(Minghui.org) After a successful season opening at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall on September 27, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra delighted the New York crowd at Carnegie Hall with two performances. Having made its international debut here last October, the Orchestra was honored to return to this prestigious concert venue.
Four renowned conductors and about 100 musicians performed at the concert. 14 pieces with a combination of Shen Yun's original compositions of Chinese traditional music, European classic music, and American contemporary music were presented.
Many audience members came from different parts of the world to enjoy this special event. Some shared that they were brought to tears by Shen Yun music. Both the afternoon and evening performances received standing ovations.
On the afternoon of Saturday, October 5, musicians of Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra enjoyed a standing ovation from the audience. (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
Journey to the Divine through Music
During a post-performance interview with New Tang Dynasty Television, Margaux Brooks, executive film producer and veteran comedic actress, gave the concert a rave review: “The music somehow captures the spirit within your soul and takes you onto a journey into the divine... Specifically, the music is so precise, magnificent. The musicians are absolutely divinely inspired. And the journey they take you on takes you into that amazing place of higher state of consciousness, which is a divine state of mind, very unique, very joyful. It is unbelievable.”
Margaux Brooks, executive film producer and veteran comedic actress, called the concert “a journey to the divine through music.” (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
Ms. Brooks commented on the musicians: “The skills of the musicians are beyond anything imaginable, the best, precise, most divinely inspired musicians I have ever seen in my life.”
Ms. Brooks has been a member of Saturday Night Live and hosted shows for HBO with John Candy. She has also acted in a number of feature films.
She considered the concert a spiritual journey through music: “It is the most amazing, uplifting, spiritual journey into the divine through music, combining traditions of the East and West. It’s an experience that is almost impossible to put into words. It’s joyful, uplifting.. and it transcends you to a higher state of consciousness. Amazing!”
Celebration of Humanity
Dale Robertson, management consultant in private equity, was also deeply moved by the performance: “[The concert] was a banquet of music in the highest order in terms of divinity. I mean it makes you celebrate humanity.”
She continued: “The message is very high divinity. It’s like music from the gods. It’s all about divinity and creation, the divineness of mankind, and the gift that we have been given. Somehow the music illustrates all of that.”
“The world certainly knows this orchestra, but I think it’s going to do great things because it is so moving. Somehow it transcends all cultures, all languages. It’s the language of emotions. And it is so deep. It’s rich. The compositions are so rich!” Ms. Robertson predicted a bright future for Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra.
Seamless Combination of the East and the West
Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra's combination of Western precision and Eastern melody and expressiveness have impressed frequent concert goers.
Colonel and Mrs. Baron came from Villanova, Pennsylvania. Colonel Baron, a retired military officer who served in the U.S. Army and Air Force for 42 years, said: “My wife has for the past 25 years been going to the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra. We came here today for this special event. We think it was the most outstanding performance that we have seen... The excellence of the performance was phenomenal!”
The couple thought the combination of the East and the West was “very unusual” and “perfectly orchestrated.”
Fine art dealer Greg Smith thought the Eastern and Western pieces were equally successful: “I totally loved this… fantastic! The two pieces by Jing Xuan had a very theatrical quality... I just love those old instruments… I just love that sound… The European pieces, Beethoven and Tchaikovsky, I thought were done equally well. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I certainly intend to see the dance next time.”
Deeper Insight into Asian Culture
Ms. Robertson thought the combination of Eastern and Western music helped her understand the Asian culture more deeply: “It also makes me understand more about the Asian culture and the refinedness, the delicacy, and richness of the music. That to me speaks to a lot of the nature and what goes on behind the façade of Asians. There is really a tremendous depth, complexity and sensitivity. That’s what I love about so much where it is very refined and delicate in terms of music, speaking in musical language. So it sort of educates me more of the culture by the music...very impressive.”
Dr. Kalev I. Sepp (right) considered the concert “food for the soul.” (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
Dr. Kalev I. Sepp is a Senior Lecturer in Defense Analysis at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Until January 2009, he served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations Capabilities.
He called the concert “food for the soul.” He was especially impressed by “Spirit of the Han Dynasty” conducted by Yohei Sato. He thought that the music was very expressive with the main theme played by Chinese ancient instruments coupled by Western orchestration. He said that this allowed for the expression of the composer and musicians and vividly displayed story details.
Dr. Sepp saw different scenes when listening to Shen Yun music. In “Spirit of the Han Dynasty,” he saw how different court officials had different ideas, but eventually reached consensus. Commenting on the recent government shutdown, he wished the Obama administration and Congress could listen to Shen Yun music and be inspired.
Vocalists Presented Unique Sounds and Beautiful Colors
Lyrical soprano Sofia Antonakos loved the vocalists especially Soprano Geng Haolan. (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
Born in Greece, lyrical soprano Sofia Antonakos moved to New York a year ago. She is now studying with Mark Oswald at the Metropolitan Opera after winning the Encouragement Award at The Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, Eastern Region 2012-2013 Season last year.
Speaking of the vocal pieces at the Shen Yun concert, she said: “I loved the singers. All of them have their own beautiful color and their own beautiful tones… All the maestros have their own variety of sounds, their own interpretation of the music. Each one of them displayed their own experience in their culture. They were all very beautiful.”
Commenting on the performance of Tenor Tian Ge, she said: “His high notes were superb.The way he expressed what he was singing… I could tell that he was very passionate about his work. It came across as beautiful colors and beautiful tones. I loved the drama.”
Ms. Antonakos was struck by the performance of Soprano Geng Haolan: “She was very beautiful, very poised. I could tell that the music was vibrating through her body because she was so expressive. As the music went on, she was using every part of her to express the music. So it came across beautifully.”
James Griffin (left) took a group of colleagues to the concert after seeing Shen Yun, the premiere dance and music performance, in Australia. (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
James Griffin, radio broadcaster at a Classical music radio in Brisbane, Australia, made the Shen Yun concert at the Carniege Hall one of their appreciation/educational tours in America. He had seen the Shen Yun music and dance performance in Australia before.
Mr. Griffin also thought highly of Soprano Geng Haolan: “She has a very specific sound, very distinctive for Chinese music, but also a very lovely and powerful voice.”
Moved to Tears
Janice Flores from Long Island said that she kept wiping away tears during the performance. She was deeply touched by the music and said she felt the warmth of music from the bottom of her heart.
Ms. Antonakos thought that she could tell by the reaction of the audience “that they were touched by what they heard.”
“During the standing ovation, I looked around and everybody was almost in tears—and they were all very, very happy,” she said.
After the Carnegie Hall, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra will perform in Boston (Oct. 9), Houston (Oct. 13), Dallas (Oct. 15), Los Angeles (Oct. 18 - 19), and San Francisco (Oct. 22).
