Kevin Zi-Xiao He Presents An Okuden Recital On The Shakuhachi

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Chinese-Canadian composer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Zi-Xiao He (Photos courtesy of the artist)
Chinese language-Canadian composer and multi-instrumentalist Kevin Zi-Xiao He (Pictures courtesy of the artist)

Multi-instrumentalist and composer Kevin Zi-Xiao He affords Toronto music lovers a singular alternative at a free live performance on June 1. He’ll be acting on the shakuhachi, a conventional Japanese bamboo flute.

Okuden (奥伝)  is a Japanese phrase that refers to a complicated degree of coaching within the arts. Kevin will likely be joined by pianist David Debono.

Composer & Performer Kevin Zi-Xiao He

Chinese language-Canadian composer Kevin Zi-Xiao He immigrated to Canada in his mid-teens. His music combines components of his Chinese language background alongside along with his present pursuits in a wide range of genres. That features each in style and conventional music of East Asia.

Having earned an Honours Bachelor of Arts diploma with a double main in structure and music, and a Grasp’s diploma in composition, he’s a present PhD candidate in composition, finding out with Dr. Christos Hatzis on the College of Toronto. Beforehand, he studied with Gary Kulesha, Ken Ueno, and Andrew Listing, amongst others.

His works have been commissioned by a wide range of ensembles, together with the Scarborough Philharmonic Orchestra and the Orchestra of the Chinese language Artists Society of Toronto (CAST), and he has carried out his personal work at new music festivals in Europe and Asia.

He acquired the Composition Award on the Zodiac Music Academy and Pageant in France in 2015.

The Shakuhachi

Historically product of bamboo, the shakuhachi is a longitudinal flute that’s blown at one finish. The shakuhachi is tuned to the minor pentatonic scale.

As Kevin writes, “Originated in China and developed in Japan by Japanese Buddhist monks of the Fuke Sect for meditation observe, the shakuhachi began out as a spiritual system, whereas the music that resulted from prolonged, free move blowing meditation classes was notated and picked up and represent the classical honkyoku repertoire that’s on the coronary heart of each shakuhachi participant’s coaching. The flute is now the gateway to an unlimited religious world and a staple of Japanese aesthetics, attracting fans from across the globe.”

The  Chinese language model, referred to as the xiao, and which impressed the shakuhachi, dates again to antiquity. Earlier variations of the Japanese instrument had been developed in the course of the Nara interval (710–784), however had been largely deserted. Its present type was developed in Japan in the course of the Edo interval (1600–1868), within the sixteenth century by the Fuke monks.

The Live performance

This system options a mixture of Japanese and Western repertoire, together with:

  • Japanese Minyo
  • Classical Honkyoku
  • Bach
  • Caccini
  • Gershwin
  • Michael Conway Baker

The live performance takes place June 1 at 8 p.m. at St. Thomas Anglican Church (383 Huron Avenue). Admission is free, with donations appreciated.

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