OCTOBER 12—17, 2021
FISHER CENTER AT BARD COLLEGE
AND
worldwide online
“Music is not just an art form but should help move society forward.”
— Huang Ruo, composer
thank you to all the composers, performers, staff, crew, and audience members who participated in this year’s festival! videos will be posted here and on our youtube channel soon for anyone who missed the live or online events. stay tuned!
Now in its fourth season, the China Now Music Festival is a leading force in introducing music from contemporary China to the United States and in promoting musical exchanges between the US and China. This year, as we continue to pursue our vital mission, we broadened our scope to include the voices of a wide array of Asian American composers, with the aim of exploring their importance in contemporary American music and society.
“Asian American voices are American voices, and Asian American music is American music. We should always cherish the cultural diversity in American society.”
— Jindong Cai, artistic director, China Now Music Festival
A rise in AAPI advocacy can be seen in initiatives such as the We Are More campaign, #stopaapihate, and the Yellow Whistle Project
The festival arrived in the midst of a particularly challenging time, shadowed by the global pandemic and recent rise in anti-Asian discrimination and violence. Our repertoire thus reflected how Asian American composers have responded to this particular moment, as well as to the historical reception of Asians in America.
Featuring composer-in-residence Huang Ruo, and ensemble-in-residence the Del Sol Quartet, along with many more composers and musicians, the 2021 China Now Music Festival connected culture, history, contemporary society, and the arts through a vibrant series of musical programs and discussion.
“The recent spike in anti-AAPI hate reminds us that Asian Americans must lift up our voices and show the world who we are, in all our strength, complexity, and humanity.”
— David Henry Hwang, playwright
Explore these webpages learn more about festival programs and participants.
featured festival artists
live events at bard’s fisher center
Del Sol Quartet
The Orchestra Now
China Now Festival Chorus
Jindong Cai, conductor
Tuesday, October 12, 8pm
COMPOSING FOR HISTORY —
Music of Huang Ruo
Sosnoff Theater, Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY
The opening event of the fourth annual China Now Music Festival, Asian American Voices, presented two major works by New York-based composer Huang Ruo: A Dust in Time, composed in 2020 in response to the pandemic; and a preview of excerpts from the oratorio Angel Island, composed in 2021 to honor the stories of immigrants from China. With performances by the Del Sol Quartet, from San Francisco; Bard’s own The Orchestra Now; and the China Now Festival Chorus. Conducted by the festival’s artistic director, Jindong Cai.
Del Sol Quartet
Jin Hi Kim
Wednesday, October 13, 8pm
UNDERCURRENTS IN CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN MUSIC — A MULTIMEDIA CHAMBER CONCERT
Sosnoff Theater, Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY
The second night of China Now featured the festival’s ensemble in residence, the Del Sol String Quartet, plus Guggenheim Composer Fellow Jin Hi Kim, in a showcase of Asian American composers of contemporary American music.
The Orchestra Now
Jindong Cai, conductor
China Now Festival Chorus and soloists
David Henry Hwang, narrator
Saturday, October 16, 3pm
SYMPHONIC PORTRAITS — WITH THE ORCHESTRA NOW
Sosnoff Theater, Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College
Annandale-on-Hudson, NY
Jindong Cai conducts The Orchestra Now in a symphonic concert featuring works by Tan Dun, Peng-Peng Gong, and Xinyan Li, plus episodes of Huang Ruo’s powerful opera, An American Soldier, about the tragic death of US Army Private Danny Chen. With the China Now Festival Chorus and guest artists, including Tony Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang.
virtual events free online
Thursday, October 14, 8pm
Artists Confronting Society — a panel discussion and performance
Zoom Webinar followed by YouTube Livestream
Musicians and composers featured in the 2021 China Now Music Festival discuss how Asian American artists are responding to this moment in history. Followed by the Del Sol Quartet performing Huang Ruo’s A Dust in Time, a meditation on the pandemic.
Jindong Cai, conductor
The Orchestra Now
Del Sol Quartet
China Now Festival Chorus
Li Yi, tenor
Nina Yoshida Nelsen, mezzo-soprano
Helen Zhibing Huang, soprano
David Henry Hwang, narrator
Tuesday, October 19, 7pm*
american stories, american music — a symphonic concert online
Fisher Center at Bard
UPSTREAMING
*due to technical difficulties, this event was postponed from the originally scheduled airing on October 17.
The fourth annual China Now Music Festival concluded online with a selection of pieces from the Festival’s live concerts, presented to the worldwide public for free, and featuring two major works by the festival’s composer-in-residence, Huang Ruo: a preview of excerpts from his latest work, Angel Island Oratorio, and selected episodes from his 2014 opera An American Soldier. With performances by the Del Sol Quartet, The Orchestra Now, the China Now Festival Chorus, and guest artists including Tony Award-winning playwright David Henry Hwang. Conducted by Jindong Cai.
about the china now music festival
The China Now Music Festival is an annual series of events produced by the US-China Music Institute of the Bard College Conservatory of Music. Dedicated to promoting an understanding and appreciation of classical music from contemporary China, each year’s festival explores a singular theme. The inaugural festival in 2018, Facing the Past, Looking to the Future: Chinese Composers in the 21st Century, presented US and world premieres of orchestral works by 11 living Chinese composers in concerts at Bard College, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center. The following year, the festival presented China and America: Unity in Music at Bard College, Carnegie Hall, and Stanford University, and featured the world premiere of the symphonic oratorio ‘Men of Iron and the Golden Spike,’ a major new work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Zhou Long honoring the Chinese railroad workers of the American West on the 150th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad.