Bright Sheng

Flute Moon

Flute Moon, premiered by the Houston Symphony Orchestra in 1999, is for solo flute/piccolo with a chamber orchestra comprised of harp, piano, percussion and strings. The music is based on Chinese mythology and a poem written in c. 1200 by Jiang Kui. The title of the piece is implied in the poetry, which begins, 'Oh, moonlight, my old friend, how many times have you accompanied my flute beside the wintersweet blossom?' Composer Bright Sheng, who emigrated from China to the U. S. in 1982 at the age of 27, is a master at translating Eastern subject matter and sensibility into the language of Western contemporary classical composition. Duration: c. 17 minutes.