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Tan Dun in Amsterdam

Under the composer’s baton, the Concertgebouw Orchestra performed Tan Dun’s Requiem for Nature as the culmination and conclusion of this year’s Holland Festival. Of the performance, the Dutch newspaper NRC Handelsblad wrote, ‘Practically bursting at the seams with wonder and a zest for life, this requiem propels us forward.’ You can view footage from this unforgettable evening here.
Requiem for Nature, composer and conductor Tan Dun, Gashouder Amsterdam (photo: Marcel Molle).
Requiem for Nature, composer and conductor Tan Dun, Gashouder Amsterdam (photo: Marcel Molle).

On 30 June and 1 July, Tan Dun led the Concertgebouw Orchestra in the world premiere of his Requiem for Nature. Surrounded by stands where the audience was seated, the musicians were placed at the centre of the imposing Amsterdam Gashouder, flanked on either side by the choir Laurens Symfonisch. On a stage in front of the orchestra, the Cantonese soprano Candice Chung, the Tibetan soprano Jiangfan Yong, pipa player Han Yan and the Mongolian throat singer Hasibagen all shone. The production was spectacularly lit by Jean Kalman and directed by Pierre Audi.

  • © Marcel Molle
    © Marcel Molle
  • © Marcel Molle
    © Marcel Molle
  • © Marcel Molle
    © Marcel Molle
  • © Marcel Molle
    © Marcel Molle

The theatrical Requiem for Nature is about the unbalanced relationship between humans and nature. Man confesses his sins. But will Mother Nature forgive us? ‘The confession is an admission of human greed,’ Tan Dun explains in an interview with Preludium. ‘I think we need to remind ourselves of that. Whether nature forgives us or not doesn’t matter.’

Read the in-depth interview with Tan Dun in Preludium (Dutch).

This programme is made possible with financial support by Ammodo.