Riot ArtistsMelody of China
About
Since 1993, Melody of China (MOC) has broken barriers in presenting new and traditional music featuring Chinese instruments, and concert programs which include traditional Chinese music alongside newly commissioned works, often combining Chinese and Western instruments. Over the years, the ensemble has commissioned new works from contemporary composers, and collaborated with various artists and ensembles. Melody of China has also conducted many outreach and educational programs, partnering with such organizations as AIM (Adventures in Music) and The Music Center, offering school programs, classes and lectures around the Bay Area and throughout the U.S.
Artist Links: Facebook | Twitter | Soundcloud
Areas of Representation: Worldwide
Biography
Since 1993, Melody of China (MOC) has broken barriers in presenting new and traditional music featuring Chinese instruments such as yangqin (hammered dulcimer), guzheng (zither), erhu (2-string bowed fiddle), pipa (lute), sheng (mouth organ) and dizi (bamboo flute). Concert programs include traditional Chinese music alongside newly commissioned works often combining Chinese and Western instruments. Over the years, the ensemble has commissioned new works from contemporary composers including: Kui Dong, Yuanlin Chen, Gang Situ, Gene Coleman, Carl Stone, Francis Wong and many others. In addition, MOC has collaborated with various artists and ensembles including Zeke Nealy, Swapan Chaudhuri, Earplay, Del Sol Quartet and San Francisco Symphony; MOC has been featured performers in festivals including San Francisco International Arts Festival and the National Folk Festival. Melody of China has also conducted many outreach and educational programs partnering with such organizations as AIM (Adventures in Music) and The Music Center offering school programs, classes and lectures around the Bay Area and throughout the U.S.
Videos
News
- Photos: Kyiv musicians bring soul to Niagara
Ukraine world-music quartet DakhaBrakha entertains FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre audience
Wed., March 1, 2023
DakhaBrakha, an ensemble from Kyiv, Ukraine, brought their eclectic style of world music to the stage at FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre in St. Catharines Wednesday night.
Original Article
- DakhaBrakha Wins globalFEST’s Artist Award
globalFEST presents a series of annual awards that celebrate those that excel in the underrecognized but crucial global music field in the USA.
The awards are presented to artists, professionals, and organizations who have been instrumental in making significant, long-standing contributions to the field through risk-taking; addressing cultural diversity and diplomacy; activism; helping to keep, transmit, ... - DakhaBrakha’s Ukraine Update: Dec 2022
Excerpt from interview in the Greek journal Hellas: Posts English
When the war started were you in Ukraine? What is happening in the country right now?“When the war started we were all in Ukraine. At that particular moment we had started our tour of Ukraine. In fact, we had to travel to another city in the ...
- Songlines 2022 Fusion Award Winner: Justin Adams & Mauro Durante: Still Moving on Ponderosa Music
Justin Adams has long been an adventurous serial collaborator, but his album with Mauro Durante – leader of Italy’s premier pizzica band Canzoniere Grecanico Salentino, who won the Songlines Music Award for Best Group in 2018 – ranks among his finest achievements. The meeting point for the musicians was a fascination with trance rhythms and ...
Press
“Chinese Mythmaking – Melody of China has fortunately only sought to present music of its native land in its most honest and unadorned form…this San Francisco-based group steadfastly maintains the sound and substance of its large Chinese classical and folk repertoire.”
-Rebecca Liao, SAN FRANCISCO CLASSICAL VOICE (11/5/10)
“..it provides a powerful, evocative aural environment for the work [with Lines Ballet] which draws heavily on traditional Chinese instrumentation but incorporates Western aleatory and tonal elements”
-Clifton Lemon, SAN FRANCISCO STATION (4/16/07)
“The music cross-pollination of cultures is one of the hall-marks of some of the freshest music being written today. So, perhaps it is fitting that Melody of China should make the biggest and freshest splash”
-Edward Ortiz, SACRAMENTO BEE (11/2/06)
“Melody of China performs the history, lore and myth of China in song. A truly innovative and dazzling cultural extravaganza! …Melody of China’s music breaks down cultural walls”
-SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE (3/8/02)
Testimonials
“A few people commented that they had never realized that Chinese traditional instruments have such lyricism and beautiful tone”
-Marianne Locke, Director, Young Imaginations
Downloads/Media
Technical Riders:
Melody of China Stageplot 2022: Download (pdf)
Press Photos (High Resolution):
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- 352KB