The selections on the release by the perennially popular Canadian Brass are all apparently genuine Chinese melodies, arranged mostly by members of the group. They're so heavily remade that in some cases some might not even guess that; the music goes far beyond the usual pentatonic codes for Chinese music and clothes the melodies in various kinds of Western clothing. One might wonder about the point of it all, but the group has been popular in China since 1977, when it claims to have been the first Western musicians to visit ...
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The selections on the release by the perennially popular Canadian Brass are all apparently genuine Chinese melodies, arranged mostly by members of the group. They're so heavily remade that in some cases some might not even guess that; the music goes far beyond the usual pentatonic codes for Chinese music and clothes the melodies in various kinds of Western clothing. One might wonder about the point of it all, but the group has been popular in China since 1977, when it claims to have been the first Western musicians to visit the country after the Cultural Revolution. Half a billion people viewed a 2010 television concert featuring some of the music heard here, and plainly that's food for thought that makes the album worth hearing. Otherwise, listeners could probably find releases that better demonstrate what this durable group is all about; this one inhabits novelty territory. ~ James Manheim, Rovi
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