YUAN CHEN LI Mong Huan Pao Ying (2008) mixed a cappella choir with sixteen percussion instruments
(2008) 六
樂
Instrumentation
The score is written for: 4 Sopranos 4 Altos 4 Tenors 4 Basses Singers also hold percussion instruments, as listed below: 4 triangles (of various pitches) 4 finger cymbals (can be substituted with various discs of crotales) 4 prayer bows (can be substituted with various discs of crotales) 3 wind chimes (can be substituted with various sizes of suspended cymbals) 1 gong (can be substituted with 1 low suspended cymbal or 1 tube of chimes)
Language Chinese phonetics spelled in letter/IPA: Mong, Huan, Pao, Ying. These four words are the Chinese translations of four central words from the Buddhist classic Diamond Sutra, originally in Sanskrit, meaning dream, illusion, bubble, and shadow.
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樂
Program Note
說
Mong, Huan, Pao, Ying is written for
六
sixteen singers or above of mixed a
六
樂
cappella choir with sixteen percussion instruments. The idea of this piece is to 不
explore a number of parameters: the timbral dimensions of sung vowels (or diphthongs) and coda (the ending part of the rhyme), enhanced by different
combinations of vocal chamber shapes; and positions of the resonance, such as
不
transitions between head voice and chest voice. I imagine that the status of the human voice is as the stops by the Organ. Timbre is as if it is created by the combinations of the stops, made up by the
來
金
句
vowels, and pronounced by the humans. 切
So this piece can be described as a process
of a single stop developing to the full stops of an organ. But more than that, the text
also
associates
with
露
humans’
emotions, interpretations, and personal experiences. Mong, Huan, Pao, Ying are the Chinese translations of four central words from the Buddhist classic Diamond Sutra, originally in Sanskrit, meaning dream, illusion, bubble, and shadow. Those four phenomena help people to realize that the world is transitory, but contemplates itself.
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說
Performing Notes
六
Sixteen singers of the choir should also play percussion instruments: four triangles
樂
(abbreviations as P1, P5, P9, and P13, the
P13,
comparative pitches are ranged from high
(
(
鈴
) P2, P6, P10, P14, )
to low); four pairs of finger cymbals (abbreviations as P2, P6, P10, and P14, the
P15,
comparative pitches are ranged from high
(
(
P3, P7, P11, 串
) ( 女
as P4, P8, P12, the comparative pitches are
P16)
女 類樂
ranged from high to low), and one Gong (abbreviation
as
P16).
The
鈴
P4, P8, P12, )
to low), three wind chimes (abbreviations
P1, P5, P9,
六
sixteen
兩
percussion instruments are attributed, according to the orders of 1 to 16, to four
Diagram 1.
Sopranos, four Altos, four Tenors, and four Basses. The positions of these sixteen singers should be in the front and sides of the choir, shown as Diagram 1.
Diagram 1
Diagram 2
S
A
T
Si Sii Ai Aii Ti Tii Bi Bii
B
P1 - - - - - - - - P16
類不
Aside from the general form of four
兩
partitions (SATB), the choir is distributed differently into three types of partitions.
羅
數
來
Soprano i,
Firstly, each voice is divided into two sub
Soprano ii, Alto i, Alto ii, Tenor i,
voices. Therefore eight voices are in the
Tenor ii, Bass i,
ii
Bass ii
女
Diagram2
name of Soprano i, Soprano ii, Alto i, Alto
Female 1 (女
ii, Tenor i, Tenor ii, Bass i, and Bass ii, 2(女
shown as Diagram 2. Secondly, female
)
Female 3 (女
voices are divided into three voices, as well
Diagram 3
as the male voices. Therefore forms it the
Male 1 ( 3 (
Female 1 (Soprano), Female 2 (Mezzo
)
Female
)
Male
)
) Male 2 (
) 數
Soprano), Female 3 (Alto), Male 1(Tenor),
女
女
Male 2(Baritone), and Male 3 (Bass), shown
Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV
as Diagram 3. Thirdly, the choir is treated
Diagram 4
as a matrix and transversely partitioned
into four parts. Each parts includes fairly numbers of Sopranos, Altos, Tenors, and Basses, in the name of Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV, shown as Diagram 4.
Diagram 3
Diagram 4
F 1 F2 F3 M1 M2 M3
IV III S
A
T
B
II
I
Texts / The texts “Mong, Huan, Pao, Ying” are spelled in letters. Each word owns its vowel or diphthongs and the transitions of the pronunciations, listed in the chart below. MONG ( YING (
列
)
iii
) HUAN (
) PAO (
)
Text
Corresponding IPA
Descriptions of the Pronunciations
Mong /
Mong moŋ
M
m
MO
mo
欄
來
O 紐
O
o
ONG
oŋ
m
(
) 度 度
NG
ŋ N
Huan /
Huan
HU
xwan
欄
xw
流流
U
U
O
w
A
a
AN
an
N
n
亮
NG Pao / Ying /
PAO
h P au
Ying
iŋ
YI
i
亮
塞
NG 不
YIN
in
ING
ŋ – concentrating on YI
the through
NG
(YI)NG ŋ – concentrating on
the chest
iv
練
Rehearsal Notes
說
01～16
The form of this piece is consisted of four parts. First part mm.1‐16, the timbre of 17～56
Mong is focused, and the changes of sound
57～69
sources by the choir are addressed too. Second part mm. 17‐56 features the coming 70～83
and going between Mong and Huan with senses of lyricism and harmony. From bar 樂
57 to 69, Pao, follows the explosive entity of
省
the word and collapses at the peak of this piece. Finally the Ying, the homonym as “chant” in Chinese, back to a mode of simplicity followed after the bridge.
A
The sound of Mong is introduced by its M
head M, rhyme O and ONG, and the coda
NG
NG.
O
ONG
B NG
The common timbre between NG, the coda
AN
of Mong, and AN, the rhyme of Huan, successes the word HUAN
gradually.
Unlikely the order of its origin, HUAN is introduced backward
from the coda AN
back to the head H. and arrives at the first focal point.
v
落
H‐U‐A‐N AN
行
H
D 來
With more linearity and chromaticism, the 兩
transitional process of pronunciation is
developed and reaches the secondary focal point. F A peak, consist of eight times of repetitions by four collections of pitches. Each time has
略 M
slightly different from the other. Firstly, the
O
U
N
timbres, embodying the formations of the pronunciations, explore its entities from
A
NG
降
pure vowels down to the coda. Secondly, 念
the processes of the singing words are
不
adjusted from the unmeaningful vowels to the complete words Mong and Huan. Thirdly, the changes of combinations among
力
pitches, rhythms, and singing texts provide the dynamics to the next word, Pao. H & I 滑降
By singing slowly down and stretching the singing word YING, the phenomenon of the glide down of vibrating position should be revealed throughout the throat.
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