Yellow River Piano Concerto

Introduction

A four-movement piano concerto adapted from Xian Xinghai's Yellow River Cantata, led by pianist Yin Chengzong

The Yellow River Piano Concerto is an adaptation of the Yellow River Cantata, which Xian Xinghai wrote in Yan'an in 1939. Between 1968 and 1969 the pianist Yin Chengzong led a group including Chu Wanghua, Sheng Lihong, Liu Zhuang and Xu Feixing in turning the cantata into a concerto. Its four movements are the Song of the Yellow River Boatman, Ode to the Yellow River, Wrath of the Yellow River and Defend the Yellow River, each drawn from parts of the cantata. In the third movement the piano imitates the sound of the pipa and other plucked instruments, blending Chinese folk melody with the European concerto. The work was first performed in 1970 with Yin as soloist, recorded in 1971 and later revised by Shi Shucheng.

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Parts

1. Song of the Yellow River BoatmanThe opening movement, a rondo adapted from the first movement of the Yellow River Cantata
2. Ode to the Yellow RiverA movement in compound binary form with introduction and coda, centred on B-flat major
3. Wrath of the Yellow RiverOpens with a northern Shaanxi-style introduction, then takes up two songs of the cantata
4. Defend the Yellow RiverThe finale, in variation form, adapted from the eighth and ninth movements of the cantata