Music · Dizi and Xiao · SE10025

Happy Reunion

Feng Zicun's bangdi solo arranged from an Errentai interlude tune of the same name

Introduction

Xi Xiang Feng (Happy Reunion) is a solo for the bangdi flute arranged by Feng Zicun, a leading figure of the northern dizi school. Its source is an interlude tune of the same name from Errentai, the folk theatre of Inner Mongolia. Feng arranged it as a solo in the 1950s, and the musician Fang Kun helped him fix his largely improvised playing into a set score. The piece is a set of variations in four sections that depict parting, reunion after a long absence, the journey home and a family reunited. Changes of tempo and ornamented variation mark each section and give it a strong northern character.