Li Huanzhi: Spring Festival Overture

Introduction

The Spring Festival Overture has been per-formed in many arrangements for various groupings of Chinese instruments, Western instruments, or combinations of the two, either in chamber ensembles or full orchestra. It is widely regarded as a traditional piece, although it was actually composed in 1955–56 by Li Huanzhi (1919–2000). A major force in music of the People’s Republic of China, Li was associated with the Central Conservatory of Music, the Central Ensemble of Songs and Dances, and the China Central Chinese Orchestra. Beginning in 1985 he served as the chairman of the Chinese Musicians’ Association. While the music in this overture relates specifically to the Spring Festival as it is celebrated in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi Province in northwest China, the piece has become immensely popular throughout that country, and even beyond — since in 2007 it was one of 30 musical selections sent into outer space aboard Chang’e No. 1, China’s first lunar-probe satellite, which beamed this music back to Earth from a distance of some 236,000 miles.

Instrumentation:

two flutes and piccolo,two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, triangle, cymbals, Chinese cymbals, Chinese bass drum, and strings.