Colorful Clouds Chasing the Moon

Introduction

Ren Guang wrote it in 1935 for the Chinese orchestra of the Pathé record company, setting it to a slow tango.

Colorful Clouds Chasing the Moon is an ensemble piece that Ren Guang completed in the summer and autumn of 1935 for the Chinese orchestra of the Pathé record company in Shanghai. The orchestra had been formed in 1934 and also performed in public as the Sensen ensemble, and only four players, Lin Zhiyin, Chen Zhong, Qin Pengzhang and Huang Yijun, took part in the recording. Ren drew on Yue opera melodies and Western compositional technique and set the tune to an elegant slow tango, which made it a favorite accompaniment in dance halls. It is counted with Cuihu Chunxiao, Golden Snake Dance and Huahao Yueyuan as one of the orchestra's four famous pieces. Peng Xiuwen later re-orchestrated it for the full Central Broadcasting Chinese Orchestra and revised that scoring again in 1995.