- Audio CD (6 Feb 2006)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: Real World
- ASIN: B000DZV4J8
- Other Editions: Audio CD | MP3 Download
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 172,617 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
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Product Description
Review
Guo Yue was born in Beijing during the early years of the Cultural Revolution, when music and other non-Communist arts were proscribed. Relocating to Britain, he became a masterchef and a virtuoso bamboo flautist, with a classical repertoire at his fingertips in both spheres.
This disc gathers together a selection of meditative odes to the Hutongs (Beijing's medieval alleys), the dragonfly, and other staples such as kites, swans and boats, as well as intensely personal reflections on "My First Flute" and birds that pass by and leave.
Guo has worked with Peter Gabriel Sinead O'Connor and Hothouse Flowers, and performed and helped compose the soundtracks to The Last Emperor and The Killing Fields. Some of these songs are backed by a massive orchestra and feel very filmic indeed. For purists, this will seem slightly glutinous, just as the ethereal compositions will appear overly typical of the clichéd version of ancient China. But for non purists, this sprinkling of familiar seasoning will serve to make a very exotic musical tradition accessible and mellifluous. In any case, perhaps the serenity and timelessness of it all is a protest in its own right. --Chris Moss
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Product Description
Guo Yue has gained a reputation in his adopted homeland, the UK, as a writer and a specialist in authentic Chinese cooking. But his creative roots lie in music. World-renowned as a bamboo flutes soloist, composer and arranger, this CD captures the vivid, sensual experiences of his life as a boy growing up in the Beijing alleys before and during the cultural revolution. This second album for Real World Records captures the spirit of a time growing up during one of the most repressive periods in recent history but which nonetheless enabled the young Yue to find beauty and peace in his native country's most traditional instruments and songs.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
I have seen Guo in concert twice now, and every time I listen to this CD, I am as mesmerised as I was back then. Though not harmonically complex pretty much throughout, this album does contain a powerful throbbing, trembling and at times pounding emotion, founded in the suffering of the Chinese people at the hands of a communist government (particularly the track 'Su lin', written for his mother, whose appreciation for the arts and all things beautiful led her to be persecuted by the belief that all those not wholly devoted to Mao must be extirpated, manifest in murderous rampages).
Guo's mastery of the flute, amongst other instruments, is clear to anyone, whether musical scholar or otherwise, and through the brilliant capture of the timbre, it is almost possible to feel the twisting and the spiralling of his elegant melodies. It is not all heart-rending, and can run the gamut between jaunty Chinese folk and ancient eastern mysticism. In any case, it superbly represents not just the work and talent of the man himself, but the history and culture of one of the world's most intriguing nations.
Guo's mastery of the flute, amongst other instruments, is clear to anyone, whether musical scholar or otherwise, and through the brilliant capture of the timbre, it is almost possible to feel the twisting and the spiralling of his elegant melodies. It is not all heart-rending, and can run the gamut between jaunty Chinese folk and ancient eastern mysticism. In any case, it superbly represents not just the work and talent of the man himself, but the history and culture of one of the world's most intriguing nations.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Guo Yue's flute mesmorises and delights on this wonderful CD, which includes brief notes to the background of each song. Anyone who has seen him play live or attended one of his cookery workshops cannot fail to be inspired by his enthusiasm and talent for both music and food. This CD beautifully captures the essence of Yue, and is the perfect introduction for anyone yet to know him better. Go on, treat yourself and invest in this CD. You will not be disappointed.
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