12 Girls Band - Shanghai (14 tracks) +Album Reviews

12 or 13, that is the question

Herb Schulsinger | Valinda, CA USA | 06/10/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Brian Kohler wrote: "how can there be 13 girls in the 12 girls band? Thats craaazzzy!!!!"

Not so craaazzzy. There are 13 doughnuts in a baker's dozen and the Three Musketeers had four members, Porthos, Athos, Aramis, and d'Artagnon. Gotta learn to think outside the box.

But, more to the point, the Twelve Girls Band is outstanding, especially, I think, for their masterful renditions of Bach and Beethoven. I had my doubts that European classical and baroque music could be played appropriately on Eastern instruments, but they quickly disabused me of that idea. I felt the same way about Bela Fleck playing Bach on the banjo, but he proved that good music could be played by talented musicians on any instrument and made to sound as though it had been written for that instrument. Terrific DVD...highly recommended!"

An Audio-Visual Delight!

Dr. Glenn W. Briggs | KSC, Florida & Chengdu, China | 06/08/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Having enjoyed considerable time in Shanghai, and listening to and watching the Twelve Girls Band's performances on CD and DVD for several years, I confidently invite you to an audio-visual delight! This DVD provides not only an unforgetable late-evening visual tour of the Shanghai-Pudong area, but also a lasting exposure to some of the finest music available in the world today. These very attractive young ladies are incredibly competent musicians who employ ancient, traditional Chinese musical instruments to turn their renditions of contemporary songs into glorious listening experiences."

An unusual treat

J. E. Mcdevitt | Havana, Florida United States | 07/05/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This group is tops for musicianship and you get the treat of hearing unfamiliar instruments play old favorites. Everyone that I've loaned this to has fallen for this group and their music."

Relaxing, amusing and interesting...

Joe Anthony (a.k.a. JAG 1) | Massachusetts, USA | 08/12/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Since returning from a trip a trip to China, I have become somewhat fascinated with Chinese culture and history. Of course, as a Westerner, my understanding is hopelessly superficial. I have built a small collection of CDs of Far Eastern Music; some sound more traditional than others.

Upon my first listening to this, my first CD of the 12 Girls, I was unimpressed as it seemed like a mushy "new age" treatment, but as I gave it a few more hearings, the CD started to grow on me. It 's actually a fusion of traditional Chinese music, jazz, rock, classical and a bit of new age. The musicians, I guess, are quite phenominal. According to the liner notes, these women are the best in all China.

I found this CD, relaxing, amusing and interesting. I may be looking for more of the 12 Girls.

Believe it or not, if you like Celtic music (i.e. Celtic Women's Band) you may like the 12 Girls from China. As different as the Chinese are from the Irish, it seems that traditional music of Ireland and China have similarities (I guess it stems from the use of the pentatonic scale)."

Your second must buy DVD

C. Simon | Australia | 07/03/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is The Girls' ninth DVD. Unlike others, this one is filmed live in Shanghai in an open stage with a few songs by guest singers.

There is a mix of old songs and new songs. The new ones are mostly played excellently. The Bach's Concerto for Violin in A Minor outperforms the usual violin version. This will become another hit after New Classicism. The La Habanera (from Carmen) sung by Lila Downs is my favorite. Fragile deserves special mention here. The instruments do not seem to tie in well with My Heart Will Go On, perhaps due to the fact that the tone of erhu is too "sorrow" for the song, which requires a touch of romance and softness. Carnival is an old song but played in this DVD much better than other previous DVDs.

Overall, I would rate this DVD my second best after Miracle Live DVD (performed in Beijing, now out of stock) and is a must buy for new (as well as for returning) customers. Two other must buy DVDs include the Romantic Energy 2005 DVD and A Tribute to Wang Luo Bin DVD (for those who are familiar with Chinese folk songs). The Eastern Energy CD is also a must buy.

"

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