Winnie (L), Chen Hui (middle) & Louis (R) rehearsing for the ADCOA's 7th August 2010 Concert
“The Floral Princess 帝女花之香夭” is arguably the most popular CO song sung among 40 million Cantonese world wide ever since its debut performance in Hong Kong in 1956. It is a love song about the eternal love between Princess Cheung Ping of Ming Dynasty and her husband.
This song was first sung by Winnie and Louis Wong publicly in 2002 in Darwin at Chung Wah Society to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Elderly Chinese Group. In the upcoming 7th August 2010 Concert at Darwin Entertainment Centre, Winnie and Louis will team up with one of the best pianists in town, Chen Hui to try out the Cantonese Opera singing with piano accompaniment. This performance appears to be a “Darwin first”, in which the local artists attempt to “marry” the East (Cantonese Opera) with the West (Piano).
The Concert Perfromance is avaialble in YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YN8qDO2NCA
Piano Solo
Also, Chen Hui is going to perform “Ode to the Yellow River” from the “Yellow River Piano Concerto” in the Concert.
The piano concerto, based on the Yellow River Cantata by Xian Xinghai, was arranged by collaboration between musicians Yin Chengzong et al. in the 1960s.
The choral cantata was composed in1939 during the Japanese invasion.
The original heroic tenor solo melody of the Ode to the Yellow River is sung in praise of the history and presence of the Yellow River signifying the cultural pride of the Chinese.
About the Pianist
Chen Hui is Lecturer in Piano at the Charles Darwin University. She has a great interest in Chinese music and hopes to perform publicly the Guzheng (Chinese Piano) again one day for the art lovers in Darwin!
About the singers
Winnie and Louis Wong have been staging Cantonese Opera Concert since 2002 in Darwin. They also invited other local and overseas artists such as dancers, singers, pianist as well as violinists to perform in their Opera Concert.
About the 2010 Concert
The annual ADCOA concert will be staged on Saturday, 7th August at Darwin Entertainment Centre from 7:30 to 10:30pm. Ticket is available at DEC Ticket Office for Adult $20 Conc. $10.
