The music of Beijing's bells and drums sounds in NYC (2)

"Zhou Long is one of our great living composers, who happens to be a composer from China," Bermel says. "That's very exciting, because it means a different perspective. He's someone with a dual identity. His work is informed by songs he heard as a kid; he's inspired by Chinese calligraphy, poetry and the modal sounds that he grew up with.

"But in addition to having learned to write for Chinese instruments, he also creates music for Western instruments. He's a hybrid identity. You can't quite call him one thing or another."

Zhou represents a tradition of bringing Chinese culture to the US that dates back to the 19th century, Bermel says.

Since its founding in 1977, ACO has embraced cultural diversity and the artistic richness that results from a mix of heritages, he says. In recent years, a steady stream of Chinese musicians and composers has furthered the classical music tradition.

Bell Drum Tower doesn't feature Chinese instruments but draws on Zhou's memories of the towers themselves as well as the frequent festivals in nearby neighborhoods, he says. During holidays, farmers would come from the countryside and magicians would perform for jostling crowds. That bustle of activity beneath the long-silent towers was inspiring, Zhou says.

In the program notes, Zhou writes: "My curiosity and imagination was to hear the lingering sound of the ancient bells and drums, which sometimes would sound with the hazy wind, and sometimes as a peal of thunder. In the Bell Drum Tower, I am exploring my fantasy of their (the towers') sound in the wind, the pulse of drums beating. Gradually, new patterns develop, each time in a faster tempo, building to a climax that brings the music to a presto wind-like section. Finally, the hazy wind (rings) the lingering bells."

Even for listeners who have never been to China or seen the towers, he hopes the piece will evoke "a certain distance in the passage of time".

"I hope that audiences will experience a feeling of the past, and the rhythms of my memories," Zhou says.

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