KLASSIKOM=Innovations in classical music

Rudolph Tang

By award-winning music critic Rudolph Tang direct from China. Salty maybe, boring never. klassikom.substack.com

  1. 5h ago

    Iconic Dance Returned to Stage

    The Dagger Society, an iconic blockbuster dance first performed in Shanghai in 1959, returned to its birthplace last night. The Dagger Society was a secret society with Triad roots. In 1853 its members under Liu Lichuan occupied Shanghai’s walled Chinese city and held it until 1855, with the Hall of Rising Spring in Yuyuan Garden as their headquarters. Qing forces and French troops besieged them, and the uprising ended in early 1855 after the French breached the city wall. Chinese histories describe it as a popular uprising against Qing rule and foreign aggression, and that is the story told by the 1959 ballet of the same name. The dance, with music by Shang Yi, returned to its birthplace on Friday night. The Shanghai Opera House, whose predecessor produced the work, staged a reimagined production at the Majestic Theatre as part of the 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival. The work had been absent from the stage for 28 years, since its Hong Kong performances in 1998, and from mainland China since 1977. Zhang Chengjie conducted the Shanghai Opera House Orchestra from the pit. The new edition keeps Shang Yi’s core melodies, with a fresh arrangement for a symphony orchestra by Sun Chang that gives the Chinese orchestra writing extra fat. The overture, opened by the suona, has long outlived the stage. It became a fixture of Hong Kong martial arts films, from King Hu’s Dragon Inn in 1967 to Tsui Hark and Stephen Chow, and is often heard as a hero makes an eventful entrance. The Dance of Archers is the ballet’s signature number, captured in this reel. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

  2. 1d ago

    Zhang Gonghao Sings Teacher’s Winning Aria

    This is a Chinese language programme with bilingual subtitles. Baritone Zhang Gonghao has just completed his doctorate at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he studies with Liao Changyong. Liao is a member of this year’s jury and won Operalia in 1997. In this interview Zhang says the competition’s arrival in Shanghai matters greatly to students who see Liao as both a role model and a goal. He sang “Per me giunto” from Verdi’s Don Carlo, the aria Liao performed in the 1997 final, out of admiration. His second aria was “Mein Sehnen, mein Wähnen” from Korngold’s Die tote Stadt, one of his favourites, which Plácido Domingo selected. He was most nervous on learning he had been chosen, with a home audience in the hall and judges from around the world. Liao’s advice steadied him: enjoy the stage, because nerves or no nerves he would sing the same few minutes. Before going on, Zhang clears his mind, keeps his heart rate steady and imagines the practice room. He also credits his pianist, Artem, and the coaching he received on working with an orchestra. Away from competitions he prefers art songs, especially Chinese ones such as “Youlan Cao” and “In the Mountains”. He says watching Liao prepare at performances in Germany and elsewhere has taught him a great deal. After the interview, Zhang advanced to the semifinals and then to the final, which takes place on 1 November. He is one of three Chinese baritones among the 12 finalists, alongside Li Zihao and Wang Jiazhou. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

  3. 2d ago

    Baritone Li Zihao on Zarzuela and Operalia

    This is a Chinese language programme with bilingual subtitles. Baritone Li Zihao is in the second year of a master’s in opera at the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing, where he studies with Sun Jian, best known for the opera The Savage Land by Jin Xiang, hailed at the best Chinese opera ever written. In this interview he traces his path from the piano at seven or eight, through children’s singing lessons, to the moment his changing voice led his teacher to say he would probably become a baritone. On Operalia, he describes the competition as very famous in China and explains that Plácido Domingo founded it to give young singers a place to grow and begin their careers. He mentions the final’s prize for zarzuela, which Domingo set up in memory of his parents. Li has studied Spanish pronunciation with Spanish teachers, and he finds that Spanish arias sit close to Spanish dance music in style. Singing them lets the body sway and drive the voice, which keeps a singer from going stiff on stage and, in his view, brings only benefits. After the interview, Li advanced to the semifinals and then to the final, which takes place on 1 November. He is one of three Chinese baritones among the 12 finalists, alongside Wang Jiazhou and ZhangGonghao. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

  4. Oct 23

    Jasmine Chinese Orchestra plays crossover programme

    Jasmine Chinese Orchestra presented a crossover programme last night at the Jasmine Theare, both affiliated with the Shanghai Workers’ Union. The ensemble played music of its own creation and arrangement. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

    Jasmine Chinese Orchestra plays crossover programme

  5. Oct 20

    Liszt in a Wine Bar

    Ever thought of wine tasting while listening to Liszt’s formidable Sonata in B minor in a pitch-dark cellar lit by nothing but two candles? This is not Napa Valley but a private subterranean wine club in downtown west Shanghai. On a cool autumn evening at EPM Vintage & Club, composer and pianist Sansui played Liszt’s Sonata in B minor on a baby grand Kawai transported to the basement by eight workers, in a programme entirely of her own choosing. Some say that given the steep stairs and narrow corridor, the piano might well stay there for good. Wine club owner Simon told me that the music series had been suspended for six months. It resumed last week, with the piano now in place and a pianist he had met at jam sessions at the Artist la Pie bakery. More and more businesses in Shanghai are embracing the concept of the “public piano,” encouraging music sharing and impromptu sessions from amateur musicians as a way to attract new customers and boost sales. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

    Liszt in a Wine Bar

  6. Oct 19

    The ultimate Rossini tenor showdown

    World renowed Rossini tenor Juan Diego Flórez travelled to Shanghai last week. He sang in the opening gala at the inauguration of the Shanghai Grand Opera House yesterday, and then appeared tonight at the Expo Cultural Park in an open-air gala with guest tenor Shi Yijie, another brilliant Rossini tenor and President of the Shanghai Opera House. Diego Matheuz conducted the Shanghai Opera House Orchestra. Both tenors were impeccable in artistry and technique. In the final moment of showdown, the duo encored O Sole Mio, as captured in this video. Now who’s the better Rossini tenor? The video also captured how I got to the Park from the other side of Huangpu River. Yes I took a ferry and cycled there. Filmed on October 18, 2026 in Shanghai This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

    The ultimate Rossini tenor showdown

  7. Oct 18

    From Rio to Shanghai

    Brazilian singer Lívia Nestrovski and composer/guitarist Frederico José Ferreira performed at BFC in Shanghai in a programme that mixed their own culture and what they’ve seen and heard along the way touring in China, including a vintage song from a film they picked up in Suzhou. Filmed on October 10, 2026 in Shanghai. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

    From Rio to Shanghai

  8. Oct 17

    Jazz Age Carnival opened in Shanghai yesterday

    Presented by JZ, the annual jazz festival moved to the big lawn of a sports park in Pudong area of Shanghai for the first time and welcomed spectators with free entry and shows across four stages from 5 to 9pm, Sat to Fri. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit klassikom.substack.com

    Jazz Age Carnival opened in Shanghai yesterday
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By award-winning music critic Rudolph Tang direct from China. Salty maybe, boring never. klassikom.substack.com

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