Duration 25:00

死亡 , SI WANG

Si Wang, for 4 bronze bells, harp, mallets, percussion, audio and video was commissioned by the Dutch Province of Overijssel in 2011.  The world premiere, by Lavinia Meijer on harp, Arend Niks and Christiaan Saris on percussion, took place July 5 2011, followed by a series of concerts at Zwart Festival Zwolle, where JacobTV was composer in residence. The concert video was done by Jan Boiten.
Si Wang means death or the dead in Chinese. The music is based on a news report on Chinese national television about a very strong earth quake in 2008. The news reporter tries to suppress her emotions while numerating the thousands of victims of the diaster. The 4 bronze bells by sculptor Harmen Brethouwer are owned by different art collectors and museums in Europe and were brought together for this occasion. So  Si Wang is a unique piece, because these bells will hardly ever be brought together again. Yet the piece can be performed using Chinese or Balinese gongs.  In case of interest, contact us at jacobtv@me.com