Graduating Student Recital • THE WATER AND THE WILLOWS • Ye Bai, piano

This program includes works by male and female composers from a variety of places and backgrounds, including Black, white, and Asian composers. I invite listeners to embark on a journey through distinctive styles and sound worlds. Bach’s Fugue in E flat major develops a subject in long, slow notes in the style of the ricercar, looking to past traditions. Haydn’s C major piano sonata shows a playful and operatic character. Clara Schumann, the German Romantic pianist, composer, and piano teacher, was hailed at the time as one of the leading pianists of the age, while her compositions are finally getting their due today. Her Three Romances, emotional character pieces, invite the listener into a variety of moods. Chou Wen-Chung, the Chinese American composer and important teacher in the US, was one of the first Chinese composers to combine Asian melodies and rhythms with modern Western music. “The Willows are New” is based on a song titled Yang Kuan typically played on the Chinese long zither, attributed to Wang Wei, the poet-painter-musician of the Tang Dynasty. The poem begins by describing the scenery of the city of Weicheng. Then it turns to farewell, offering a toast to a departing friend. Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Afro-British composer and conductor of the late 19th-century, was one of the leading musical figures of Victorian England. “Deep River,” based on the American spiritual, shows nostalgia for home. “Wade in the Water,” based on another spiritual, is a decisive and determined to end this musical journey.

A pianist, harpsichordist, educator, and music advocate, Ye Bai’s sensitive musicianship leaves a lasting impression as she shares her unique interpretations of both standard and contemporary repertoire. Ye strives to make music accessible to different social groups such as children with autism, the general public, and retirees. She believes that music should be enjoyed by both performers and audiences. As a soloist, Ye won awards in many competitions in China. She had two recitals in Shanxi, China, and her performance of Mozart and Chopin were well received by the audience. She also had one recital in Cambridge, MA, US, and the contemporary piece, Where the Rivers Go, composed by Tobias Picker that she played in the background of her painting left a deep impression on the audience. Ye is also enjoy performing with other instruments and, accompanied for violin, flute, clarinet, oboe, trumpet, bason, bamboo flute, Cheng and more. As an educator, Ye teaches students from age 4 to 14, and adult students who learn piano as a hobby. She always attracts students’ attention with some interesting pieces and vivid verbal descriptions, then teaches them the technique in the piece. Ye strives to make music accessible to different social groups. She performed in Fangzhou Autism school for children with autism in Taiyuan, Nursing home in Rochester, NY, and had online Healing Concert for retirees in Boston. Originally from Taiyuan, Ye Bai believes her true home is in Shangri-La. When Ye Bai is not performing, she pursues with equal fervor her passions for travel, dance and cuisine. Perhaps someday you might even see Ye Bai in a food eating competition as she once at 45 dumplings in one sitting!