publication, in whole or in part, may not be reproduced without written permission from the publisher or the previous publisher of original republished materials.
From Chinese opera to Latin influences, Hong Kong sets the stage for music from the highly acclaimed foreign film, In The Mood For Love.

Various Artists - In The Mood For Love
Label: Higher Octave Music

For me, music is not only for the mood, but also the sound. I came to Hong Kong when I was five, and the first things that impressed me were the sounds of the city, which were totally different from Shanghai. - Wong Kar-Wai, the film's director.

Wong Kar-Wai has selected a mosaic of music in this luscious film, creating a sound world of Hong Kong in the 1960s, when immigrants from China (most specifically, families from Shanghai) still retained their own local identities (dialects, food, popular music, and traditional operatic forms). Many of them believed Hong Kong only to be a transient home away from China.

The film takes us to Hong Kong, Singapore, and in the last minutes of the film, Cambodia. The collage of musical styles represents a world of music that Hong Kong people listened to a world in which Wong spent his childhood.

In the Mood for Love is a film about radio days. The musical selections, ranging from traditional opera to theme songs from popular films from the 1950s, constitute the backdrop against the romantic tete-a-tete of Chow Mo-Wan (Tony Leung) and Su Li-Zhen (Maggie Cheung).

The main theme is borrowed from Shigeru Umegayashi's Yumeji's Theme (from Suzuki Seijun's film of the same title). This alluring waltz, entrancing in its string ensemble arrangement, is symbolic of the tentative steps of the male and female dancers in a romantic intrigue. The distinct triple meter (dance rhythm) also embodies the paradox of passion and socially conformist duties of both sexes.

All of the traditional pingtan, Cantonese, Beijing and Zhejiang operas are historic recordings by legendary performers. Of special note is a recorded excerpt (Si Lang Tan Mu) from 1912, performed by Tan Xin Pei (1847-1917). Tan was a major figure in Beijing opera; he also played a role in China s first indigenous film, Ding Jun Shan, in 1905. Another gem, Hong Niang Hui Zhang Sheng from Xi Xiang Ji (Story of the West Chamber), is a Cantonese opera classic. Xi Xiang Ji is a story of a pre-marital affair, where the lovers rendezvous in the West Chamber.

We had a lot of Western music in Shanghai at that time, and most of the musicians from Hong Kong were from the Philippines, so there was a lot of Latin music in Hong Kong In the Moodfor Love features many songs that were popular in restaurants at that time. The reason I wanted to use Nat King Cole's Quiz's, Quiz's, Quiz's was because he was my mother's favorite singer. - Wong Kar-Wai

What Wong found most intriguing is that only recently did he leam that Cole s Aquellos Ojos Verdes, Te Quiero Dijiste, and Quiz's, Quiz's, Quiz's were but covers of Latin originals. The dance band arrangements, conjugating for the local Hong Kong population the land of gold mountains, certainly inspired many dreams.
Chinese indigenous popular music originated mainly from popular films from the 1930s onward Zhou Xuan (1918-1957), the golden voice of her time, made numerous classics, of which Chang Xiang Si was filmed in Hong Kong in 1946. Hua Yang De Nian Hua was a song therein, but the master copy of this recording was only discovered by EMI (Zhou's record company) in post-Cultural Revolution Shanghai. Introduced first by a band playing the opening phrases from Happy Birthday, Hua Yang De Nian Hua is a perfect ballad for a young woman celebrating her flower-like youth and beauty. Wong uses this song in the context of a radio broadcast, using the voice of a real broadcaster of the period.

Rebecca Pan (Pan Di Hua) is a renowned popular singer of Hong Kong from the 1960s who was originally born in Shanghai. Of her oeuvre, Bengawan is perhaps the most famous. Wong selected her original recording of the song.

Pan's role in In the Mood for Love, as the Shanghai landlady of Su Li-Zhen, is ideal. After all, she is from that period, and she is emblematic of much of the popular music of that time. Yue Er Wan Wan Jiao Jiu Zhou and Shuang Shuang Yan are also from the same period. All of these arrangements are typical of those nightclub bands, highlighting romantic, soaring strings and ballroom dance rhythms (for those dancing patrons).

Wong recreates his memory of radio days with new commissions too. Michael Galasso wrote the music accompanying Chow's solitary visit to Angkor Wat, four years after his affair with Su. The sense of remorse, especially the haunting skings throughout these short pieces, complement Umebayashi's main theme very well.

By Joanna C. Lee

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"One of the most beautiful voices on earth." - Billboard Magazine

Sheila Chandra with the Ganges Orchestra - This Sentence Is True (The Previous Sentence is False)
Label: Narada

Five years since her last new album and eighteen months in the making, Sheila Chandra returns bolder than ever with the provocative and evocative THIS SENTENCE IS TRUE (The Previous Sentence is False). Aided and abetted by the fictitious Ganges Orchestra (basically a different box of sounds and ideas) this album is a brave and beautiful departure from Chandra's pioneering work spanning ten albums. Episodic sound collages, harmonically rich orchestrated drones, randomly triggered gates fired at walls of sound and tracks "as gnomic as a physicist's notebook" (The Wire) go to create a pivotal album for Chandra and a one-off for Indipop.

For Chandra, the emotional theme of the album is the space we inhabit between being vibration sensitive and word sensitive. As anticipated, several tracks feature her usual distinctive and compelling vocals, while she experiments with new and imaginative vocal effects on others. For example, on the track Mien, she employs nine different vocal textures to produce a haunting, psychotic soundscape.

The whole course of Chandra's musical development seems to be characterized by evolutionary leaps and lateral shifts. Albums such as MONSOON (1982), OUIET (1984), WEAVING MY ANCESTORS VOICES (1992) and ABONECRONEDRONE (1996) had no musical contemporaries. Sheila Chandra continues with a K2 bound on THIS SENTENCE IS TRUE (The Previous Sentence is False).
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Celtic Music: A Complete Guide
From Ancient Roots to Modern Performers: The Music of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Beyond.

By June Skinner Sawyers

Da Capo Press
Softcover
This book is the first guide that charts Celtic music from its ancient roots through its modern performers.

Celtic music means many things to many people. To some it recalls the Irish rebel songs of the Cloancy Brothers, to others then ensemble playing of the Chieftains or Enya's ethereal vocals. Yet Celtic music is much more than reels, jogs, and sentimental ballads; it is also unaccompanied singing, feverish fiddle tunes, the sweet strains of the Irish uileann pipes. It comes not just from Ireland and Scotland but from Wales, Brittany, the Isle of Man, and Cornwall. it informs the musical roots of Van Morrison and U2, the performances of Riverdance, and the scores for such films as Braveheart and Titanic.

Celtic Music: A Complete Guide explores all aspects of this music - from its roots to the exciting developments on the contemporary scene. Sawyers profiles hundreds of artists, and compiles suggestions for recommended listening as well as the 100 Essential Celtic Recordings. Lists of Celtic festivals and publications are also included, together with record outlets, record lavels, and music schools, making this book essential for all lovers of the music.

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The impressive new album from one of Africa's brightest stars. Habib Koité & Bamada - Baro Label: Putamayo World Music Putumayo World Music is pleased to present Baro, the new album by Malian guitar virtuoso Habib Koite. Since the release of his last recording Ma Ya in i 998, Koite has grown from being one of Africa's best kept secrets to become an international star and one of the leading figures in contemporary world music. Baro, a deeply moving album that takes the music of Mali in new and exciting directions, will be released in North America on July 24, 2001. Koite has been praised in hundreds of newspapers and magazines, including People, Rolling Stone and The New York Times. He has been featured on major national radio and television programs such NPR's All Things Considered, BBC* The World, and CNN WorldBeat. Koite became one of the few African artists to break into mainstream pop radio with his popular single "Wasslye." Among his expanding legions of devoted fans are Jackson Browne and Bonnie Raitt, who effused,"First there was Hendrix, then Stevie Ray and now, Habib." , Born into a family of griots, the hereditary musician-historian that is central to West African music culture, Koite was exposed to ancient Malian traditions as well as modern blues, soul and rock and roll. After studying at Mali's most prestigious music school, Koite joined the faculty and taught at the school for several years. In 1988, he founded his band Bamada, and was soon receiving awards and praise throughout West Africa and Europe. He has since toured the world extensively, performing throughout Africa, Europe and North America, as well as in Japan, Turkey and even Kazakstan. His live performances and engaging personality have endeared him to audiences everywhere and led the Los Angeles Times to rave that Koite is"an emerging world music superstar." Baro, continues where Ma Ya left off, with a set of haunting melodies and virtuoso guitar playing. Habib is backed by Keletigui Diabate, Mali's undisputed king of the balafon (a West African wooden-keyed xylophone), who recorded with Lionel Hampton in the 1960s. With the support of the rest of the talented members of Bamada, Koite swings from the Cuban-influenced grooves of"Batoumanbe" to the ethereal and entrancing "Sinamaw." The acoustic, unadorned arrangements reflect centuries of Malian tradition, while incorporating subtle Western influences to create songs that appeal to people from all walks of life. Baro even includes a new, Latin-style version of Koite's first hit "Cigarette A Bana ' the track that made him a star in West Africa and earned him the prestigious Radio France International Discoveries Prize in 1992. Baro promises to propel Koite to even greater heights. Stunningly beautiful and Iyrical, rooted in tradition yet broadly accessible, Baro is the next giant step in the career of an artist who is fast becoming an international luminary. Back to top This website: Copyright © 2000 Dream World Media / Urban Mozaik Magazine. All rights reserved. This website/publication, in whole or in part, may not be reproduced without written permission from the publisher or the previous publisher of original republished materials.	From Chinese opera to Latin influences, Hong Kong sets the stage for music from the highly acclaimed foreign film, In The Mood For Love. Various Artists - In The Mood For Love Label: Higher Octave Music For me, music is not only for the mood, but also the sound. I came to Hong Kong when I was five, and the first things that impressed me were the sounds of the city, which were totally different from Shanghai. - Wong Kar-Wai, the film's director. Wong Kar-Wai has selected a mosaic of music in this luscious film, creating a sound world of Hong Kong in the 1960s, when immigrants from China (most specifically, families from Shanghai) still retained their own local identities (dialects, food, popular music, and traditional operatic forms). Many of them believed Hong Kong only to be a transient home away from China. The film takes us to Hong Kong, Singapore, and in the last minutes of the film, Cambodia. The collage of musical styles represents a world of music that Hong Kong people listened to a world in which Wong spent his childhood. In the Mood for Love is a film about radio days. The musical selections, ranging from traditional opera to theme songs from popular films from the 1950s, constitute the backdrop against the romantic tete-a-tete of Chow Mo-Wan (Tony Leung) and Su Li-Zhen (Maggie Cheung). The main theme is borrowed from Shigeru Umegayashi's Yumeji's Theme (from Suzuki Seijun's film of the same title). This alluring waltz, entrancing in its string ensemble arrangement, is symbolic of the tentative steps of the male and female dancers in a romantic intrigue. The distinct triple meter (dance rhythm) also embodies the paradox of passion and socially conformist duties of both sexes. All of the traditional pingtan, Cantonese, Beijing and Zhejiang operas are historic recordings by legendary performers. Of special note is a recorded excerpt (Si Lang Tan Mu) from 1912, performed by Tan Xin Pei (1847-1917). Tan was a major figure in Beijing opera; he also played a role in China s first indigenous film, Ding Jun Shan, in 1905. Another gem, Hong Niang Hui Zhang Sheng from Xi Xiang Ji (Story of the West Chamber), is a Cantonese opera classic. Xi Xiang Ji is a story of a pre-marital affair, where the lovers rendezvous in the West Chamber. We had a lot of Western music in Shanghai at that time, and most of the musicians from Hong Kong were from the Philippines, so there was a lot of Latin music in Hong Kong In the Moodfor Love features many songs that were popular in restaurants at that time. The reason I wanted to use Nat King Cole's Quiz's, Quiz's, Quiz's was because he was my mother's favorite singer. - Wong Kar-Wai What Wong found most intriguing is that only recently did he leam that Cole s Aquellos Ojos Verdes, Te Quiero Dijiste, and Quiz's, Quiz's, Quiz's were but covers of Latin originals. The dance band arrangements, conjugating for the local Hong Kong population the land of gold mountains, certainly inspired many dreams. Chinese indigenous popular music originated mainly from popular films from the 1930s onward Zhou Xuan (1918-1957), the golden voice of her time, made numerous classics, of which Chang Xiang Si was filmed in Hong Kong in 1946. Hua Yang De Nian Hua was a song therein, but the master copy of this recording was only discovered by EMI (Zhou's record company) in post-Cultural Revolution Shanghai. Introduced first by a band playing the opening phrases from Happy Birthday, Hua Yang De Nian Hua is a perfect ballad for a young woman celebrating her flower-like youth and beauty. Wong uses this song in the context of a radio broadcast, using the voice of a real broadcaster of the period. Rebecca Pan (Pan Di Hua) is a renowned popular singer of Hong Kong from the 1960s who was originally born in Shanghai. Of her oeuvre, Bengawan is perhaps the most famous. Wong selected her original recording of the song. Pan's role in In the Mood for Love, as the Shanghai landlady of Su Li-Zhen, is ideal. After all, she is from that period, and she is emblematic of much of the popular music of that time. Yue Er Wan Wan Jiao Jiu Zhou and Shuang Shuang Yan are also from the same period. All of these arrangements are typical of those nightclub bands, highlighting romantic, soaring strings and ballroom dance rhythms (for those dancing patrons). Wong recreates his memory of radio days with new commissions too. Michael Galasso wrote the music accompanying Chow's solitary visit to Angkor Wat, four years after his affair with Su. The sense of remorse, especially the haunting skings throughout these short pieces, complement Umebayashi's main theme very well. By Joanna C. Lee Back to top	"One of the most beautiful voices on earth." - Billboard Magazine Sheila Chandra with the Ganges Orchestra - This Sentence Is True (The Previous Sentence is False) Label: Narada Five years since her last new album and eighteen months in the making, Sheila Chandra returns bolder than ever with the provocative and evocative THIS SENTENCE IS TRUE (The Previous Sentence is False). Aided and abetted by the fictitious Ganges Orchestra (basically a different box of sounds and ideas) this album is a brave and beautiful departure from Chandra's pioneering work spanning ten albums. Episodic sound collages, harmonically rich orchestrated drones, randomly triggered gates fired at walls of sound and tracks "as gnomic as a physicist's notebook" (The Wire) go to create a pivotal album for Chandra and a one-off for Indipop. For Chandra, the emotional theme of the album is the space we inhabit between being vibration sensitive and word sensitive. As anticipated, several tracks feature her usual distinctive and compelling vocals, while she experiments with new and imaginative vocal effects on others. For example, on the track Mien, she employs nine different vocal textures to produce a haunting, psychotic soundscape. The whole course of Chandra's musical development seems to be characterized by evolutionary leaps and lateral shifts. Albums such as MONSOON (1982), OUIET (1984), WEAVING MY ANCESTORS VOICES (1992) and ABONECRONEDRONE (1996) had no musical contemporaries. Sheila Chandra continues with a K2 bound on THIS SENTENCE IS TRUE (The Previous Sentence is False). Back to top
			Celtic Music: A Complete Guide From Ancient Roots to Modern Performers: The Music of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Beyond. By June Skinner Sawyers Da Capo Press Softcover This book is the first guide that charts Celtic music from its ancient roots through its modern performers. Celtic music means many things to many people. To some it recalls the Irish rebel songs of the Cloancy Brothers, to others then ensemble playing of the Chieftains or Enya's ethereal vocals. Yet Celtic music is much more than reels, jogs, and sentimental ballads; it is also unaccompanied singing, feverish fiddle tunes, the sweet strains of the Irish uileann pipes. It comes not just from Ireland and Scotland but from Wales, Brittany, the Isle of Man, and Cornwall. it informs the musical roots of Van Morrison and U2, the performances of Riverdance, and the scores for such films as Braveheart and Titanic. Celtic Music: A Complete Guide explores all aspects of this music - from its roots to the exciting developments on the contemporary scene. Sawyers profiles hundreds of artists, and compiles suggestions for recommended listening as well as the 100 Essential Celtic Recordings. Lists of Celtic festivals and publications are also included, together with record outlets, record lavels, and music schools, making this book essential for all lovers of the music. Back to top