Jade Emperor‘s Great Race

Jade Emperor‘s Great Race – PhoeNX Ensemble (Toronto) & Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra (Taiwan)
8pm Thursday April 2, 2026年4月2日星期四晚上8點
【生肖紀年】– 鳳鳴九皋樂集(多倫多)、小巨人絲竹樂團(台灣)

The 2026 Sound of Dragon Music Festival’s opening concert The Jade Emperor‘s Great Race is inspired by a Chinese legend of the 12-year zodiac cycle. To measure time, the Emperor held a race, awarding the first 12 animals to arrive with a corresponding year. The order was: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. Toronto’s PhoeNX Ensemble has commissioned 14 works in the themes of the 12 animals and the Jade Emperor from award-winning composers in Asia and across Canada. The PhoeNX Ensemble will collaborate with Taiwan’s Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra to give the BC premiere of this program.

PhoeNX Ensemble video

Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra video

 

Program 曲目:

Prelude: The Jade Emperor 序曲: 玉帝 (2022) – Dorothy Chang 張彥芸 (BC)Rat 鼠 (2022) – Bekah Simms (ON)
The Legend of Kui Niu 夔牛傳奇 (2023) – Lan Tung 董籃 (BC)
The Glint In Tiger’s Eye 目光如炬的虎 (2022) – Alexina Louie 雷德媛 (ON)
The Celestial Rabbit 仙兔 (2022) – Vincent Ho (AB)
Dragon 龍 (2022) – Alice Ho 何冰頤 (ON)
Snake 蛇 (2022) – Andrew Staniland (NFLD)
Mongolian Dancing Dunky (2024) – Cecilia Heejeong Kim (Korea)
I Am Sheep 我是羊 (2022) – Roydon Tse (SK)
Monkey 猴 (2022) – Emilie LeBel (AB) 
The Rooster 雞 (2022) – Sophie Dupuis (NB)
Dog 狗 (2022) – Alfred Wong 黃學揚 (Hong Kong)
Boar 豬 (2024) – John Oliver (BC)Finale: The Jade Emperor 終曲: 玉帝 (2022) – Dorothy Chang 張彥芸 (BC)

 

PhoeNX Ensemble (鳳鳴九皋樂集) brings together East Asian and Western instruments and traditions in contemporary cross-cultural chamber music. The ensemble is dedicated to explore, promote, and expand the cultural exchange between the East and the West through performances, educational presentations, commissioning, and interdisciplinary collaboration. PhoeNX ENsemble’s projects are based on compelling stories of true history, traditional mythology, or tales of life-lessons learned through fables. With music ranging from time-honoured, Eastern-oriented classics to freshly commissioned contemporary new music, the audience is treated to a journey across cultures, languages, borders, and time….and ultimately: a journey of hope and inspiration.

Patty Chan 陳慧敏 – erhu 二胡
Sanya Eng 伍嘉珍 – harp 豎琴
Ryan Scott – percussion 打擊

with Vancouver guest Sungyong Lim 林成容 – cello 大提琴

 

Formed in 2000 in Taipei, the Little Giant Chinese Chamber Orchestra (gCO小巨人絲竹樂團) breathes new life into an art form that holds ancient roots, and devotes itself to promoting Chinese music on the world stage. The gCO has commissioned/premiered over 200 works and offers a full season of approximately thirty concerts a year at the prestigious National Concert Hall in Taiwan, presenting both the full orchestra of over one hundred musicians and smaller chamber ensembles throughout the year. It has toured multiple times in German, Holland, Singapore, Hong Kong, China, India, US, Canada, Chile, and Mexico. In addition, the gCO presents over 60 educational performances every year, introducing thousands of young audience to Chinese music in every city in Taiwan, including small communities off the main island.

Chih Sheng Chen 陳志昇 – conductor 指揮
Fu-Yun Teng 鄧馥芸 – dizi 笛子
Chung-Chi Tsai 蔡忠祈 – erhu 二胡
Fu-Hsuan Teng 鄧馥萱 – pipa 琵琶

 

check out the full programming of The 7th Sound of Dragon Music Festival – April 2-5, 2026

Get Festival Pass for all 3 concerts (Discount Price)

“Vancouver’s biennial celebration of Asian sounds returns with a program that spans everything from new Chinese chamber music to a genre-smashing showcase of intercultural improvisation”. – Georgia Straight

presented by the Sound of Dragon Society