On the 300th anniversary of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Chinese composer Wen Ziyang pays tribute to the timeless classic with his own interpretation of the four seasons.
His answer is Timeless Four Seasons, a set of twelve-movement violin concertos, each depicting the scenery and mood of a particular season. Commissioned by Major Music, the work premiered on 31 December 2024 in Changsha, Hunan Province, performed by violinist Lv Siqing.
Wen employs a rich tapestry of modern techniques alongside the pentatonic scale to enhance expressiveness. He also weaves folk elements from Beijing, Inner Mongolia, and Tibet into the string writing, highlighting a distinctly Chinese aesthetic.
Matching the scale and duration of Vivaldi’s masterpiece, Timeless Four Seasons was performed last night at SHOAC by violinist Lv Siqing and the Major New Strings.
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