The Orchestra Now Celebrates America’s 250th Anniversary at Jazz at Lincoln Center

As the finale of the ninth season of the China Now Music Festival, The Orchestra Now tells the story of the Chinese laborers who carved the Transcontinental Railroad out of the Sierra Nevada in the 1860s. Men of Iron and the Golden Spike is a large-scale symphonic oratorio by composer Zhou Long. It is a story of grit and sacrifice that history books have largely left out. This monumental work returns to the stage in New York City after its premiere during the 2019 China Now Music Festival and features a large orchestra, 120 choristers, and vocal soloists.

Paired with it is the U.S. premiere of Chasing the Sky, a five-movement symphonic suite by Li Shaosheng that turns its gaze upward, tracing humanity’s dream of reaching the stars, which explores our enduring fascination with the skies and the journey of space exploration. The piece traces the relationship between ancient imagination, scientific discovery, and contemporary innovation.

Program:

Li Shaosheng, composer
Chasing the Sky for orchestra

1. Celestial Journey
2. Questioning the Sky
3. Flying Apsaras
4. Exploring the Sky
5. The Heavens Move with Tireless Vigor 

Intermission

Zhou Long, composer；Su Wei, librettist
Men of Iron and the Golden Spike symphonic oratorio 

1. Prologue
2. The Endless Sea
3. “Coolie Work Chant” and “Song of the Chinese Railroadmen”
4. These Chinese
5. My Name is . . .
6. Snow on New Year’s Eve
7. Avalanche
8. Belated Golden Spike
9. Epilogue

Performers:

Jindong Cai, conductor

Lucy Fitz Gibbon, soprano

Ziqi Wang, mezzo-soprano                 

Yi Li, tenor     

Yue Wu, baritone      ‍

Andrew Munn, bass               ‍

The Orchestra Now

China Now Chorus