Twelve Girls Band Chinese New Year Concert
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Date Reviewed: 03/02/2019
Twelve Girls Band performed a one night only show at Sydney Opera House on 3/2/18.
A Phenomenal Fusion of Modern and Traditional Chinese Folk Sounds
Renowned for their artful blending of modern music sounds and traditional Chinese, Twelve Girls Band travelled to the Sydney Opera House for one night only to perform a Chinese New Year Concert presented by Ausfeng Event Productions Pty Ltd. World renowned as one of the greatest Chinese fusion bands of our time, Twelve Girls Band offers a surreal experience unlike any other.
There were two MC’s, one speaking Mandarin (Michelle) and another English (Justin). The English tended to be a shortening of the Mandarin so as an English-only audience member I couldn’t help feeling that I was missing some of the background information. This had little overriding effect on the performance given that music transcends language barriers.
During the concert Twelve Girls Band performed several of original pieces and those from other artists. The choice of music was fantastic and engaging to the entire audience. The concert was diversified through the girls circulating between different instruments and included some singing. Each girl’s talent is unquestionable and seeing them perform such a diverse range of music which contain technically difficult components with relative ease was breathtaking. A personal highlight was seeing the Yangqin being performed, which is a Chinese hammered dulcimer instrument rarely seen in Australia.
The production value was strong with each girl wearing a long red dress slightly different from the other girls. The band utilised the limited lighting modifications available at the venue well, and the changes in lighting colour set the scene effectively for the mood of each song. Spotlighting was also used to highlight the main performers in each song. Little dancing occurred by the girls, presumably as they were focussing on playing their instruments however when dancing did occur, such as in their performance of A Lamulhan, it was truly spectacular.
A special mid show performance by Chinese Opera singer Dong Xiaohan was a crowd favourite. Her lovely soft voice echoed through the concert hall as she dominated the stage with her unquestionable talent.
The venue was certainly well chosen and few other locations would offer the acoustics of The Sydney Opera House Concert Hall. Whether you have a Chinese background or not, Twelve Girls Band Chinese New Year Concert was a fantastic experience offering an opportunity to connect to International stars rarely seen on our shores. Ausfeng Event never fails to deliver on offering Australia exceptionally produced Chinese culture performances. Keep an eye out for their next production of Shakespeare of the East: Tang Xian Zu The Playright in Concert on 7th April at The Sydney Opera House.
Review written by Cassie Cheeseman