Why Shen Yun's Music Resonates With Our Souls - 0 views
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Music has its beginning in sacred spaces. Whether in the East with the music of sages or in the West with our Gregorian chants, music has for centuries been used to convey a reverence for the heavens, express human emotion, and connect with the world around us.
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With ancient China, the five tones of the pentatonic scale had direct relationships with the five elements in our physical world and the five major organs of our human bodies. Whether it be singing or playing tunes on a bamboo flute, music was meant to aid in the connection between heaven, earth, and humankind.
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While the task of combining two very different musical languages may be a Herculean one for arrangers, and playing the incredibly precise music a challenge for the musicians, the conductor, in a way, gets to reap the rewards with a powerful, versatile ensemble at her fingertips.
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Sometimes the story takes a turn and characters find themselves in a celestial palace, and the music has to be able to evoke a heavenly feeling, a sound so convincing you almost glimpse heaven. Sometimes the story calls for warriors on a battlefield, and the orchestra provides the strength and power and intensity of the battle. Sometimes the dance is an ethnic or folk dance, and the music takes on the sound of horses roaming the Mongolian grasslands, for example.
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“In ancient Chinese times, people also believed the ideas behind the music were more important than what’s on the surface … and that’s why I love Shen Yun music so much. It’s very inspiring and powerful—invigorating at the same time. It can be humorous, it can really cheer people up.”“It all ties into this mission to celebrate the best of humanity, both East and West, the values and the heroes from the past, or even today.”