As the summer begins to settle in, the outdoor concert circuit starts to heat up, with this weekend's Mother's Day concert at Ta-an Park offering a hint of what's to come.
This is the fourth year that E Sun Bank and Philharmonic Radio Taipei FM99.7, a radio station devoted exclusively to classical music, have organized the family concert honoring mothers. Carnations will be distributed and the host, 99.7's Ms. Liu, will interview the musicians at various intervals.
The concert features four performing groups: John van Deursen will lead the Taipei Sinfonietta & Philharmonic Orchestra to kick off the concert; then the Taipei Philharmonic Children's Choir will sing seven family-oriented songs; the Yeh Shu Han Brass Quintet will perform an eclectic, international line-up of tunes; and finally, the E Sun Singers group will perform a set consisting mostly of Taiwanese folk songs.
More than 1,000 music lovers turned out last year, said van Deursen, a Canadian musician who will conduct the TSPO and play trombone in the quintet. "At this time of the year, the weather is so suitable for outdoor concerts," he said. "It's fun, playing under the starlit sky."
Another fun - but challenging - undertaking for the musician is conducting the 55-person TSPO, the most successful private orchestra in town. "As a conductor, you choose a good tempo and establish the mood for each piece," said van Deursen, who has been helping maestro Henry Mazer lead the orchestra over the years. "It's a tremendous job."
The orchestra will open the night with the lively Strauss tune "Die Fledemaus Overture." All of the musical pieces chosen for the night are related to women in general, such as the title music for "My Fair Lady". The orchestra will end with a medley of Taiwan songs rearranged by van Deursen.
After the orchestra finishes, van Deursen will trade his baton for a trombone to sit in with the Yeh Shu Han Brass Quintet, a group that started 11 years ago when its members were playing for the National Symphony Orchestra. "It's a great team that gets along well. We know each other as well as the music we play inside out," van Deursen said. For the open-air concert, the quintet will play seven upbeat pieces, including "Turkish Rondo" by Mozart, a Stephen Foster medley, and Taiwanese tunes rearranged by van Deursen.
As probably the only western face that will stand out at the concert stage, van Deursen feels quite at ease. He has been in Taiwan for 12 years, speaking fluent Chinese and understanding local culture like his own.
"I have been traveling all over Asia, and I'd say this is the best place to live," said van Deursen. "People are open minded, full of energy and are deeply rooted in their own culture."
The talented musician just started to conduct for the newly founded Hsinchu Philharmonic Orchestra, which is keeping his hopes high for the advancement of the musical scene in Taiwan. "This place has developed so much," said van Duersen, recalling that when he came to the country 12 years ago, there was a shortage of players, which forced the National Symphony Orchestra to recruit from overseas. Nowadays, though, there are plenty of mature local musicians and opportunities abound as music groups pop up one after another.
"It's so common for college graduates to study overseas before they return home for a professional career," said van Deursen. "That helps upgrade the quality of local music standards."
INFORMATION
HERE IS A LIST DESCRIBING THE GROUPS, WHICH CAN GO WITH THE PIX.
The Taipei Sinfonietta and Philharmonic Orchestra (台北愛樂室內暨管絃樂團)
Founded in 1985, the Taipei Philharmonic is a privately funded, non-profit organization. Led by music director and conductor Henry Mazer, the organization is comprised of two orchestras, the Philharmonic Orchestra, a full-size symphony of more than 70 musicians, and the Sinfonietta, a chamber orchestra. From four concerts in 1985, the two orchestras have been giving more than 20 concerts per year in the National Concert Hall.
Taipei Philharmonic Children's Choir (台北愛樂兒童合唱團)
The Taipei Philharmonic Foundation for Culture and Education founded the children's choir in 1993 hoping to enrich the lives of local children by providing them a place to enjoy music. With 160 people divided into five groups, the choir has performed at home working with the National Symphony Orchestra and overseas last year in Beijing, this year in Spain. The choir has also been successfully experimenting with musicals since 1995, culminating in last year's
Yeh Shu Han Brass Quintet (葉樹涵銅管五重奏)
Founded by trumpeter Yeh Shu-han in 1986, the quintet is currently made up of Yeh Shu-han (ROC), trumpet; Chen Cham-poa (ROC), trumpet; Kunita Tomohiro (Japan), French horn; John van Deursen (Canada), trombone; and Tuan Chih-wei (ROC), tuba. The diverse background of the musicians adds to the group's unique style and varied repertoire, which ranges light classics to original compositions and Chinese favorites. The quintet has toured extensively throughout Taiwan, and since 1995 has performed in Japan, the US, China and Korea. The group has also recorded four albums and earned a Golden Melody Award.
E Sun Singers (玉山銀行合唱團)
Founded in 1992, the E Sun Singers is comprised of 80 employees working at E Sun Bank. Yang Ta-fong (楊德風), a member of the Taipei Chamber Singers, leads the group as conductor and music director. The group usually sings Taiwanese folk songs, occasionally adding in folk tunes from around the world.
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