Chen Qigang wants to start the Olympics on the right note
CLASSICAL MUSIC
The composer heads home to serve as music director for the Beijing Games.
IN his youth, Chen Qigang's introduction to music came from playing the clarinet. Later, as a composition student in Beijing, then as an established composer in Paris, he could often be found at the piano. But for the last six months, Chen's primary instrument has clearly become the telephone.
Since his appointment last June as music director for the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Olympic Games, Chen's life has taken a radical turn. He was in Paris in January for the world premiere of his "Enchantements oubliés" at the Salle Pleyel with the Philharmonic of Radio France, but Chen had to return immediately to Beijing, bypassing any chance of hearing the Hong Kong Philharmonic perform his "Five Elements" the next day.
At this point, time is a luxury the composer can't afford. Now managing a full production office, Chen has been thrust into a manic schedule of 18-hour workdays, his cellphone his primary connection to the outside world. "This job was not something I desired," he recently admitted, naturally, by phone. "To be honest, the Olympics had never entered my mind until I got that first phone call."
It was totally by chance, he says, that he happened to be in Beijing at precisely the time that director Zhang Yimou, Chen's one-time collaborator for their "Raise the Red Lantern" ballet and now heading the Olympic ceremonies, was trying to find him. "By the time we finally met -- it was after 10 p.m. -- he started asking me vague questions. Did I have much free time in 2008? If there happened to be an assignment for the Olympics, would I be interested? Basically, he wouldn't give me any real information, and I told him nothing. It was a total standoff for 30 minutes."
Chen's main concern, though, was Tan Dun, the Oscar-winning composer whose "First Emperor" -- directed by Zhang for the Metropolitan Opera last season -- was seen by many as a lobbying effort for the Olympic post. Chen says, with a touch of bemusement: "I asked, 'Isn't Tan Dun doing this?' and Zhang only said, 'I can't give you an answer.' Of course, he'd already given me his answer by asking me in the first place."
Throughout the rest of their nonconversation, Chen deduced only that a falling-out had occurred. From there, Chen's own chain of events became almost comically opaque. The next morning, a similarly indirect interview with Olympic officials focused not only on his compositions but also on his general working style. The officials then said they had to wait for higher approval and asked him to cancel all immediate plans.
