New Music Week opens with a chamber concert tomorrow night featuring French contemporary music giant Gerard Grisey's "Vortex Temporum" and Chinese composer Liang Lei's "Memories of Xiaoxiang." Western and Chinese musicians will perform.

Grisey was one of the founders of French Spectral Music, which influenced many composers since the 1970s. "Memories of Xiaoxiang" comes from a story in Hunan Province during the "cultural revolution" (1966-76). A woman, whose husband was killed by the village head, was weeping like a ghost every night on the hill behind the leader's home, until both of them went insane.

Composer Liang combines the famed guqin piece "The Water and Clouds of Xiaoxiang," Hunan folk songs and the song recording of his friend, deceased Hunan musician Mo Wuping.

According to the music week's artistic director, Wen Deqing, master classes will be held by Chinese composer Qu Xiaosong and Swiss composer Eric Gaudibert.

The two maestros of contemporary music will comment on live performances of five new compositions by conservatory students.

Both Qu and Gaudibert will stage their own concerts during the event.

Director Wen recommends an "art sound of installation" at the North Building Lobby of the conservatory. The movement of audience will create sounds and visual images through the interactive installation.

"This interaction will help draw audience closer to contemporary music, fill our environment with an artistic ambience and infuse contemporary music with more human culture," he says.

Berliner Philharmoniker Artistic Director Simon Rattle encouraged the Shanghai audience three years ago to try contemporary music during his time Shanghai.

"Like many young children, I don't find a lot of contemporary music difficult to listen to," said Rattle, famous for his interest in inventive contemporary music and listens to jazz and African music at home.

"Beethoven's colleagues thought he had gone mad. One of the very earliest reviews of Beethoven's works had the headline 'Can modern music get any uglier than this?' Often when you try a new type of cooking, it may taste strange but it's still worth trying," he added.

Date: October 16-20

For more information, check http://newmusicweek.shcmusic.edu.cn (in both Chinese and English)

(Shanghai Daily October 15, 2008)