{"id":47326,"date":"2017-09-11T07:59:54","date_gmt":"2017-09-11T11:59:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=47326"},"modified":"2017-09-10T21:41:57","modified_gmt":"2017-09-11T01:41:57","slug":"feature-shen-yun-symphony-orchestra-bringing-human-dialogue-to-toronto","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2017\/09\/11\/feature-shen-yun-symphony-orchestra-bringing-human-dialogue-to-toronto\/","title":{"rendered":"FEATURE | Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra Brings Human Dialogue To Toronto"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Selected members of the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra. (Photo courtesy Shen Yun Orchestra)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Presented by the Falun Dafa Association of Toronto<\/p>\n

In an increasingly hectic world, it can be difficult to form meaningful relationships with other people. Now more than ever, we need to be reminded of the healing powers of human connection.<\/p>\n

Where words fail, art can extend across cultures. This is at the heart of every performance by Shen Yun Performing Arts.<\/p>\n

Many Canadians are already familiar with Shen Yun\u2019s noted dance performances, but their Symphony Orchestra is just as vital to their activities. The musicians are a living, breathing example of cultures sitting together in harmony, and the Orchestra is an equal platform for both Western and ethnic Chinese instruments.<\/p>\n

Founded in 2012, the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra<\/span><\/a> puts 5,000 years of Chinese culture to vivid music. Shen Yun\u2019s presenter is the Falun Dafa Association, a cultural group which brings awareness of Falun Gong to audiences outside of China. Within the Shen Yun family, traditional Chinese art forms complement a comprehensive narrative of its people\u2019s history. It makes for an inviting history lesson for all cultures, and it draws a diverse audience across many continents.<\/p>\n

An important aspect of Chinese culture is the concept of internal healing, of summoning strength from deep within one\u2019s spirit and body. Emerging from a Shen Yun performance, audiences comment specifically on the healing energy of the music, which had previously lain dormant within their beings. There\u2019s something magical about the soothing, relaxing blend of Eastern and Western sounds, and the healing effects stay with audiences long after they leave the performance.<\/p>\n

To gain a better understanding of the music\u2019s mystical qualities, it\u2019s worth exploring its ties to Chinese history. The number five permeates ancient China, and it is highly symbolic in music as well\u2014instruments are tuned to the pentatonic scale, whose five notes represent the five elemental qualities: wood, fire, earth, metal, and water.<\/p>\n

The number five also goes hand-in-hand with the culture\u2019s emphasis on health and wellness. Many practises fall under Chinese medicine: acupuncture, Chinese herbology, tuina (Chinese massage), cupping, and qigong, to name but a few. These procedures all draw on the body\u2019s existing humours; once re-aligned, they have an innate power to regain normal health. Here again, the number five is prominent, representing the group of primary organs\u2014heart, kidney, spleen, liver, lungs. In turn, each primary organ is paired with its corresponding elemental quality (wood, fire, earth, metal, water). All these systems are central to healing the body, soothing the soul, and bringing inner peace.<\/p>\n

In traditional Chinese culture, the goal is to reach a delicate equilibrium between the spiritual and physical states of existence. In much of the world today, the focus is shifting to the physical state, as material greed and human conflict disrupt entire societies.<\/p>\n

In its purest form, art will help recalibrate the body and the spirit. This is Shen Yun\u2019s hope: where in this interconnected network, music may freely flow.<\/p>\n

Shen Yun Performing Arts was founded in 2006 as a live performance troupe that showcased exquisite dance and musical acts. It grew in popularity as the years went on, and patrons expressed a fascination with the unique sounds of the Chinese instruments\u2014not only were they exotic on the ears, they seemed to have a profound effect on their spirits and bring physical relief to daily wear and tear on the body. Shen Yun\u2019s musicians responded to the high demand, and the Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra gave their debut performance in 2012 at Carnegie Hall.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s something pure to Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra that strikes a chord between Western and Eastern musics. It is a delicate dance between cultures, just like the duality between the spiritual and physical states: there are key differences between the cultures\u2019 musical systems, and each tradition holds differing acoustic concepts. The musicians\u2019 quest for harmony prevailed, and the resulting compromise draws on the strengths of each culture.<\/p>\n

Within the conventional Western orchestra with strings, brass, woodwinds, and percussion sections, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra incorporates ethnic Chinese instruments on the same stage. Under the watch of a conductor, the musicians perform standards from the classical music canon such as Supp\u00e9\u2019s Light Calvary Overture<\/em>, Tchaikovsky\u2019s Violin Concerto, and Dvo\u0159\u00e1k\u2019s Slavonic Dance No. 7, Op. 72<\/em>. These Western selections alternate with original songs in the Chinese medium, drawing inspiration from folklore and nature:<\/p>\n