Siqing Lu × Yingdi Sun in Concertos
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra Season Concert
Shanghai Symphony Hall · November 13, 2015
Overview
On November 13, 2015, violinist Siqing Lu and pianist Yingdi Sun joined the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Jing Huan for a season concert that wove together three works spanning cultures and centuries — by Chen Qigang, Saint-Saëns, and Shostakovich.
Though written half a century apart, the three works share a profound theme — departure.
Departure as pain, separation, and exile; but also as transformation, encounter, and rebirth.
Within these sound worlds, the audience experienced the many forms of leaving and returning — from the spiritual exile of Shostakovich, to the cosmopolitan wanderings of Saint-Saëns, to the nostalgic reflections of Chen Qigang.
Program
Chen Qigang (b. 1951)
L’éloignement (《走西口》) for String Orchestra
Camille Saint-Saëns (1835 – 1921)
Piano Concerto No. 5 in F Major, Op. 103 “The Egyptian”
Soloist: Yingdi Sun (Piano)
Date & Venue
November 13, 2015 · Shanghai Symphony Hall (Main Hall)
Conductor: Jing Huan
Violin: Siqing Lu
Piano: Yingdi Sun
Orchestra: Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
— Intermission —
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906 – 1975)
Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 77
Soloist: Siqing Lu (Violin)
Notes
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 5 “The Egyptian”
Composed in 1896 when Saint-Saëns was 61, the “Egyptian” Concerto reflects the composer’s fascination with travel and exotic cultures. Written during his stay in Egypt, it integrates folk melodies and modal colors from the Nile region with Spanish rhythms and Oriental inflections. The result is a radiant, cosmopolitan travelogue — a testament to Saint-Saëns’s eternal curiosity and classical grace.
Shostakovich: Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor
Written in 1948 under the shadow of Soviet censorship, this concerto captures Shostakovich’s inner exile — an artist’s soul seeking freedom. Hidden from the public until after Stalin’s death, it reveals both defiance and vulnerability, culminating in the composer’s self-referential DSCH motif.
Chen Qigang: L’éloignement (“Departure”)
Composed in 2003, Chen Qigang’s string orchestra work draws upon folk melodies from Shaanxi, China, recasting them through a French harmonic lens. The title translates to “Leaving” or “Distance,” expressing the composer’s dual identity between East and West after two decades in France.