborations with University of Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, they performed concertos such as In the Dark Night, The Qiao Family Compound and The God of Mountain. Xie and Hu currently reside in Plymouth, Minnesota, near their son, Minnesota Orchestra Principal Bassoon Fei Xie, and his family.
Jing hu master Mr. Zhengang Xie and yue qin master Ms. Mei Hu, a husband and wife team, are listed as members of the elite group among the musicians in the Directory of Current Chinese Artists of 1998, which Ms. Hu participated editing. While in China, as the top “Cheng” style Peaking Opera fiddler, Mr. Xie and Ms. Hu performed and recorded as solo jing hu and yue qin players with many top Beijing Opera houses, including the Beijing Opera House and National Opera House. In addition to performing transitional Peking Opera repertoire, Xie has participated in many new opera productions, such as the Peking Opera TV show Cao Xueqin and the new opera The Legend of The White Snake. Xie has also performed in the Great Hall of People in Beijing during a Lunar New Year celebration, and was greeted by the Chairman Jiang Zemin, among other top Chinese government officials.
Since moving to the U.S. in 1999, the couple has brought Chinese music, particularly Peking Opera, to their community. While living in Cincinnati from 2000 to 2020, Xie and Hu performed in concert halls, schools, and universities around the region. In collaborations with University of Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, they performed concertos such as In the Dark Night, The Qiao Family Compound and The God of Mountain. Xie and Hu currently reside in Plymouth, Minnesota, near their son, Minnesota Orchestra Principal Bassoon Fei Xie, and his family.
Your Concert Experience
Join us for Q&A’s, hosted discussions, exhibits and more. All free with your concert ticket!
Lunar New Year Trivia
Test your Lunar New Year knowledge with a Kahoot trivia game for all ages, designed by Know Factory Trivia's Brian Ward and Asian Media Acess. Play on your own device using the link below!
Indulge at the Elixir Haus
When: Pre-Concert and Intermission
Where: Cargill Commons
Beverage service is available before and during each winter concert at Elixir Haus (located outside Orchestra Hall). Grab your coat and head outside for a sip of spirits or a cup of hot cocoa.
Consultant & Partner
Fei Xie, artistic consultant
Asian Media Access, artistic partner
Additional Materials
Accessibility Services
- Assistive Listening Devices
- Large Print Programs
- Service Animals
- Wheelchair & Accessible Seating
Additional services are available upon request.