Twelve Girls Band

Twelve Girls Band (traditional Chinese: 女子十二樂坊; simplified Chinese: 女子十二乐坊; pinyin: Nǚzǐ shí'èr Yùefǎng, sometimes abbreviated to 女樂 or 女乐) is a music women artists group who started with twelve members but later become thirteen, that use traditional Chinese instruments to play both traditional Chinese and Western songs. Formed on June 18, 2001, the women were selected by audition from more than 4,000 contestants. Each woman is classically-trained, and the band members come from various conservatories in the People's Republic of China (PRC), including the China Academy of Music, the Chinese National Orchestra, and the Central Conservatory of Music.[1]

History

Chinese numerology gave Wang Xiao-Jing the idea for the Twelve Girls Band. When the Xiao-Jing decided he wanted to create a woman ensemble, he knew it needed 12 members. Per Chinese mythology it is the twelve jinchai (12 hairpins) representing womanhood. The twelve women that Xiao-Jing assembled were experienced musicians from the People's Republic of China's orchestras, played traditional Chinese instruments, and all were in their twenties. For the new project, the women were inspired by the art of the Yue Fang, the ensembles who played in the Tang Dynasty courts during the years A.D. 618 to 907.

The group debuted their modern compositions on ancient instruments in China and Japan during the Northern summer of 2003. Word of mouth spread, show after show were sold-out, and in Japan their debut album topped the charts for 30 weeks. Their self-titled debut was released in North America in August 2004 with cover versions of Coldplay's "Clocks" and Enya's "Only Time" included, and a massive television advertising campaign announcing the group's arrival.[2]

Among the instruments used by the women: erhu (Chinese fiddle), pipa (pear-shaped lute), guzheng (zither), yangqin (hammered dulcimer), dizi (transverse flute), and xiao (vertical flute). Occasionally, the duxianqin (single-stringed zither) and hulusi (three-piped gourd flute) are employed.

Performances

In July 2003, Beautiful Energy, their first album in Japan, reached the top of the J-pop chart. They won Japan Gold Disc Award in 2004.

The Twelve Girls Band toured in the United States in 2004 Miracles tour[3] and again in 2005.

In July 7, 2007 the Twelve Girls Band performed at the Chinese leg of Live Earth in Shanghai. [4]

The Italian Soprano Giorgia Fumanti performed with the group in October and November 2007, on their North American tour. The tour traveled to the Midwest, and the East and West Coast areas of the USA and Canada.[5]

In 2008, the yang qin player, Ma Jing Jing did concerts playing the yangqin and guzheng.

Members

• Playing the guzheng, Zhou Jiannan (周健楠).
• Playing the yangqin, Ma Jingjing (马菁菁) and Yang Songmei (杨松梅).
• Playing the pipa, Zhang Kun (张琨), Zhong Bao (仲宝), and Shi Juan (石娟).
• Playing the erhu, Lei Ying (雷滢), Jiang Jin (蒋瑾), Yin Yan (殷焱), Sun Ting (孙婷), and Zhan Lijun (詹丽君).
• Playing flutes, Liao Binqu (廖彬曲) and Sun Yuan (孙媛).
• Zhan Lijun joined the group in 2003, bringing the total number of women to thirteen, but the original name was retained.

Former members: Huo Xiaojun (霍暁君), Yue Guangqin (越光瑾), Du Wenting (杜文婷), Zhang Shuang (张爽).

Discography

Studio albums (original works)

• Meili Yinyuehui 魅力音乐会 (CD, 2001 - limited Press) - Original Debut CD
• Joshi Juni Gakubou - Beautiful Energy (CD and DVD, 2003) - first Japanese album
• Kiko - Shining Energy - (CD and DVD, 2004) - second Japanese album
• Eastern Energy (CD and DVD, 2004) - first USA album
• Tonkou - Romantic Energy - (CD and DVD, 2005)
• Romantic Energy (CD and DVD, 2005) - published in the US
• Shanghai (2007)

Studio albums (tributes and covers)

• Red Hot Classics (CD, DVD and VCD, 2004)
• Tribute to Wang Luobin (CD and DVD, 2004)
• Merry Christmas To You (2005) - Christmas album published in Japan
• White Christmas (CD and DVD, 2005)
• Twelve Girls of Christmas (2005) - Christmas album published in the US

Studio albums (compilations)

• Freedom (Greatest Hits) (2 CDs, 2004)
• The Best of 12 Girls Band (2006) - Korean version available

Live albums

• Kiseki/Miracle Live (CD, DVD and VCD, 2003)
• Twelve Girls Band Live at Budokan Japan 2004 (DVD, 2004)
• Journey to Silk Road (VCD, 2005)

Most of these CDs were released in different versions for the USA, the PRC, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Korea. Please see the official individual album page for information on how the tracklist differs.

Video

• 女子十二乐坊
• 女子十二乐坊

External links

• Official Website
• Yahoo Group