Quietude – Music of Stephen Yip
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Stephen Yip's first recording for Albany Records features works for two stellar new music ensembles.

A native of Hong Kong, composer Stephen Yip now lives in the U.S. He studied at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and received his D.M.A. from Rice University. His music has been performed by noted new music ensembles in the U.S. and abroad including the New York New Music Ensemble, Little Giant Chinese Orchestra, Singapore Chinese Orchestra, and the Moscow New Music Ensemble. His discography includes recordings on the Albany, ERM-Media, Parma, Capstone, ATMA, and Beauport labels. He is on the faculty at Houston Community College. This recording of his chamber music includes performances by the [Switch~ Ensemble], the Hong Kong New Music Ensemble, pianist Shelley Ng, and flutists Pei-San Chiu and Chen-Yu Wu.
Contents:
Stephen Yip, composer
Tranquility in Consonance III
[Switch~ Ensemble]; Jason Thorpe Buchanan (conductor)

Stephen Yip, composer
Jasmine Blossom
Shelley Ng (piano)

Stephen Yip, composer
Quietude
Hong Kong New Music Ensemble; Vicky Shin (conductor)

Stephen Yip, composer
White Dew
Pei-San Chiu (flute); Chen-Yu Wu (bass flute)

Stephen Yip, composer
Hermit
Hong Kong New Music Ensemble; Vicky Shin (conductor)

Stephen Yip, composer
November White II
[Switch~ Ensemble]; Jason Thorpe Buchanan (conductor)
Review:
The Hong Kong born but now United States resident Stephen Yip extends on his exceptional catalog of songs with 6 well thought out compositions that welcome the [Switch~ Ensemble], the Hong Kong New Music Ensemble, pianist Shelley Ng, and flutists Pei-San Chiu and Chen-Yu Wu. “Tranquility In Consanance III” starts the listen cautiously, where flute, bass clarinet, violin, cello, piano and percussion interact in exciting, meticulous ways that emit a nearly futuristic appeal while still being very tied to a unique chamber template, and “Jasmine Blossom” follows with lone piano guiding the intimate and flowing climate. In the middle, the title track recruits strings and winds for a cinematic and unpredictable 10 minutes, while “White Dew” pairs flute and bass flute into a mysterious and abstract display of detailed songwriting. Inching towards the end, “Hermit” recruits flute, b-flat clarinet, piano, 2 violins, viola, cello and double bass into a very distinct energy that’s sometimes dreamy, other times experimental, and occasionally rumbles with a unique intensity, and “November White II” exits the listen with a quivering landscape that’s nearly sci-fi amid the fascinating string manipulation. Yip’s prior work includes orchestral, chamber, vocal, and electronic music, and here he brings many ideas from those genres into a truly unclassifiable listen that you’re not going to hear anywhere else. (Take Effect)