Encore music in the Chinese Orchestra(中樂團的安可曲)

In Hong Kong, nearly all Chinese music concerts include the encore music at the end of the concert and they are not written in the programme brochures. Usually the encore music is popular, exciting and bright which brings the concert to a happy and unforgettable ending. Because it is unknown to the listeners, the encore music can be a big surprise to the listeners.

As a Chinese fiddle teacher, I regularly attend Chinese music concerts with not just Chinese fiddles but also other musical instruments. Moreover, in the past few years, I was a Chinese fiddle player in a Chinese Orchestra in Hong Kong. So I have listened to various encore music for the Chinese music concerts. In the following I would like to introduce three impressive music pieces which are chosen as the encore music in the Chinese music concerts.

Horse Racing(賽馬)

Horse racing is a very well-known Chinese fiddle music to the Chinese fiddle lovers all over the world. It is easy for Chinese fiddle beginners with few techniques, so it is one of the exam pieces in the lower grades in the Chinese fiddle practical exams. In addition, it has a fast tempo and is bright. The music describes the exciting horse racing scene in Mongolian grassland in Northern China and F Major is commonly used in Mongolian Chinese Fiddle music.

The music was composed by Chinese Fiddle musician Huang Hai-huai(黃海懷) during the 1960s and made famous during the music competition in Shanghai in 1963. The original music is about 3 minutes in length. It is rearranged as the encore music for the Chinese orchestras and even the Philharmonic Orchestra with the Chinese fiddle for the solo part. Usually Chinese fiddle players imitate the horse neighing during the race when they play the music.

The following version is played by Philharmonic orchestra and Chinese fiddle players who are the professors of the conservatories during a TV concert in China:

Send Me a Rose(送我一支玫瑰花)

Send me a rose ia a very well-known Chinese Pipa(琵琶, a popular Chinese plucked instrument) music to the Chinese Pipa lovers all over the world. It is also one of the exam pieces in the Pipa practical exams.

This music was a Ulghur, Xinjiang folk song rearranged by the Chinese musician Wang Fan-di(王範地) in 1961. It was originally a dance music describing the happy and exciting dance scene between the lovers in Ulghur. The music imitates the rhythm produced by drums with the plucking sound of Pipa. It was then rearranged as the encore music for the Chinese Orchestra.

The following video shows the Taiwanese Chinese Orchestra playing Send Me a Rose as the encore music which is vivid to me:

A Night in Beijing(北京一夜)

This is a pop song sung in Mandarin during the 1990s. It was then rearranged as the Chinese Orchestral versions with drums and Chinese fiddles like Jinghu(京胡) and sometimes Pipa. I listened to it during the encore in a Chinese Orchestra concert and it was very impressive to me with the orchestration which made the music modern but the timbre was still very rich. The song has also been sung by many Mandarin pop singers, so the music makes many young people very excited.

The following video shows the Taiwanese Chinese Orchestra playing A Night in Beijing with a Jinghu, Dizi(笛子) a wind instrument and Pipa, a very short concerto to me:

There are many other impressive encore music or songs played in the Chinese music concerts. I really appreciate the creativity of the musicians during the arrangement which makes the music sound catchy with different timbre. In the coming future, I will introduce more rearranged Chinese music one by one. Stay tuned!

Previously published in Medium