Musicians from all over the world explore Chinese music at Sound of Dragon Festival

Local and national artists mix it up with guests from Taiwan and China in the 3rd Sound of Dragon Music Festival.

Featuring innovative music collaborations, the biennial festival celebrates diverse music with Chinese roots or influences. It is Vancouver’s first festival devoted to Chinese music, and showcases diverse musical styles, from ancient folk to contemporary compositions, as well as jazz, world, fusion, and avant-garde improvisation in solo, chamber, and orchestral performances.

This year’s edition features four evening concerts at the Annex Theatre (823 Seymour St.) and the Roundhouse Community Centre ((181 Roundhouse Mews, Vancouver), as well as free workshops at SFU Harbour Centre and the Roundhouse.

Find out more about the performers below.

Turning Point Ensemble and Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra—Playing Chinese traditional instruments and Western classical instruments in various combinations, Vancouver’s Turning Point Ensemble and Taiwan’s Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra perform two concerts with different programs. Both programs combine works by both Canadian and Taiwanese composers, including three rising stars among the latter: Chia-Lin Pan, Chih-Chen Wei, and Chihchun Chi-sun Lee. (Thursday, April 5 & Friday, April 6, 8 p.m., Annex.)

21 Strings Plus with special guest Xian Wen Hu—The 21-string harp-like zheng is among the most popular Chinese instruments. Vancouver’s 21 Strings Plus with special guest Xian Wen Hu (from China) offer a program for solo and trio zheng from Canadian, German, Chinese and Korean composers. (Saturday, April 7 at 8 p.m., Roundhouse Community Centre)

Sound of Dragon Ensemble and Toronto Chinese Orchestra Chamber Players—The two ensembles are rooted in Chinese tradition. This is the first time two professional Chinese ensembles from different parts of Canada (Sound of Dragon is based in Vancouver) are coming together to perform. The lineups in these two ensembles represent some of the finest players of contemporary Chinese music in this country. Soloist Hoi Seng Ieong will interpret a new work inspired by Cantonese music from the 1930s. (April 8 at 7:30 p.m., Annex)

The 3rd Sound of Dragon Music Festival

When: April 5-8
Where: Annex Theatre and Roundhouse Community Arts Centre
Tickets: $25 for one concert, $39.99 for two concerts (students/seniors $15 for one concert, $25 for two concerts) at soundofdragon.com