"Could anyone hear horses in that last piece?" asked cellist virtuoso Yo-Yo Ma on Monday at a free concert at the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park. The audience agreed in enthusiastic applause, responding to a work entitled "Gallop of a Thousand Horses," composed by Tehran-based musician Kayhan Kalhor. Ma discussed the imagery of the galloping horse as a device to transport concert-goers to the faraway lands along the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road.
The concert kicked-off "Silk Road Chicago: Summer 2006" which offers more than 250 events in music, theater, dance, as well as visual and culinary arts. The cross-cultural event is part of Ma's Silk Road project which explores the Eurasian cultures along a series of routes used for trade for thousands of years. The music, dance and instrumentation at Monday's concert represented many of these cultures.
The blend of music conjuring ancient and exotic locales was a bit of a time warp in the context of the ultra-modern design of the Pritzker Pavilion. But Ma was quick to point out that the acoustics that the facility provided was some of the best the ensemble had experienced.
The concert opened with a "Silk Road Welcome" which featured the unique sound of a sheng—a Chinese mouth organ that Ma explained was used to play music for the Gods. The oddly-shaped instrument was played by Bejing musician Wu Tong, who later sang a moving rendition of a traditional Chinese "Swallow Song." The introduction was followed by a Renaissance-era work performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) Brass Quartet. This Gabrieli composition, represented Rome—the starting point on the traveler's journey.
One particularly captivating performance of Monday's concert was entitled "Tarang" by Indian composer Sandeep Das. Das, on tabla drums, came in from New Delhi specifically for the evening's event. The composition featured melancholy strings complemented by lively, and largely improvised, percussion solos from various cultures along the Silk Road. The work built up to a joyful fervor with a call-and-response session led by Das. Smiles were beaming from several in the ensemble as the music rose in intensity. One could clearly see that the musicians were having a great time.
"This for me this has been the best experience of my life," exclaims Das in an interview featured on the Silk Road Chicago website. "It has not only changed me musically, but it has changed me as a person…[Before this] I didn't even know who Yo-Yo was, that's how far away I was from this music. But the moment they played it touched my heart. That's what I think ultimately counts."
Silk Road Chicago runs through September 30 with performance and display at the Art Institute, the Cultural Center and with the CSO. Contact info@silkroadchicago.org for more information.
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