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Post by rhp on Nov 25, 2004 5:36:47 GMT
I'm a relative newbie so I would be very interested in seeing everyone's top ten favorite cd/vcd/dvd list . I've been disappointed with some cd's due to synth backgrounds, related issues. It would help me to sift through everything out there. also, if you have any favorite vendors (online or otherwise). Thanks all!
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Post by davidmdahl on Nov 25, 2004 7:06:15 GMT
Following are some of my CDs that are on the trad. side:
- Miniature Ensemble of Jiangnan - World Music Library
- Hard to Say Goodbye - Duets with Qin and Xiao - Hugo
- The Lotus that Stands Out - Wang Lien's Guzheng - Wind Records
- Pastoral Song - Chinese Di and Xiao solos - Wind Records
- Chinese Tung-Hsiao - The Art of Tong Ku-Chiun - Wind Records
- Louis Chen Plays Zheng Solos - Hugo
- Chinese Traditional Music - Liu Fang - Oliver Sudden
- Liu Fang & Ye Xu-Ran - Pipa Music - (no label listed)
- The Soul of Pipa - Liu Fang - PhilMultic
- Classical Chinese Folk Music - Arc Music
- Classical Chinese Folk Music - Pan Jin & Ensemble - Arc Music
- China - Time to Listen - Ellipsis Arts
- The Hugo Masters, an anthology of Chinese Classical Music - Celestial Harmonies
From my experience the World Music Library is the most reliable source of true traditional recordings. Unfortunately this label is apparently out-of-business so the CDs are hard to find and often expensive. The Hugo label has some great CDs. Wind Music has some very traditional recordings also, but they also have some pop and synth CDs in their catalog so you have to pick carefully.
Best wishes,
David Dahl
Portland, Oregon
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Post by davidmdahl on Nov 26, 2004 19:20:46 GMT
One CD that I mistakenly left off my list of favorite trad. Chinese CDs:
- String Passions - Erhu by Yu Hong-mei - Wind Records
The performance of "Remembering My Hometown" alone is worth buying the CD. It makes me want to learn to play erhu.
Best wishes,
David Dahl
Portland, Oregon
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Post by YouLanFengChune on Nov 26, 2004 23:27:27 GMT
Ah!!
Yu Hongmei is in Singapore.
Well, I like her clean techniques, and her sound, but...(no offence)
Somehow i feel she lack the cammanding prescence a soloist ought to have....
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Post by YouLanFengChune on Feb 22, 2005 16:36:38 GMT
Hi! I'm here to announce that THE CADENZA CD STORE IS OFFICIALLY OPEN. We have secured authorized online dealership at prices, as we have received letters of commendation from various customers for mbeing good in serving and helping musicians. Now, at $17.99, you can get the CD with FREE SHIPPING, now thats the lowest cost in Europe, Australia and Americas. Especially Guqin, and Guzheng players, you can get the wide collection effortlessly! cadenzamusic.biz |
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Post by Charlie Huang on Feb 22, 2005 23:16:27 GMT
That wonderful!
*goes and checks it out*
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Post by Si on Feb 9, 2006 16:38:04 GMT
Hugo seems to be the best label out there for a broad range. From Gu Qin to SiZhu to Guangong Music they have it all.
HK label has loads too, but they tend to have a lot of the - ermm... dare I say crass modern stuff that tries to be symphonic with the standard funny movement in the middle that tries to imitate ducks or something silly.
They do have some tad stuff and one cd is a killer:-
"Four Virtuosi Play Chinese Tradinional Music" - I think I have not found a better ensemble CD than this!!
Never ever touch the world music sections if you want Chinese music. Best thing is to take a holiday in a Chinese part of Asia. Find the local Chinese music stockist and listen, test and buy, as its usually rather cheap (cos nobody esle in asia seems to buy it!).
Even buying Trad in China is a tuff one. 80% of so- called trad music has a synthersizer - urggkk!! Sad to say it is really very un-cool to listen to trad chinese misic in China. I have never met a Chinese that does so!! It must be the same as an English person listening to Morris dancers!!
I have heard that Tiawan is the best place for buying these cds. In sinagpore they have Karl Heng Music and thats great. In HK I never found anywhere. Beijing was OK - I got a set of about 10 cd's tracing music through- out all the Dynasties.
Above all you must test whatever you buy - there really is nothing worse than thinking you have found a really great cd and then the all too common synth starts plodding in the background!!
And my advise is to stay away from anything that looks symphonic or orchestral - because if you like beethoven etc then this stuff will seem like student fodder! (sorry Chinese composers - but we dont need to sit through 3 mins of duck sounds and waves do not have to sound totally like waves!!!)
Having said that, Butterfly lovers and yellow river cantarta are pretty good!
Thats my 2 pence worth!!!!
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Post by sanmenxia on Feb 9, 2006 17:37:01 GMT
Yeah I agree finding good trad Chinese music CDs is not easy, obviously it depends on your tastes. I pefer music played by a soloist and/or small ensemble, I don't mind soloist +large orchestra (Chinese or Western) as long as the piece was written be played that way. I really can't stand "arrangements" of traditional music.
The CDs to avoid are: CDs with no credits, "lifestyles" compilations. If you're in China, price are low enough(for a foreigner) to allow you to take a chance buying a CD without hearing it first.
Quote "Never ever touch the world music sections if you want Chinese music".
I have found some excellent CDs there! Eg HMV and Virgin in Oxford St, and Tower, in London, probably not other (UK)places though. If you're lucky sometimes have they have genuine folk music and trad music CDs released by western record companies. You have to choose carefully, most of the stuff in the world music sections is arrangements, muzak, fusion, or some other nonsense!
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Post by Si on Feb 10, 2006 3:22:19 GMT
Quote "I have found some excellent CDs there! Eg HMV and Virgin in Oxford St, and Tower, in London, probably not other (UK)places though. If you're lucky sometimes have they have genuine folk music and trad music CDs released by western record companies. You have to choose carefully, most of the stuff in the world music sections is arrangements, muzak, fusion, or some other nonsense!"
Yes I agree. London is probably the best place - but It just does not compare to a specialist asian shop. Especially if you want pure chinese music.
Yes 10-20 rmb is nothing to pay for a CD in china, but its that feeling that you have bought a crap cd with synthersizer - i just want to throw the cd away or burn it!
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Post by Charlie Huang on Feb 10, 2006 13:03:44 GMT
Please use the quote function!
[quote*] the quote here [/quote*]
(remove the *s)
I've found some good CDs in the World music section. I love Wu Man's Pipa one (it may be experiemental, but it is done with honesty and emotional passion).
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Post by sanmenxia on Feb 10, 2006 14:23:58 GMT
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Post by Charlie Huang on Feb 10, 2006 16:58:11 GMT
No. It's a Naxos World one. Called Pipa: from a distance I heard that one! I borrowed it from the main library. It's rather a long time since I heard it, but I find Lin Youren's playing very soothing. I might hunt that down next time I'm in town. |
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Post by sanmenxia on Feb 10, 2006 20:02:55 GMT
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Post by kyokuhon on Feb 21, 2006 22:44:01 GMT
Hi, all,
Very interesting so far. I have to agree with those who say they've found wonderful CDs in the World Music bins. I suspect that the buyers have no idea what they're getting, they just want to fill up the bin, and sometimes they accidentally get something very trad. Good for us!
I love Lin Youren's solo CD, and finally tried to buy his qin and xiao (with Du Cong) CD from chineseculture, but, alas, it's out of stock and/or discontinued! Que lastima!
Also, the old King Record Co.'s World Music Library seems to be great in its entirety (at least I haven't found a dud yet!), though I hear the company's out of business and the CDs are becoming collectors items. BTW: if anyone has a copy of their Yunnan minorities vol. 1 they'd like to sell, let me know.
I personally don't hate modern arrangements, though I don't like it when the recording companies make them look very traditional. As to what's listened to in China, I suspect that syburn is right, though there are English (and Anglo-Americans) who love Morris dancing, so there must be Chinese who like trad, maybe they're just hard to find? And, as you say, not very cool.
I also agree about Hugo's current trad catalog: not huge; they seem to have only one recording of each genre, but the music sounds to me very traditional (like I'd know!), and the price, at least here in the USA, is right.
Finally, there's a recording entitled "Rain Dropping on Banana Leaves" (Actually, there are probably a half-dozen recordings with that title) from an American "folk" company (I'll get the details at home) that's a compilation of recordings of Chinese music by Chinese artists from 1900-1930, mostly Peking opera, but some instrumental, which may be the best "baseline" we currently have to hear "traditional" style. I think Smithsonian Folkways also has an older recording or two of a Chinese-American group from the 40's or 50's.
Best to all,
K.
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Post by chuck1 on Jan 4, 2009 15:06:48 GMT
Hi all,
I'm new here. I've been listening to a variety of Chinese and other Asian music some for a couple decades, but only recently have begun to focus on Chinese music. I've picked up some good cds and books via the web.
What I've found works very well for exploring the music is exploring via mp3 downloads. I've been doing that via Amazon.com (I haven't explored further than that). The mp3s provide an opportunity to listen to ca. 20 to 30 seconds of a cut. I've been able to explore a broad range of sources, and find some very good traditional music, picking what catches my ear as interesting, authentic-seeming, etc. And finding much music that is otherwise not available in the U.S. (via cds, etc.).
Interesting to join in, thanks.
Chuck1
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Post by sanmenxia on Aug 22, 2009 20:51:42 GMT
The "World Music Library" CDs from King Records seems to have been repackaged as "The World Roots Music Library". For example, the "Miniature Ensemble of Jiangnan" CD is now called "Virtuosi of Jiangnan Sizhu": www.kingrecords.co.jp/world/disc/4108040663.htmlSo they are still available. Re mp3 downloads, the problem is I guess nearly always the background information from sleeve and liner notes are not included. A lot of the time, people don't bother to scan the CD booklet before sharing their CDs. |
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Post by kyokuhon on Sept 16, 2009 3:36:46 GMT
Thank you, thank you, sanmenxia! Is there any chance you could find a link to an English language site? I've tried and failed.
Best, and keep playing,
K.
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Post by sanmenxia on Sept 17, 2009 16:10:56 GMT
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