Friday, February 16, 2024, something outstanding will be taking place. At Ian Hanger Ranger Recital Hall in Meanjin/Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, you can go and witness this amazing, live, kung fu extravaganza called The Sounds of Chow Gar by Shugorei. We have to start there. If you're lucky enough to read this and you live in the area, you should decide to take a trip and witness this event as it will only be happening for one night only.
The Sounds of Chow Gar is an exquisite cinematic portrayal of traditioal Chinese solo kung fu forms...
Shugorei is a duo that specializes in creating a series of sounds using various percussion and electronics. For this event happening at the Queensland Conservatorium on February 16, 2024, you will be able to walk in there and observe Shugorei collaborates with the Black Square String Quartet and percussionist Kaleah Scanlon and they offer this outstanding celebration of live music, film, and kung fu forms composed by Thomas Green and the practitioners of the Australian School of Kung fu and Tai Chi. in Queensland. It's this beautiful piece of life that can only happen once and somehow it reminds me of the time I got to see a live version of Walt Disney's The Lion King in Bangkok, Thailand.
I had agreed to go and see something familiar but unique and observe all of these stage actors performing new versions of something I'd seen animated, but never quite like this. Feeling unsure about what to expect, I made my way inside a fancy Thai theater. The actors in this stage production would have headdresses or furs similar to the characters I had seen as a younger child. Mufasa and Simba were there alongside the giraffes on the Serengeti. I was able to walk in and see performers doing something amazing. A mighty king watches as his father dies and he has to leave home to return to battle his uncle for the throne. A moving story made even more incredible as live people do it. I was impressed and surprised by the strength of a live performance.
There's a way you can hear the duo and their friends play together throughout this series of music. From the first piece of kung fu chaos in Overture to the way the strings lead you into the final song called Sai Form 1, there is always something there in the musical stylings of The Sounds of Chow Gar. It's so well put together that the best way to experience it might be at a live show. The way that the song Guan Dao speeds up, flexes, and then relaxes gives you this understanding that something is happening. You can close your eyes and see the world inside you. It goes forward as if it's looking for something, but does it find what it's looking for? When the chill of Say Moon King Tarn Keng you'll relax... at first. But then the drums begin to hit differently, and the little bits of the electronic part of Shugorei come in. It feels unlike how other music feels to the point where you'll feel thankful that it's happening. When you finally purchase it and have the record in your hands, you will have something that is all yours to appreciate.
That's also why I have to express once again to anyone near Meanjin, Australia on February 16, 2024, talk to your significant others and book tickets to the single-night showing of The Sounds of Chow Gar. I've been fortunate enough to hear the music they'll be playing live on the night of the show, and can personally say it's incredible. It's everything I'd want to see kung fu happen around. Talking about it too much may take too much away from what you could experience once the show comes out. It's worth your admission if you can go to the event and worth your wonder when it's finally available to listen to.
The combination of live music and kung fu goes back such a long way, imagine how outstanding it will be to see them featured together. The hope is, that you can find yourself in the awesome world being built for you on February 16, 2024, when they do the live show. Luckily the album will be available on February 20, 2024, and you will be able to carry it with you and show everyone you know. I look forward to hearing the thoughts around The Sounds of Chow Gar as it dazzles the world next month.