Xu Yi (徐儀; born 1963) is a Chinese-born French

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and music educator in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Early life

In 1963, Xu was born in

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

, China. Xu began playing the Chinese violin,

erhu The ''erhu'' (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, which may also be called a ''Southern Fiddle'', and is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-s ...

, at a very young age.

Education

Xu was a student at the

Shanghai Conservatory of Music The Shanghai Conservatory of Music () was founded on November 27, 1927, as the first music institution of higher education in China. Its teachers and students have won awards at home and abroad, thus earning the conservatory the name "the crad ...

, where she continued the violin, and later joined the class of composition. After her arrival in France in 1988, she studied the Cursus of Composition and Computer Music of the

IRCAM IRCAM (French: ''Ircam, '', English: Institute for Research and Coordination in Acoustics/Music) is a French institute dedicated to the research of music and sound, especially in the fields of avant garde and electro-acoustical art music. It is ...

(1990/1991). She entered the Conservatory of Music of Paris, where she studied with

Gérard Grisey Gérard Henri Grisey (; ; 17 June 1946 – 11 November 1998) was a twentieth-century French composer of contemporary classical music. His work is often associated with the Spectralist Movement in music, of which he was a major pioneer. Biograp ...

and

Ivo Malec Ivo Malec (30 March 1925, in Zagreb – 14 August 2019, in Paris) was a Croatian-born French composer, music educator and conductor. One of the earliest Yugoslav composers to obtain high international regard, his works have been performed by s ...

Career

At the age of 22, Xu became a teacher at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Xu won First Prize in composition in

Conservatoire de Paris The Conservatoire de Paris (), also known as the Paris Conservatory, is a college of music and dance founded in 1795. Officially known as the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris (CNSMDP), it is situated in the avenue ...

in 1994. She was the winner of the Prix de Rome, winning the honor of living in the

Villa Medici The Villa Medici () is a Mannerist villa and an architectural complex with a garden contiguous with the larger Borghese gardens, on the Pincian Hill next to Trinità dei Monti in Rome, Italy. The Villa Medici, founded by Ferdinando I de' Medici, ...

in Rome from 1996 to 1998 (she was the first composer of Chinese origin to win this prize). Xu was professor of composition at the Cergy-Pontoise National Conservatory of Music (2001-2003). She is a distinguished Professor at the

. Currently, Xu lives in France and is a distinguished Professor at the

Wuhan Conservatory of Music Wuhan Conservatory of Music is a musical institution of higher learning located in Wuhan City, Hubei Province whose origins can be traced back to 1920 and the Wuchang College of Art located in the Hunan and Hubei College site.Radio France Radio France is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: *France Inter — Radio France's "generalist" station, featuring entertaining and informative talk mixed with a wide variety of ...

, and many festivals and ensembles. She has composed some 60 works, which have been performed at numerous festivals and broadcast in Europe, China, Japan, the US, Brazil and Canada. Several

monographic A monograph is a specialist work of writing (in contrast to reference works) or exhibition on a single subject or an aspect of a subject, often by a single author or artist, and usually on a scholarly subject. In library cataloging, ''monograph ...

concerts of Xu's music have been organized in France and in Italy. One monographic disc of her works (MFA-Radio France 1999) was distributed by

Harmonia Mundi Harmonia Mundi is an independent record label which specializes in classical music, jazz, and world music (on the World Village label). It was founded in France in 1958 and is now a subsidiary of PIAS Entertainment Group. Its Latin name ''ha ...

. Her work "Le Plein du Vide" was selected by the

French Ministry of Education French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

for the final high school music exam in 2006 and 2007. Many of her works are published by the music publishing House Henry Lemoine, in Paris.

Works

2022 "Cha ji / Wabi-sabi", for flute, clarinet, 2 percussions, violin and zheng 2022 "Entre eux, entente à demi-mot" , pour mezzo-soprano, flûte, percussion, violon et violoncelle, poème de François Cheng 2021 "Dry in a storm", for mezzo-sprano (with percussions), Poems by Joyce Shintanin and by Emily Dickinson 2021 "Echo nocturne", for birbyne solo 2020 "To wait an hour-si long",for soprano, violon ans cello, 5 Poems (Quatrains) by Emily Dickinson (Radio France commission) 2020 "The Dust of time", for percussion 2020 “Self/nonself",for yunluo ( with one big cymbal) 2019 "Métamorphoses du serpent blanc", chamber opera (French State commissions),

Laure Gauthier Laure Gauthier (born 10 June 1972) is a French writer and poet. Biography Gauthier was born in Courbevoie. She writes narrative texts and poems and creates text for multimedia works. She has notably published ''les corps caverneux'' in 2022, '' ...

: Text and poem in French; Xu Yi : poems in chinese, for soprano, mezzo-soprano, maîtrise, little children's choir, 6 instruments and electronic device spatialized in multitrack 2019 "Qing yao", for Zheng solo (with qing) 2018 "Two rotations" for

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...

and

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

2018 "Ode aux nymphéas" miniature for

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinists ...

(ProQuartet commission) 2018 "Saveur" for percussion and danse 2017 "Aquilone lontano" for string quartet (ProQuartet and Philharmonie de Paris commissions) 2017 " Résonance végétale" for cucurbit orchestra, video and electronics spatialised 2016 "Chu Feng" - Shangpian for xiao / xun,

guqin The ''guqin'' (; ) is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument. It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favoured by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted b ...

, percussion,

bianqing The ''bianqing'' (Chinese: 编磬) is a traditional Chinese percussion instrument consisting of a set of L-shaped flat stone chimes known as ''qing'', played melodically. The chimes were hung in a wooden frame and struck with a mallet. Along wit ...

and

bianzhong Bianzhong (Chinese:编钟) is an ancient Chinese musical instrument consisting of a set of bronze bells, played melodically. China is the earliest country to manufacture and use musical chimes. They are also called Chime Bells. These sets of ch ...

(2500 years old bronze chime) 2016 "Chu Feng" - Xiapian for di / xiao, shang bass, guzheng,

pipa The pipa, pípá, or p'i-p'a () is a traditional Chinese musical instrument, belonging to the plucked category of instruments. Sometimes called the "Chinese lute", the instrument has a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number of frets rang ...

, 2 percussion, bianqing and bianzhong (2500 years old bronze chime) 2015 "Chant des muses" for

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

, 3 ténors, choir and 13 instruments 2015 "Bœuf ” for percussion solo 2014 "Empress Wu Zetian" Lyrical drama in 3 actes (French State commissions), livret : Agnès Marietta, for 3 singers, 1 actress-singer, young girls choir, 7 musicians and electronic device spatialized in multitrack 2014 "Ombres" for violon solo 2013 "La passion selon Médée" for 1 dancer, 1

flutist The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with Reed (instrument), reeds, a fl ...

, 1 percussionist and one ensemble of 11 musicians 2012 "La joie du ciel" for 5 female voice

a capella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

2011 "Si He" for Qin, flute, cello and percussion 2010 "Zhiyin" for

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

solo 2010 "Liao" for percussion solo 2010 "Le Ciel brûle" for

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

and percussion 2009 "Qing" for alto solo (commissions of Pro Helvetia Switzerland) 2008 "Dan" for 6 instruments 2007 "Guo feng" for violin, cello, qin and electronics spatialised (French State commissions) 2006 "Cohésion" for

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

, 4

saxophones The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pro ...

, 6 brass and 7 groups of specialized children with the percussions 2005 "Tai" for Zheng and orchestra 2004 "Pipa yin" for 6 instruments 2004 "1+1=3" for 11 percussions (French State commissions) 2004 "Da Xu" for 6 instruments (

Radio France Radio France is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: *France Inter — Radio France's "generalist" station, featuring entertaining and informative talk mixed with a wide variety of ...

commissions) 2003 "La divine" silent movie in concert, for silent film of

Wu Yonggang Wu Yonggang (November 1, 1907 – December 18, 1982) was a prominent Chinese film director during the 1930s. Today Wu is best known for his directorial debut, '' The Goddess''. Wu had a long career with the Lianhua Film Company in the 1930s, in ...

, 10 instruments and electronics spatialised (ARTE commissions) 2002 "Voyage intérieur" for 6 instruments and electronics spatialised (French State commissions) 2002 "Variations sur le thème de Y.G.S.D" for pipa and 8 instruments 2001 "Dialogue d’amour" for soprano, choir of children and 13 instruments (Radio France commissions) 2001 "Tempête sur l’Asie" silent movie in concert, for silent film of Poudovkine, 7 musicians and electronics spatialised (

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

commissions ) 2000 "Da gui" in memory of Gérard Grisey, for flute, clarinete, percussion, violon et cello (French State commissions) 1999 "Crue d’automne" scenic poem, for 1 reciter, video, 6 musicians and electronics spatialised(French State commissions) 1997 "Le Plein du Vide" for 14 instruments and electronics spatialised (French State commissions) 1997 "Écho de la terre profonde" for 5 percussions 1997 "Tian yun" Melodrama, for 1 reciter and 8 instruments 1996 "Wou Wei" for bass flute and trumpet 1996 "Solo" for flûte solo 1996 "Xiao-yao-you" for 12 instruments and electronics spatialised 1995 "Gu yin" for flute and percussion (Radio France commissions) 1994 "Huntun" for 5 instrumental groups spatialised 1993 "Wang" for flute solo, string trio and percussion 1993 "Le Roi des arbres" spoken

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

in 1 acte (3 tables), for a conductor, 3 comédians and 8 musiciens 1993 "Yi" for string trio 1992 "Miroir / poussière" for alto and 9 instruments 1991 "Tui" for bass and electronics 1991 "Tao1" for 6 instruments 1988 "Esprit poétique" for

Erhu The ''erhu'' (; ) is a Chinese two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, which may also be called a ''Southern Fiddle'', and is sometimes known in the Western world as the ''Chinese violin'' or a ''Chinese two-s ...

(violon chinois) and Chinese orchestra 1987 "Internal moving" for soprano, clarinete, alto and piano 1986 "Symphonietta" for

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

1985 "Temple Hanshan" for soprano and 3 Chinese instruments 1984 "Vallée vide" for Chinese flute, zheng and sets-gong 1982 "Small frogs" for ensemble of erhu (Chinese violin)

Discographie

2013 "Si He", "Si He" for Qin, flute, cello and percussion (9') China Record Co. Shanghai 2005 "Tai", for Zheng and orchestra, (11') Shanghai Conservatory of Music 2005 1999 "Le Plein du Vide", "Wang", "Yi", "Echo de la terre profonde", "Gu Yin", "Xiao-Yao-You"(70') Radio France / MFA / Villa Médicis 1999, MFA 216032 HMCD 73. 1994 "Huntun" (13') for 5 instrumental groups spatialised Journées de la composition, CNSMP 1994. 1988 "Esprit poétique"1983-1988 (26') for Erhu (violon chinois) and chinese orchestra Fu Mao Record Co. Taiwan, 1988, Fu jian Record Co. XCD-93014 / 1993, 1994. 1986 "Vallée vide" 1984 (7') for Chinese flute, zheng and sets-gong China Record Co. Shanghai, 1986. 1982 "Small frogs" for ensemble of erhu (Chinese violin)1982 (6') for ensemble of erhu (Chinese violin), China Record Co. Shanghai, 1982.

References

External links

Official site

''Le Plein du vide'' de Xu Yi
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Xu, Yi 1963 births Living people Chinese emigrants to France People's Republic of China composers Chinese women classical composers French women classical composers Chinese music educators French music educators Conservatoire de Paris alumni Shanghai Conservatory of Music alumni Academic staff of Shanghai Conservatory of Music Musicians from Nanjing Educators from Nanjing Chinese classical composers Women music educators 20th-century women composers 20th-century classical composers