On March 5, local time, Wen Wendi, a 13-year-old Chinese girl commissioned by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, to compose "Lady Liberty in Thunderstorm", appeared in the "Young People's Concert: Youth Creators" concert, which premiered at Lincoln Center in New York. It was a concert showcasing children's outstanding creativity, which was postponed for nearly two years due to the pandemic. On that day, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra performed works by small composers from the United States, China, Finland and Israel.
Wen Wendi and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra originated from the "Little Composer Workshop" jointly planned by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. This is a public music education project initiated by the New York Philharmonic Orchestra in 1995 and landed in Shanghai in 2016, which has stimulated the imagination and creativity of a group of young people.
Created in-game, mineral water bottles can also be turned into musical instruments
Every year, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra selects 10 young composers to participate in a week-long workshop to awaken children's imagination of music through fun ways of enlightenment such as music games and communication with artists.
Wen Wendi, one of the members of the 2019 "Little Composer Workshop", completed a ensemble from scratch in just 7 days and premiered on the stage of the Shanghai Summer Music Festival (MISA).
Wen Wendi (first from right), Jon Dick (second from right), founder of the Little Composer Workshop, and small composers
Recalling the time when he participated in the workshop in 2019, Wen Wendi was most impressed by the teacher's group of three students, with the theme of "glacier melting", and improvised with his own musical instruments. "I didn't bring a violin that day, I was in a hurry, I saw the mineral water bottle in my hand, and I had a clever idea, and I thought that I could use mineral water to make the sound of glacier melting. So, after discussing with our friends, we created a 'modernist music' together, which was well received by the teachers. ”
The short week of the "Little Composer Workshop" taught Wen Wendi a variety of interesting methods such as improvisation. "The most memorable time I spent with my partner immersed in music games and playing music with my mentors. I realized that music is everywhere and composing is a way to record life and express myself. ”
He has won an international award twice and wants to be a composer in the future
Born in 2008, Wen Wendi began learning piano at the age of 4 and composition at the age of 11. At present, she is studying in a middle school in the United States, in addition to culture classes, English classes, French classes, but also with two American teachers to learn piano and violin. In addition, she also took a string band class, and there was a rehearsal time for one class every day, "which is especially important for me to write the orchestra work, so that I have an intuitive and accurate understanding of the composition of the band and the sound balance of the various voice parts." ”
At the same time, she also learned composition and electronic music from teachers in Geneva and electronic music with Li Jia, a teacher at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, through online classes.
Wen Wendi has just learned that she won the first prize in the Swiss Youth Composition Competition and that her "Triangular Prism II" for violin and piano will also be premiered at the competition concert. Last year, she also won the first prize in the Zurich String Orchestra Competition for her string work "Bird Song", and won her first prize in her life. Today, she is preparing for an international piano competition in Italy.
"All in all, very busy, but very busy!" Wen Wendi said, "I very much want to become a composer in the future. ”