• Yuwen Peng: Putting a Spin on Sizhukong 



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    Published: December 11, 2012 










    After Paper Eagle, I thought I had to try new ways 
    to put Chinese music together with modern music. 
    I didn't want to repeat Paper Eagle. 


    Yuwen Peng doesn't like resting on her laurels. The pianist, composer and founder of Taiwanese sextet Sizhukong had already taken a bold step in integrating Western instruments, African music and jazz harmonies with traditional Taiwanese and Chinese folk songs on Sizhukong's self-titled debut recording in 2007. The follow-up to that, Paper Eagle (Sizhukong Records, 2009), followed a very similar pattern, though the refinement in the band's sound was notable.
    More of the same wouldn't have been a total surprise; after all, Peng had been working for more than half a dozen years on her musical concept for Sizhukong. However, Peng is clearly a curious soul, and rather than repeat a winning formula, she chose instead to head into personally uncharted musical territory by jazzing up Sizhukong. For the first time, electronic keyboards and electric guitar color the music, bringing the band's sound a little closer to the jazz fusion of Herbie Hancock—a major influence on Peng.
    Sizhukong's new direction impressed Sony, which signed the band and released its third CD, Spin, in 2012. Many of Sizhukong's trademarks are present, from Peng's jazz-inspired piano and the blend of traditional Chinese and Western instruments. Nevertheless, this Sizhukong is a different beast altogether—more contemporary and more adventurous than before. The band's first foray into North America in March was a great success, vindicating Peng's new musical direction for the band she started in 2005 upon returning from Berklee to her native Taiwan.
    All About Jazz: Yuwen, recently you performed a special project with Sizhukong. Could you tell us what that was about, please?
    That was a concert we did at the end of September, where we incorporated an aboriginal singer, whose name is Ilid Kaolo, from the Amei aboriginal Taiwanese tribe. We started learning the songs and dance from her last year. Together with Ilid and me, there were two more composers; one is a jazz violinist called Stephane Hwang and then a pianist/songwriter, also graduated from Berklee, called Chialun Yu. The four of us would meet every month and learn something from Ilid, so we could put her tribal songs and dance into our compositions.
    We have given two concerts this year with Sizhukong, a six-piece band, as you know, the singer Ilid, a string quartet, and Chialun also played percussion and some piano parts. For the September concert, we added Hwa Jou Shieh, the guitarist on the Spin album.
    AAJ: That sounds like an exciting lineup.
    YP: It was fun, but too much work for me [laughs].
    AAJ: What was the makeup of the string quartet?
    YP: Two violins, one viola and one cello.
    AAJ: That sounds like a beautiful combination. Yuwen, after Paper Eagle it would have been easy to repeat such a successful formula, but with Spin you've taken a new direction. Tell us a little about the evolution of Sizhukong's music in the last couple of years.
    YP: After Paper Eagle, I thought I had to try new ways to put Chinese music together with modern music. I didn't want to repeat Paper Eagle. At that time, in 2010, we thought about adding an electric sound. We tried it in concert. We tried most of the songs recorded in the new album, Spin, in concert two years ago already. We used electric guitar, electric bass and keyboards. We even used some loops in the concert, surround-sound effects. 

  • 爵士樂專業網站 All.About.Jazz.com 評論
    絲竹空爵士樂團.《旋轉》專輯
    原文網址:http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=42805 

    索尼音樂 SONY MUSIC 2012發行
    作者:Ian Patterson  譯者:詩杖
    刊登日期:2012 / 8 / 30





    來自台灣的絲竹空樂團發行第一張同名專輯《絲竹空》(絲竹空發行,2007)迄今已五年,這五年絲竹空的音樂探索已經走了很長一段路。融合爵士語彙和台灣/華人音樂傳統,專輯《絲竹空》一目了然地標示了一個來自亞洲獨特聲音的誕生。這個充滿活力與抒情的聲響聽起來不止創新,而且是經過深思才有的音樂奇花。團長兼鋼琴手彭郁雯當時從美國百克里(Berklee)音樂學院畢業不久,音樂中聽得到她將流暢的爵士樂句與民族風編織在一起。與來自南非的音樂家(拇指鋼琴/非洲鼓/人聲)莫哈瓦尼(Mogauwane Mahloelo)令人激賞的合作,更顯示絲竹空對所有樂種的開放態度。

    第二張專輯《紙鳶》(絲竹空發行,2009)則走在樂團原本的樂風方向上,但整體質感提昇了一級。在這張專輯中他們更進一步地探索了華人音樂與非洲音樂的界線,同時還加入了拉丁元素。新加入的低音提琴/作曲吳馬丁(Martijn Vanbuel原本的電貝斯手藤井俊充改擔任鼓手/打擊為音樂增添了更多的爵士感。團長彭郁雯的鋼琴家身份較為隱藏,反而是作曲/指揮的身份更為明顯,為音樂帶來了艾靈頓公爵(Duke Ellington)式的優雅。傳統中國打擊樂器的加入則加強了音樂的衝擊力並為編曲添加了東方風情。整體來說這張專輯延伸了上一張專輯發展的曲風,但更為細膩。

    在《旋轉》專輯中,絲竹空再度向傳統華人音樂、台灣民謠與爵士樂尋求靈感,而彭郁雯的創作還是不例外地融入了大自然、民間口傳故事/詩歌和歷史等成份。然而,在此新專輯中絲竹空大膽地將創作觸角伸向未知的領域:除了吳馬丁的低音提琴由藤井俊充的電貝斯取代、爵士鼓 (亦由藤井負責) 的份量也加重了之外,最重要的是,首次加入的鍵盤合成器與電吉他等時興音效的運用,令人「耳朵」為之一亮,不僅帶來了融合爵士/搖滾爵士的感受,所散發的即興樂趣也較之先前的專輯更具有爵士感。一直以來被認為是在融合多元音樂傳統的絲竹空,此番已更上層樓,展現出其融合強烈對比元素及其紋理潤飾的能力。

    就在第一首歌「醉酒都馬」開始不過20秒,謝華洲的電吉他solo就宣布了絲竹空音樂的新方向:以整齊乾淨的樂團齊奏、和由中國絲/竹樂器與鍵盤、電吉他之間的「呼喊回應」(call-and-response)為特色的融合爵士之音樂探險。時而緊密、時而氣勢磅礡的編曲讓我們聽到了由鍵盤手喬札維諾(Joe Zawinul)帶領的「氣象報告」(Weather Report)樂團的影響。華洲具有搖滾色彩的刺激獨奏、和鍵盤手郁雯深受放克/爵士影響的音樂取向形成強烈對比,郁雯的獨奏充滿了賀比漢考克(Herbie Hancock)的靈魂。這首旋律感強烈的曲子取材自台灣歌仔戲都馬調,以染上札維諾和漢考克(Zawinul/Hancock)色彩的編曲手法和精采的電吉他賦予新生命,完全展現絲竹空樂團「融合一切」的音樂哲學。

    節奏細膩的變化和充滿巧思的編曲或許已抓住了你的耳朵,但「旋律性」才是彭郁雯創作的核心:整張專輯中雋永的曲調層出不窮。由溫柔的貝斯主題旋律線和吉他開場的「走在絲路上」(吳政君作曲、彭郁雯編曲)是一首令人愉快的小品。笛子手黃治評演奏的洞簫和電子吹管在這首曲子裡充滿旋律性,打擊手吳政君的印度鼓(tabla)、愛爾蘭手鼓(frame drum)和沙鈴的伴奏為曲子注入了輕鬆自在的印度風情,你可以閉上眼睛、想像滿載香料的駱駝商旅正穿過亙古的沙漠,緩緩向西方前進。

    以口簧琴和渾厚的貝斯開場、並為之定下氛圍的「流光傳奇」是一首特質鮮明的曲子。它將北管念唱和阿美族口傳詩歌結合,由打擊手吳政君和特別來賓以莉高露以半唱半唸的方式合作,演出效果力道十足,餘韻甘甜。以莉高露溫柔的開場唸白將阿美語充滿詩意的特質表露無遺,黃治評恰到好處的洞簫妝點其中,像一隻隨氣流盤旋而上的飛禽,毫不費力的遨翔雲間。

    由政君的二胡、治評的笛子和芷翎的中阮為主奏的「天公落水」,樂曲交響式的開頭令人聯想到「黃蜂樂團」(Yellow Jackets)。這首有著彭郁雯跳躍的琴音穿梭其中的曲子,在以莉和華洲的人聲加入的一瞬間,就帶領我們進入90年代派特馬西尼(Pat Metheny)拉丁曲風作品的世界。芷翎在「鳳陽3.0」中的即興是她有史以來最具有爵士味道的獨奏,雖然中阮和柳琴在這張專輯中的出現份量沒有《紙鳶》多。從「鳳陽」這首絲竹空的招牌曲我們可以看出樂團音樂方向的演化:從2007年的鋼琴柳琴二重奏,到20123.0版本改以細膩的電音搭配印度鼓(tabla),而郁雯傑出的鍵盤獨奏又一次為音樂增添了較為當代的音樂色彩。

    或許最能展現絲竹空樂團連結古今的音樂企圖的曲子是「陽關三疊」為貝斯獨奏而編的小品。藤井俊充用電貝斯仿擬古琴音色,將這首取材自一千年前唐詩的琴曲妝點上藍調風情。「陽關三疊」以序曲的方式帶入下一首曲子「波那波那」,一首靈感來自於喀麥隆音樂詩人理查波那(Richard Bona)的曲子,全曲將三種樂器優美而簡潔的結合在一起:電貝斯、電吉他以及巴烏一種聽起來哀怨、有著黑管音色的中國西南方吹管。「京劇回憶錄」包含了所有定義絲竹空樂團的元素:漂亮的旋律線、繁複變化的節拍以及傳統與當代文化,還有令人驚豔的新成分:華洲狂飆的吉他獨奏。

    《旋轉》標示了絲竹空音樂至今最大膽的嘗試。如果第一張專輯《絲竹空》已經引起台灣本土文化基本教義者的不安的話,那麼這張專輯勢必更令他們如坐針氈。郁雯的音樂探索已經從五重奏的原點邁入更令人興奮的新領域,隨著能與她的音樂想像配合的各種音樂元素一一到位,看起來絲竹空在不久的未來非常可能帶給我們更多令人興奮的音樂探險!

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  • Sizhukong: Spin
    By IAN PATTERSON, Published: August 30, 2012

    Sizhukong
    Spin
    Sony Music
    2012

    Taiwanese band Sizhukong has come a long way in five years since its debut recording, Sizhukong (Sizhukong Music, 2007). Blending jazz idioms with traditional Taiwanese/Chinese folk music, that record announced the arrival of a unique Asian ensemble, whose exciting, highly lyrical playing sounded not just newly minted, but newly conceived. Pianist/leader Yuwen Peng had recently graduated from Berklee and wove her flowing jazz lines throughout the exotic mix. And, in a captivating collaboration with South African mbira/djembe player and singer Mogauwane Mahloelo, Peng showed that the band was open to all music.

    Paper Eagle (Sizhukong Music, 2009) didn't radically alter the blueprint but it did take things up a notch, with the band further exploring the crossroads between Taiwanese/Chinese and African music, and adding certain Latin flavors to the brew. The addition of Dutch double bassist/composer Martijn Vanbuel—with original electric bassist Toshi Fujii switching to drums/percussion—brought slightly greater jazz sensibility to the music. Peng's soloing was less prominent, playing more the role of conductor and imbuing the music with Duke Ellingtonian grace. Greater use of Chinese percussion added punch and Oriental spice to the arrangements, but otherwise the band's second CD was an outstanding continuation and refinement of what had come before.

    With Spin, Sizhukong again draws from traditional Taiwanese/Chinese folk traditions and jazz. Peng's compositions, as ever, are informed by nature, folk tales/poetry and history's contours. However, the band steps outside its comfort zone in a several important ways. Electronic keyboards and electric guitar debut and are to the fore, bringing a jazz-fusion/jazz-rock hue to several compositions and there's perhaps more jazz-inspired improvisation than on the band's previous albums. Vanbuel's acoustic bass has been replaced by Fujii's electric bass, and the drum kit (on which Fujii doubles) is a more dynamic presence than before. Sizhukong may have begun as a fusion of musical traditions, but on Spin it's also increasingly about a fusion of contrasting textural elements.

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