Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto

The Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto (梁山伯与祝英台小提琴协奏曲; often abbreviated simplified Chinese: 梁祝小提琴协奏曲; traditional Chinese: 梁祝小提琴協奏曲) is one of the most famous Chinese works of orchestral music. It is an adaptation of an ancient legend, the Butterfly Lovers. Written for a Western-style orchestra, it features a solo violin played using some Chinese techniques.

This concerto is written in traditional 5-note technique (pentatonic scale). It uses melodies from Shaoxing Opera, chord structures and patterns, and tries to imitate the playing techniques of Chinese musical instruments.[1][2] This gives the piece a distinctive "Chinese" sound, though it uses tonal harmonies.

The concerto was written in 1959 by two Chinese composers, He Zhanhao [zh] (何占豪, born 1933) and Chen Gang (陈钢, born 1935), while they were students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.[2][3] The work is a common feature in figure skating and in concert halls worldwide. This concerto is now often performed with Chinese instruments playing the violin part, the most common being Erhu, Pipa, and Liuqin. In such cases the soloist is often accompanied by an orchestra consisting of Chinese instruments.

He Zhanhao is more widely credited for the composition of the concerto. However, his main contribution was the famous opening theme while most of the development was in fact written by Chen Gang. This was revealed in an interview of by China Central Television with several artists contributed in the creation and popularity of this work in China and worldwide.[4]

The 1959 premiere of the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto featured 18-year-old violinist Yu Lina and took place in Shanghai as part of the celebration of the tenth anniversary year of the founding of the People's Republic of China. It was first recorded in 1959 with Yu as soloist and the Symphony Orchestra of Shanghai Music Conservatory conducted by Fan Cheng-wu, and later by Shen Rong in 1961 with the same orchestra and conductor. The latter recording was re-released in 1977 by China Record Company. [2] A recording of the work with Gil Shaham as the violin soloist that is conducted by Lan Shui leading the Singapore Symphony Orchestra is heard often on radio stations such as WSMR (FM), Sarasota Manatee Classical.[5]

This piece also is adapted into other forms, including piano concerto by Chen Gang[6] and piano solo by Sun Yilin (孙亦林, Jan 3, 1935 - Apr 5, 2015).[7]

  1. ^ He Zhanhao, Chen Gang. Violin Concerto Butterfly Lovers (Full Score). Shanghai Music Publishing House, Jul. 1996.
  2. ^ a b c See introductions printed on the LP Vinyl Violin Concerto, Liang Shan-Po And Chu Ying-Tai (Label: M-2311, China Record Company, 1977).
  3. ^ Hodges, Bruce (2005). "Seen and Heard International Concert Review". MusicWeb-International.
  4. ^ "艺术人生 化蝶五十年". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2020-12-04.
  5. ^ Classical Music with Bethany Cagle, WSMR FM 89.1 Classical WSMR, Sarasota, Florida, accessed May 4, 2024 at 7:03 a.m.
  6. ^ He Zhanhao, Chen Gang; Chen Gang, Butterfly Lovers, Violin Concerto, Arrangement for Piano Concerto, People's Music Publishing House, Nov. 2016.
  7. ^ Sun Yilin, A Collection of Piano Pieces based on Chinese Folk Songs, Central Music Conservatory Press, Jan. 2005.