“Butterfly Lovers” Erhu Concerto
Based on the ancient Chinese folk tale of The Butterfly Lovers, this music is adapted from tunes of “Yue Opera” in Zhejiang Province. The three main sections of the original folk tale tell of the making of sworn brothers at Cao Qiao, Zhu Ying Tai’s refusal of an arranged marriage, and the reincarnation of lovers as butterflies by their graves. These three sections are presented in the sonata form – exposition, development, and recapitulation of the concerto.