Chan Centre to Welcome Wu Man, 5/9

The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at the University of British Columbia (UBC) is thrilled to host reigning master of the pipa, Wu Man, with leading international chamber group, the Shanghai Quartet on Saturday, May 9 at 8pm in the Chan Shun Concert Hall. In its Vancouver premiere, this rare, beguiling collaboration titled A Night in Ancient and New China will feature the great music of China, from its traditional roots to more contemporary expressions.

"Witnessing Wu Man's stunning technique on the pipa is a tremendous gift to our audiences. She skillfully demonstrates the incredible versatility of this lute-like instrument, from gentle melodies to bold passages performed with power and virtuosity," says Joyce Hinton, Co-Managing Director of the Chan Centre. "This type of programming - that combines the arts from both Western and Eastern cultures - is extremely relevant to Vancouver. It serves to not only celebrate the rich, multicultural environment that surrounds us, but also to build vital bridges within it."

Alongside accomplished first and second violinist, Weigang Li and Yi-Wen Jiang, as well as acclaimed violist Honggang Li and cellist Nicholas Tzavaras, Wu Man will perform a suite of captivating Chinese folk songs arranged by Yi-Wen Jiang, in addition to her own extraordinary solo compositions for the pipa. The Shanghai Quartet, known for juxtaposing traditional and modern styles, as well as Eastern and Western influences, will also perform Beethoven's String Quartet No.11 in F minor, Op.95 (Serioso). The program will conclude with a chamber version of the acclaimed Ghost Opera by Oscar award- winning composer Tan Dun, a hauntingly beautiful work originally commissioned in 1994 for Wu Man and the Kronos Quartet.

Considered a child prodigy, Wu Man was accepted into the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing at the young age of 13, where she later became the first person to earn her master's degree in pipa. This year marks the 25th anniversary since she first arrived in the United States as part of the China Youth Arts Troupe (she has called the US home since immigrating in the 90s). Wu Man has since been celebrated for introducing the pipa to North America as an iconic ambassador of Chinese music. Furthermore, she is hailed for her musical innovation, creating new works for the lute-like instrument with an origin that traces back more than 2000 years, and for bringing it into new artistic contexts.

Throughout her outstanding career, Wu Man has recorded more than 40 albums - the most recent titled Our World in Song, which received a GRAMMY nomination for Best Album in the World Music category.

In addition to collaborations with the esteemed Kronos Quartet and Silk Road Project, she has served as muse to many famed contemporary composers, from Tan Dun to Terry Riley. Wu Man was named Musical America's 2013 Instrumentalist.

Reuniting with Wu Man in concert, the Shanghai Quartet has earned an impressive reputation for its fierce musicality and refinement. Since its formation in 1983 at the Shanghai Conservatory, the quartet has collaborated with some of the world's greatest artists and ensembles such as cellists Yo-Yo Ma and Lynn Harrell, pianists Menahem Pressler, Yuja Wang, Peter Serkin and Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Tokyo, Juilliard and Guarneri Quartets. The group has also been welcomed to many prestigious festivals and venues, one notable highlight being the 2006 premiere of Takuma Itoh's Concerto for Quartet and Orchestra at Carnegie Hall.