Dunhuang Fantasia
by Zhou Long
Chamber Music - Sheet Music

Chamber Music Piano

SKU: PR.110418500

Composed by Zhou Long. 20 pages. Duration 12 minutes. Theodore Presser Company #110-41850. Published by Theodore Presser Company (PR.110418500).

ISBN 9781491137277. UPC: 680160690039.

DUNHUANG FANTASIA is a fascinating 12-minute drama inspired by art from grottoes in the ancient town of Dunhuang in western China. These frescoes preserve images of music and dance scenes, including the postures and attitudes of performers, and of the musical instruments used. Zhou Long’s music begins with a mysterious introduction driven by drum-like textures, followed by a series of episodes, enhanced by captions of the artwork inspiring each section and evocations of the ancient musical instruments.
Commissioned and with fingering by Zou Xiang, Dunhuang Fantasia was composed in the fall of 2017. The music was inspired by the art of the Mogaoku grottoes in the ancient town of Dunhuang in western China. The frescoes of the Dunhuang grottos preserve a number of music and dance performance scenes, including images of the postures and attitudes of performers, and of a number of musical instrument types are used.The most popular form of music indigenous to this region is the huar, a folk-song type current among a number of nationalities. The huar is actually a kind of mountain song. Along with huar, Dunhuang pipa qupu (Dunhuang pipa notation) is also an inspiration for elements in this music.The music begins in adagio as a mysterious introduction. The drum-like rhythm patterns beating in the lowest region of the piano, with a muted-string sonority, creates an expanded space to enhance the echoes from the grottos. This is soon followed by the first main section, Cup of Happiness, featuring the huar and Dunhuang pipa melodies along with the dance rhythm. In the next section, Water Drum, the music becomes medium tempo. In the section Dialogue in Presto, the music becomes more active and contrapuntal. The section Tune: Changsha Girl is in a faster tempo as a dance scene. The Coda starts with dense rhythms, and tension is gradually intensified to reach a climax, culminating in a return of the opening section.