Jen Shyu: Raging Waters, Red Sands at

Jen Shyu, composition, voice, dance, er hu
Satoshi Haga, dance & choreography
Oscar Noriega, clarinets
Chris Dingman, vibes
Mat Maneri, viola
Ches Smith, percussion
    ~Poetry by Patrícia Magalhães

   The water god, in anger, cuts a hole in the sky. The sky opens. Rain pours out like a river, submerging the earth, allotting one man the fate to choose between saving his villagers from the flooding waters or being loyal to his wife and yet unborn son. 
    Notions of love, existence, and universal versus personal obligation are tested in this modern myth based on an ancient narrative form called “Shuo-chang,” literally meaning “speak-sing” in Mandarin Chinese...

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Jen Shyu, composition, voice, dance, er hu
Satoshi Haga, dance & choreography
Oscar Noriega, clarinets
Chris Dingman, vibes
Mat Maneri, viola
Ches Smith, percussion
    ~Poetry by Patrícia Magalhães

   The water god, in anger, cuts a hole in the sky. The sky opens. Rain pours out like a river, submerging the earth, allotting one man the fate to choose between saving his villagers from the flooding waters or being loyal to his wife and yet unborn son. 
    Notions of love, existence, and universal versus personal obligation are tested in this modern myth based on an ancient narrative form called “Shuo-chang,” literally meaning “speak-sing” in Mandarin Chinese. The narrative mixes Portuguese, Tetum, English, Taiwanese, and Mandarin interchangeably with the sound and space of voice (Jen Shyu, composer), dance (Satoshi Haga, choreographer), viola (Mat Maneri), clarinet (Oscar Noreiga), vibraphone (Chris Dingman), and percussion (Ches Smith). Poetry by Patrícia Magalhães, commissioned by the Jazz Gallery with support from the Jerome Foundation, premiered December 4 & 5, 2009 at the Jazz Gallery.

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