Lui Tsun-Yuen 呂振原 | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Tsun-Yuen Lui |
| Born | 1931 |
| Died | January 8, 2008 (aged 76–77) |
| Genres | Chinese classical music |
| Occupations | Musician, composer, teacher |
| Instruments | pipa,guqin |
| Years active | 1954–1991 |
| Labels | Lyrichord |
Lui Tsun-Yuen (Chinese:呂振原;pinyin:Lǚ Zhènyuán; 1931 – January 8, 2008)[1] was a Chinese composer and teacher ofChinese classical music. He is known for his compositions and recordings of thepipa andguqin, and is recognized for bringing Chinese music toWestern audiences.
Lui Tsun-Yuen was born inShanghai. Though practitioners of music, Lui's grandfather worked as a doctor and his father sold mercantile goods.[2] At the age of ten, Lui took up the study of classicalstringed instruments, namely the pipa (a four-stringedlute) and theguqin (sometimes called theqin,chin, or "Chinesezither").[3][4] Hisguqin teachers includedWu Jinglüe and Hou Zuowu.[5]
As a youth, Lui traveled around China to study with many generations of musicians.[3] His brother Lui Pui-Yuen (呂培原, b. 1933)[6] was also tutored in stringed instruments, and would later found the Chinese Orchestra of Hong Kong.[7]
Lui graduated from Shanghai'sKing Yee College in 1953 with a degree in general education. In 1954 he left thePeople's Republic of China to work inHong Kong.[2] While there he performed at recitals and on the radio.[4] In 1957 he moved to Brazil to work for a company run by a friend of the family.[2] While there he made appearances on television, performed for by Brazil's Ministry of Education, and participated in the 1958 São Paulo Music Festival.[4]
In 1959 Lui decided to leave the business world, declaring that he "would rather be a poor musician than a rich merchant." He traveled to the United States for a series of performances, beginning with the Interval Concert Series at New York'sCarnegie Hall. He also began recording material for theLyrichord record label, who released Lui's first LPChinese Classical Masterpieces for the Pipa and Chin in 1960.[8] In 1961 a full U.S. tour included university engagements atBrown,Chicago,Columbia,Harvard,Princeton,Stanford,Wesleyan, andYale.[2] He also traveled toLondon, where he cut a record for theBBC's permanent collections[4] and soon gained a reputation as the premier ambassador of solo pipa to the West.[7]
Lui briefly fell in with the American popular genre known asexotica and played as part of aLas Vegas stage show called "Oriental Holiday".[9] He also adapted western musical compositions for the pipa, such as his transcription of the English folk ballad "Greensleeves".[10][11] During his career he also appeared onPacifica Radio,PBS and theSteve Allen Show.[2]
In March 1961, Lui accepted a position at theUniversity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he taught in the Department ofEthnomusicology and Systematic Musicology. At UCLA, Lui began as an associate teacher of Chinese music,classical dance, andopera.[2] In 1964 he began lecturing on the history and theory of Chinese music,[3] and eventually sat on committees that reviewed theses and dissertations for masters and doctorate degrees in ethnomusicology. His teaching work was interspersed with performances at theGuggenheim Museum,Hollywood Bowl,Library of Congress, and a tour to Europe, as well as recording sessions that amounted to five albums of music during the 1960s.[2] TheAmerican String Teachers' Association sponsored Lui for a demonstration of pipa with guitaristAndrés Segovia.[3] In the late 1960s, Lui sometimes opened for rock music acts such asJerry Lee Lewis,Sweetwater, andThe Doors.[12]
In addition to playing classical compositions, Lui also wrote and recorded new music for the pipa.[4] Being in Los Angeles, he also composed and performedincidental music for sevenHollywood films, as well asChinese cinema.[2] A 1967 tour took him back to Asia, with stops in Japan, Hawaii, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.[4] Around 1972, Lui met, then married Lü Hong (吕红), a professional singer from Hong Kong, and the daughter of the noted Cantonese musician Lü Wencheng (吕文成, 1898-1981), while she was in the U.S. for a tour. Lui's brother Pui-Yuen joined him in Los Angeles in 1973[6] after teaching Chinese classical music atUC Berkeley,Brown University, andLoyola Marymount University.[13] The two frequently performed together.[14]
Lui retired from academia in 1991, after 30 years at UCLA. At the retirement reception, UCLA's dean of the College of Fine Arts presented Lui with a commemorative gold medal.[3]
Lui died in January 2008. In 2016 his family established a $20,000 scholarship fund in his honor.[3]
'Greensleeves', arranged for the Chinese lute (pipa) by Tsun Yuen Lui. (This is also a form of TABLATURE, but it is very different! It is written for the Chinese lute (pipa) and the two lines of characters in each column represent the pitch (indicated in cipher notation – using numerals) and the right-hand plucking technique to be used)
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