Though the Ying Quartet plays with impeccable intonation, ravishing technique, and sturdy, consistently excellent phrasing, I must admit that am I less than thrilled with this program. The concept is excellent—works by living Chinese-American composers designed to demonstrate the wide variety of styles and perceptions from a distinctly cultural vantage point. But much of the music sounds like the tried and oh so true avant-garde of years past, hardly the “fresh and exotic sounds, textures, and harmonies that result from this fusion [Chinese music and the Western classical tradition] mentioned in the notes. There are no fresh techniques in this music that haven’t been mined many times and years ago by other composers.
There are some moments of exquisite beauty, but not enough for me to give this disc a blanket recommendation; Song of the Ch’in is a delicate and lovely work that attempts to give us a string quartet version of the seven-stringed Chinese instrument, contemplative and meditative. Chen Yi’s Shuo, while supposedly influenced by musical encounters from Chinese travels, actually sounds an awful lot like Dvorak in many places, and good Dvorak at that. Vivian Fung’s Pizzicato is a clever and well-argued short little piece that delights no end, and Gobi Gloria is a work to be reckoned with on many levels—perhaps the most intricate and persuasive work here. Telarc provides the usual superb sound, but with only four out of twelve works being attractive to me I cannot in good conscience tell you that I would rush out and buy this. It is imperative that you listen first if possible—only then can you know for sure how this album will grab you.
— Steven Ritter
