Liu Sola - Annual Meeting of the New Champions 2012

Liu Sola (Chinese: 刘索拉; pinyin: Liú Suǒlā; b. Beijing, China, 1955) is a Chinese composer, vocalist, music producer, and author.

Biography

After graduating from the

Central Conservatory of Music The Central Conservatory of Music () is a prestigious leading public music school of China and a member of Double First Class University Plan and former Project 211. Its campus is in the Xicheng District of Beijing, China, near Fuxingmen Stati ...

with a degree in composition, she published her award-winning novella You Have No Choice. Since the 1980s, Liu Sola has scored many Chinese and international film sound tracks, as well as TV and drama productions. She has composed music for orchestra, ensemble, opera, modern theater, modern dance, and art exhibitions. Her range of musical styles includes classical music, jazz, early music, rock, traditional and contemporary music. She is frequently invited to perform at international music festivals and has recorded and collaborated with many international artists. During the 1990s, she recorded with

Pól Brennan Pól Brennan ( ga, Pól Ó Braonáin, ; born 22 April 1956) is an Irish singer, songwriter and producer. He is the brother of Enya, Moya Brennan, Brídín Brennan and Ciarán Brennan. He is a member of the family band Clannad, and co-wrote the ...

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, Umar Bin Hassan,

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and,

Pheeroan akLaff Pheeroan akLaff (born Paul Maddox January 27, 1955) is an American jazz drummer and percussionist. He began playing in his hometown of Detroit, Michigan and Ann Arbor, with R & B keyboardist Travis Biggs, funk keyboardist Nimrod “The Grinder� ...

. In 2003, she founded the Liu Sola & Friends Ensemble, teaming up with Chinese instrumental virtuosos such as Li Zhengui, Zhang Yangsheng, and

Yang Jing Yang Jing (; born December 1953) is a former Chinese politician of Mongol heritage. He previously served as State Councilor and Secretary-General of the State Council, and the President of the Chinese Academy of Governance. Prior to his ascend ...

, together with other young award-winning soloists. In 2012, Chinese guitar virtuoso Liu Yijun (lao wu) joined the ensemble. She is the founder of Liu Sola (Beijing) Music Studio, located in Songzhuang art colony, an artist district. Liu Sola designed and built a music space for her ensemble to rehearse and record. Over the years, she has composed and produced film soundtracks for directors such as Zhang Nuanxin,

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, Lv Yue,

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and others. In 2013, she established the Liu Sola & Friends Ensemble Independent Film Music Work Shop. Her music works include the chamber opera ''Fantasy of the Red Queen'' (2006), performed by

Ensemble Modern Ensemble Modern is an international ensemble dedicated to performing and promoting the music of modern composers. Formed in 1980, the group is based in Frankfurt, Germany, and made up variously of about twenty members from numerous countries. Hi ...

and the Liu Sola & Friends Ensemble. Liu Sola is the librettist and music composer, artistic director, costume designer and leading vocalist. The chamber opera ''The Afterlife of Li Jiantong'' (2009) is a work dedicated to her mother, a Chinese political-historical writer. Liu Sola wrote both the libretto and the music. It was performed by Theatre of Voices, conducted by Paul Hillier. Her novels include ''Chaos & All That'' (1989), the English translation of which by Richard King, was awarded First Prize for translation by the British Comparative Literature Association, ''Nv Zhen Tang'' (2000), which has been translated into French and Italian, ''La Grande Île des Tortues – Cochons'' (2006) and ''Lost in Fascination'' (2011). Liu is married to Hong Kong-born scholar and cultural critic

Ackbar Abbas Ackbar Abbas is a professor of comparative literature at the University of California, Irvine. Previously he was chair of comparative literature at the University of Hong Kong and also co-director of the Centre for the Study of Globalization and C ...

Bibliography

Novellas

*''Ni Bie Wu Xuanze 你别无选择'' ''You Have No Choice'' (1985) *''Lan tian lvhai 蓝天绿海'' ''Blue Sky Green Sea'' (1985) *''In Search of the King Of Singers'' (1986)

Novels

*''Chaos And All'' (1989) *''Da Ji Jia de Xiao Gu Shi 大继家的小故事'' or ''Small Tales of the Great Ji Family'' (2000) *''Nv Zhen Tang'' ''女贞汤'' ''Female Purity Soup'' （2003） *''La Grande île des tortues-cochons'' (2006) *''La Piccola Storia Della Grande Famiglia Ji''

Play

*''Fantasy of the Red Queen''（2006）

Discography

*''Blues in the East'' (1994 *''China Collage'' (1996, with Wu Man) *''Haunts'' （1997） *''June Snow'' （1998） *''Spring Snowfall'' （2000） *''Sola and Friends'' （1999) *''Apparitions''（2000）

References

External links

*Harris, Craig (2008). "Liu Sola biography" ''AllMusic''.
BeijingScene.com: Red China Blues Woman
by Pan Keyin {{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Sola 1955 births Living people Chinese folk singers Chinese women singers Place of birth missing (living people) Singers from Beijing Chinese women composers Short story writers from Beijing Chinese composers International Writing Program alumni Chinese women short story writers 20th-century Chinese short story writers 20th-century women writers People's Republic of China short story writers