Wu Man & Kojiro Umezaki - Flow (CD)

Release Date: 02/19/21

With rich contrasts in sound color, this album features original works by Wu Man (pipa) and Kojiro Umezaki (shakuhachi)

At The Huntington, not far from downtown Los Angeles, is the spectacular 流芳園/Liu Fang Yuan, a 15-acre classical-style garden, inspired by those in Suzhou, China. In 2019, The Huntington commissioned visual artist 唐慶年/Tang Qingnian to create a video installation to commemorate the garden's latest phase of expansion. The 40-minute video celebrates scenes from all four seasons at the garden, plus its subtly ever-present landscaping of bamboo.

With contrasts of richness in sound color between the instruments, this album features original solo and duo works by 吴蛮/Wu Man (琵琶/pipa) and 梅崎康二郎/Kojiro Umezaki (尺八/shakuhachi). Initially composed to partner Tang Qingnian's video, the works are re-produced here as an album of music under the title 流芳/Flow. The hope is to share a musical experience of the garden and its changes through each year.