The Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra (VICO) welcomes internationally acclaimed guest musicians from Japan and Taiwan for two major concerts over the last weekend in May (Asian Heritage Month in Vancouver). This is fusion music on a grand scale, collaborative art that breathes new life into centuries-old sounds from all over the world, creating global music for a global stage.

Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra
in collaboration with Vancouver Pro Musica & Vancouver Community College
presents

Imagined Worlds: Japanese Interventions

Saturday May 29, 2010 at 8 pm

Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra
Jin Zhang, conductor
with special guests Curtis Patterson (koto), Bruce Huebner (shakuhachi) from Tokyo
& the Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra of Taiwan

Imagined Worlds: Japanese Interventions will feature world-renowned Tokyo-based musicians Curtis Patterson (koto) and Bruce Huebner (shakuhachi), who will join the 22-member VICO to perform the world premiere of two Canada Council commissions by Vancouver composers Jin Zhang and Farshid Samandari, as well as a new arrangement by Mark Armanini of the traditional Japanese piece Chidori No Kyoku (Song of the Plovers) – all written especially for the unprecedented instrumental combination of koto and shakuhachi with the tar, dizi, xiao, zheng, sanxian, oud, pipa , erhu, santur, bansuri, tabla, marimba, flute, oboe, clarinet, violin, viola, cello and bass of the VICO. The evening will also include a guest appearance by the Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra of Taiwan.
Tickets and information

Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra

Sunday May 30, 2010 at **7 pm**

Chih-Sheng Chen, artistic director
with Heidi Krutzen (harp) and members of Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra

The VICO is proud to sponsor the celebrated Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra in its first ever concert appearance in British Columbia. Established in 2000 and now a strong musical force in Taiwan, the LgCO represents a new generation of Chinese orchestral music developed over the last half century. The orchestra is headquartered at the prestigious National Concert Hall in Taiwan, presenting both the complete ensemble of over one hundred musicians and smaller chamber ensembles throughout the year. In Vancouver, the LgCO will present a chamber ensemble of 16 instrumentalists, conducted by artistic director Chih-Sheng Chen, performing a programme featuring the latest works by Taiwanese composers as well as two pieces by Vancouver composers Mark Armanini and Lan Tung. Harpist Heidi Krutzen and members of the Vancouver Inter-Cultural Orchestra will also make guest appearances.
Tickets and information

The VICO is thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with these talented artists, and to mark Asian Heritage Month in Vancouver by bringing international guests together with some of our city’s finest world music practitioners, to create new contemporary music that reflects the cultural diversity of the society and the world in which we live.