Résumés
Abstract
Aleppo is a concerto for the sanxian and Chinese orchestra, by Singaporean composer Wang Chenwei. The work uses Chinese instruments but is written with modes and metrical concepts borrowed from Arabic music and programmatic content based on Aleppo and the Syrian war. While the timbre of the instruments is distinctly Chinese, the composer combines these instruments masterfully and draws on various orchestration techniques to create sounds that evoke the Middle East and the Arabic world such that one almost forgets that none of the instruments are actually Arabic instruments. In a close reading of this piece, combined with spectral analyses of a recording, I endeavour to illustrate how the composer creates the illusion of Arabic music through skillful selection and masterful orchestration techniques.
Keywords:
- timbre,
- orchestration,
- Chinese orchestra,
- music perception,
- narrative content
Résumé
Aleppo est un concerto pour sanxian et orchestre chinois du compositeur singapourien Wang Chenwei. L’oeuvre utilise des instruments chinois mais est écrite avec des modes et des concepts métriques empruntés à la musique arabe et un contenu programmatique conçu autour d’Alep et de la guerre syrienne. Bien que le timbre des instruments soit distinctement chinois, le compositeur combine ces instruments de manière magistrale et fait appel à diverses techniques d’orchestration pour créer des sons qui évoquent le Moyen-Orient et le monde arabe, à tel point que l’on en oublierait presque qu’aucun des instruments n’est en fait un instrument arabe. Dans une lecture attentive de cette pièce, combinée à des analyses spectrales d’un enregistrement, l’auteur cherche à illustrer comment le compositeur crée l’illusion de la musique arabe grâce à une sélection habile et à des techniques d’orchestration magistrales.
Mots-clés :
- timbre,
- orchestration,
- orchestre chinois,
- perception de la musique,
- contenu narratif
Parties annexes
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