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FILMTRACKS.COM
PRINTER-FRIENDLY VIEW 
Review of Electric Shadows (Zhao Jiping)
FILMTRACKS RECOMMENDS:
Buy it... if you are remotely curious about the career of the
foremost Chinese film composer of the 1990's, because this compilation
is an outstanding re-recording of selections from his best works of the
period.
Avoid it... if you had no tolerance whatsoever for other blends of Oriental and Western instrumentation that you've heard in the past.
FILMTRACKS EDITORIAL REVIEW:
Electric Shadows: Film Music by Zhao Jiping:
(Compilation) Just as John Williams dominated the Bronze and Digital
Ages of film music in America, Zhao Jiping dominated what the Chinese
call the "Fifth Generation" of their own history of cinema. Since Jiping
began his film scoring career in the early 1980's, he has been highly
regarded for his collaborations with directors Zhang Yimou and Chen
Kaige, among others. During one period in the early 90's, Chinese cinema
began to gain the fascination of American audiences, and Jiping's music
accompanied three of the Academy Award nominees for "Best Foreign Film"
during this time. Ironically, since many of the major films he scored
explored the topic of feminism, neither the films nor his music were
actually allowed to be released in the communist state of China. By the
late 1990's, however, that situation was beginning to relax, and
Jiping's music from his most famous 90's scores was conducted by Hu Bing
Xu with the China Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. The compilation
produced by these recordings forms a solid representation of Jiping's
music from 1990 to 1997 (especially concentrating on the composer's
incredible output during 1993), and its international release by Teldec
and Warner is a great opportunity for Western ears to introduce themselves to
the sound of this Chinese icon. There is a distinct possibility, of
course, that Jiping's music may not be to your liking. Not many
composers from the Far East have appealed to American and European
listeners through the years. In the Digital Age, the most likely
candidates to cross over are Japanese composers Kitaro, Joe Hisaishi, and Ryuichi
Sakamoto who, ironically, are asked at times to write convincing music
of Chinese origin for listeners for whom there is no significant
distinction between the varying Oriental cultures. Only Klaus Badelt's
score for The Promise in 2006 reaches anywhere close to the same
territory. On the whole, Jiping's music does tend to stray into the
realm of the uncomfortable for strictly American listeners, though his
music also, in its larger symphonic moments, has similarities to the
yearning thematic styles of Hollywood's best Golden Age composers.
The basic ingredients of these works will be familiar to learned film score collectors. The traditional orchestral ensemble is joined by both solo voices and a choral group on occasion. The Chinese elements are led by the familiar erhu violin, though Jiping also employs a bawu flute and p'ip'a lute throughout the scores. More impressive is how Jiping uses the percussion section to produce rattling and clanging effects with cymbals, cimbalom, and other metallic instruments. The stark sounds produced by the percussion at times will be the most alienating factor of the music for novice listeners. Jiping can suddenly stop a lyrical orchestral passage for a lengthy interlude of this, and other effects. Like Western scores, most of these films do employ a central theme, though the majority of them convey these harmonic ideas with a different sense of synchrony. Counterpoint can often be disjointed or outright dissonant, extending the feeling of societal conflict in the films. The only truly Western-sounding theme will be the heartbreakingly romantic one for Red Firecracker, Green Firecracker, which is given ample airtime in two lengthy suites on this compilation (amounting to almost 16 sixteen minutes). While Farewell My Concubine and Raise the Red Lantern are the two most famous films represented on the album, their music is the most challenging, especially with the unconventional choral chanting in the latter score. The early selections on the compilation are remarkably passive, rarely elevating their volume beyond the solo Chinese instruments and basic string section accompaniment. As a listening experience, this "Electric Shadows" (the literal Chinese translation for film) compilation will likely be more of an educational experience than one that will receive constant play. But the sound quality of the recording is splendid, especially in the clarity of the percussion solos, and it's both possible and to be hoped that this album will lead a few of its listeners on to expand their collections of Jiping's work. It is rare that an album is produced as well as this one, with extensive notation about Chinese cinema, its music, and Jiping specifically, and it's a remarkable place to start your own journey into another realm of film music. ****
TRACK LISTINGS:
Total Time: 77:07
NOTES & QUOTES:
The insert contains an extensive amount of information about the composer, his
scores, and Chinese cinema in general.
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The reviews and other textual content contained on the filmtracks.com site may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of Christian Clemmensen at Filmtracks Publications. All artwork and sound clips from Electric Shadows are Copyright © 2000, Teldec Classics and cannot be redistributed without the label's expressed written consent. Page created 6/6/00 and last updated 7/20/08. |
