Quick Answer: What Is the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto?
The Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto, or Liang Zhu (梁祝, Liáng Zhù), is a single-movement concerto by He Zhanhao (何占豪, Hé Zhànháo) and Chen Gang (陈钢, Chén Gāng). Violinist Yu Lina premiered it in Shanghai in 1959.[1]
- Story: The music follows Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai from their meeting to their transformation into butterflies.[2]
- Listening cue: Hear the lyric solo line, the more turbulent middle and the return of the love theme.[2][3]
- Arrangement: A gaohu (高胡, gāohú) version premiered in 1978.[4]
Look for the solo instrument in the credits before comparing versions.
Listen for the love theme early. Much happens between its first appearance and its return. Recognizing it on the second hearing helps make sense of how one continuous movement can tell the story.[2][3]
The 1959 Violin Concerto and the Legend
He and Chen were students at the Shanghai Conservatory. Yu Lina premiered the concerto at Shanghai’s Lyceum Theatre on May 27, 1959. The composers drew on Ópera Yue (越剧, yuèjù) from Zhejiang as a source of melody for a violin concerto.[1][2]
The Butterfly Lovers legend supplies the narrative. The concerto presents scenes through themes, changes in tempo and exchanges between instruments. The broader Chinese opera guide places the stage style that informed the concerto in context.[2]
Hear the Story Across One Movement
After the introduction, the solo violin presents the love theme. In the violin version, listen for the cello answering the soloist. The Macao festival notes link their dialogue to the first meeting of Liang and Zhu. Lighter, faster material follows as the story turns to the years they spend studying together.[2]
The central span grows more forceful as Zhu resists an arranged marriage. The quieter, transformed return of the love theme near the end belongs to the butterfly scene. These are major phases within a single movement, with smaller episodes inside them.[3]
What Changes in the Gaohu Version
Ng Tai Kong’s arrangement for the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra premiered in October 1978, with Wong On-yuen on gaohu. Its introduction uses a dizi flute, then the gaohu takes up the love theme. In passages where two bowed voices answer one another, the program describes a dialogue between gaohu and gehu.[4]
For another example of the gaohu moving between sustained notes and slides, hear Autumn Moon over a Calm Lake. That work provides a second context for hearing the high bowed sound.
Choose a Credited Performance
A Singapore Symphony Orchestra program lists Chloe Chua as violin soloist. The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra program describes a different instrumentation for Ng Tai Kong’s gaohu arrangement. Read the instrument and arranger fields to see which parts will carry the dialogue.[4][5]
The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra has also programmed the concerto alongside the Yellow River Cantata and Yellow River Piano Concerto. The shared billing is one example of these modern Chinese concert works being performed together.[6]
FAQs About the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto
Who composed the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto?
He Zhanhao and Chen Gang co-composed it. Yu Lina played the premiere in 1959.[1]
Is the concerto in three movements?
It is one continuous movement. Its three broad phases follow the love story, the conflict and the transformation.[3]
Is the gaohu version the 1959 original?
The 1959 concerto featured violin. The Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra premiered Ng Tai Kong’s gaohu arrangement in 1978.[1][4]
Fuentes
[1] Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. He Zhanhao and Chen Gang
[2] Macao Cultural Affairs Bureau. 23rd Macao International Music Festival: The Butterfly Lovers
[3] Hartford Symphony Orchestra. The Butterfly Lovers, Firebird Program
[4] Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. Spring River and Ambush, Program Notes
[5] Singapore Symphony Orchestra. Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto
[6] Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. Butterfly Lovers and Yellow River