Search - Jie-Bing Chen :: Spirit on Two Strings

A Master of the Mysterious Ehru

Jan P. Dennis | Monument, CO USA | 06/14/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Jie-Bing Chen is a master of the ehru, a two-stringed Chinese instrument bearing superficial resemblence to the violin. To my ears, the ehru (pronounced are-you) has an instrinsic meloncholly lacking in the violin. Consequently, when played by a consummate performer, such as Jie-Bing Chen, the instrument takes on a poignancy not achievable in Western music. Perhaps there is consonance between cultures and the instruments that produce them? One thinks of the tenor saxophone and its relationship to jazz, the only native American art form, and the quintessential voice of Blackness. Or the bodhran, and its relationship to Irish music. Or bagpipes and Scotland. Or the kalimba and African music. Or the gamelan and Indonesian music. In any case, if you've heard and enjoyed Jie-Bing Chen's playing on Bourban and Rosewater, you might want to check her out in a more traditional setting."

Passionate as can be

04/13/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Beautiful pieces, wonderfully performed. Unlike other recordings, this recording allows the erh-hu to show its characteristics (melodic, soulful, haunting, etc.), this, thanks to the subtle arrangement and simple accompaniment by the yang-qin instrument (no less beautiful). The sound engineer of this recording also allows for all the subtle nuances be heard. Best erh-hu cd I own. Praises to the producer Wang San-ti and the recording engineer Alexander Kavichandran."

Excellent erhu form

Craig Turner | 07/27/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It was interesting for me to compare a couple of the pieces on this CD with the same pieces as done by Jia Peng Feng. Feng uses more contemporary instrument assistance and orchestration. Chen seems more traditional in approach. As a new listener to the erhu I found Chen's work truly excellent."