MA is proud to present the first recording
of Pipa virtuoso Jiang Ting outside of China !
Jiang
Ting/Voice of the Pipa
With a history of more than 2000 years,
the Chinese Pipa is one of that culture`s oldest and most elegant instruments.
When first seen in China, (having arrived from India by way of the Silk Road
sometime during the Han and Tang Dynasties), the Pipa, being a plucked instrument,
was verbally described to sound like ?pi~pa~pi~pa.?.
Originally round, the Pipa was a highly
regarded instrument of the court. Over the centuries however, with influence
from Iran, the current pear shape evolved and the Pipa became more widely accepted
and heard in entertainment and ritual genres outside the court.
While the four strings, tuned A D E A,
were originally made of silk, the modern 3 octave Pipa uses steel strings, allowing
for more projection and volume. The number of frets has increased over the years,
the most common Pipa now having 26 frets and 6 ledges. The frets are very deeply
cut, allowing for the player to bend notes by depressing the strings, as opposed
to bending them sideways as in western guitar performance. The modern player,
almost always female, uses her nails, (now almost always artificial) in performance
techniques that have evolved over the centuries to include 1) Backward and forward
four finger tremolo strumming 2) Harmonics 3) Pizzicato 4) Fretted pitch bending
The shallow body of the Pipa is made
of hollowed out, varnished teak, while the soundboard is made of wutong wood
(firmiana plantanifolia). There are two tuning pegs on each side of the neck,
the top of which is almost always carved, depicting a flower, dragon head, phoenix
tail, bat or other abstract design. In contemporary performance, the Pipa is
perpendicularly placed on the left part of the seated performer`s lap, while
the neck and head are positioned close to the performers left ear. More ancient
practice dictates a more horizontal positioning of the instrument.
Of Chinese heritage, Jiang Ting was born
in Inner Mongolia in the beginning of the 1970`s. Her Pipa studies commenced
when she was seven years old, her first teacher being her mother. At the age
of ten, she went alone to Beijing to continue her studies, starting in the primary
school associated with the Central State Conservatory. In 1996 she won first
prize in the national Pipa performance contest, receiving her Conservatory graduation
certificate in 1997. Since July 1997, Jiang Ting been living in Japan where
she has performed with orchestras, on television and continues to concertise
throughout the country.
?Voice of the Pipa? is Jiang
Ting`s first recording outside of China, where her debut was released in the
late 1990`s. The project was recorded in a small church, ?Chiesa di S.
Colombano? in the mountains outside the beautiful city of Lucca, in the
Toscana region of Italia.
Explainations of the
Pieces:
"A Bride Beyond the Great Wall" (ancient
traditional) This old piece is based on the famous story of Wang Zhaojun, a
woman who lived during the Han dynasty who was sent to 'Sai-wai' (the northern
frontier beyond the Great Wall) to marry for political reasons, with a king
of the nomadic 'Xiongnu' tribe. Wang Zhaojun is famous as one of the 'Four Beauties'
of ancient China and was also very good at playing the pipa. The story goes
that she missed her family and played the pipa every night, longing for her
hometown. The tune deeply expresses the loneliness she experienced during her
life in cold 'Sai-wai.'
"Pleading" - from "Ballad of Pipa" (composed
by Wu Houyuan) A long epic poem, "Ballad of Pipa" is a masterpiece by Bai Juyi
who lived during the Tang dynasty. This ancient tale depicts an old woman who
was once famous for her pipa performance in the Emperor's Court, However, her
status is diminished and she deplores her own existence while solemnly playing
her pipa alone. Bai Juyi, who was in the depths of political despair, associated
her music with her own life. Wu Houyuan was deeply impressed by this poem and
composed "Pleading." Mr. Wu, an accomplished pipa player, was quite successful
in utilizing the pipa's characteristic technique in this work.
"The Spirit of Calligraphy" (composed
by Chen yi) This is a modern pipa composition written in the late 20th century.
Ms. Chen tries expressing the spirit of Chinese calligraphy thru completely
different artistic measures - pipa music. 'Kai-shu,' a type of Chinese calligraphy,
consists of eight ways of writing with the Calligrapher's brush holding, raising,
suspending, subduing, softening, strengthening, unhurrying, and hurrying. Each
of these writing "features" is expressed through various playing techniques
of the pipa.
"Caprice" (composed by Jiang Ting) Jiang
Ting holds her pipa and just plays what crosses her mind naturally.
"The Last Hero's Ballad" (ancient traditional)
This piece describes the battle between 'Chu' and 'Han' in 202 B.C. At this
battle, the unbeatable 'Chu' hero, Xiang Yu, was finally defeated by Liu Bang
of the 'Han.' Xiang Yu bade farewell to his beloved Lady Yu and killed himself
by the Wujiang River. The atmosphere is tragic throughout the piece, allowing
one to vividly imagine the battle field through the many exotic sounds of the
pipa.
"Green Waist" Dance Music (composed by
Yang Jieming) "Green Waist" is a famous dance piece of the Tang dynasty era
with the numerous kinds of dance steps expressed through the pipa`s performance
techniques.
