XUAN
Chen Yi
About this work:
Commissioned by Ithaca College School of Music for its annual Choral
Music Festival, Xuan in written for a standard mixed choir, premiered by
Ithaca College Chorus directed by Prof. Larry Doebler, on November 10,
2001. The piece is dedicated to Prof. Karel Husa on his 80th birthday on Aug. 7, 2001, with the composer’s deep love and admiration.
The text is taken from the book Dao De Jing, written by Lao Zi of the sixth century B. C. [Zhou Dynasty]. The book forms the Chinese thought Taoism pD±–. The word “Dao” means “the way the universe works”. The word “De” means “power”, which is a term that refers to the potential energy that comes from being in the right place and in the right frame of mind at the right time. The work “Jing” means “classic”. “Xuan” means profound and ineffable. The following is the English translation of the text Xuan:
The Dao that can be explained
Is not the Dao of the Eternal.
The name that can be named
Is not the name of the Eternal.
The nameless originated Heaven and Earth.
The named is the Mother of All Things.
Thus, without expectation
One will always perceive the subtlety;
And, with expectation
One will always perceive the boundary.
These two have different names,
Yet their source is the same.
Together they are called profound.
Profound and mysterious,
The gateway to the Collective Subtlety.
Version: Mixed choir, sung in Chinese
Year composed: 2001
Duration: 00:03:00
Ensemble type: Chorus, with or without Solo Voices:Chorus, Unaccompanied
Instrumentation:
Instrumentation notes: Presser Publication: [312-41808], 2002, $1.50