The group has been honored a number of times with nominations for Golden Melody Awards. Their album Stars Over the Sky (
Su's interest extends beyond the songs of Taiwan to include folk songs from around the world as well as well as some fresh, modern composers. This weekend's lineup will begin with three Latin pieces by Eastern European composers Damijan Mocnik, Vytautas Miskinis and Gyorgy Orban. Next is the inspiration for the concert's theme, Three Flower Songs, by US composer Eric Whitacre. Su chose Whitacre because he was impressed by the composer's ability to create a modern yet pleasing sound.
"The choral scene in America has recently become closed off and has been dominated by Northern European composers," Su said, "but Whitacre is creating music that is popular all over the world."
Whitacre is famous for his emotionally intense and electrifying choral compositions. He composed the a cappella set Three Flower Songs during his formative years at the University of Nevada and dedicated it to his teacher David Weller, who introduced Whitacre to choral music.
Most of the other songs on the lineup were chosen for dealing with the theme of flowers, so as to complement the Whitacre set. Some notable inclusions include two Japanese folk songs arranged by choral conductor Ko Matsushita, who flew to Taiwan to guest conduct the Formosa Singers for a concert in May of last year, as well as several Hokkien and Hakka folk songs arranged by Tsai.
In August, the Formosa Singers will be taking a selection from this weekend's concert to compete in the Takarazuka International Chamber Chorus Contest in Japan.
Event information :
What: Formosa Singers -- Flower Songs
Where: National Recital Hall, 21-1 Zhongshan S Rd, Taipei
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When: Tomorrow and Sunday, 7:30pm
Tickets: NT$300 to NT$800, available through Artsticket at (02) 3393 9888 or
Formosa Singers at (02) 2746 0739
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