"Memory" for solo flute

Chen Yi (1953) is an internationally acclaimed Chinese-American composer and educator. She is celebrated for her unique musical language that seamlessly blends the soundscapes and philosophies of traditional Chinese music with the structural rigor of the Western avant-garde.
Born in Guangzhou, China, Chen Yi began playing violin and piano at age three. Her training was violently interrupted by the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). At age 15, she was sent to the countryside to perform grueling manual labor for several years. During this time, she practiced her violin with a mute to avoid being overheard, eventually incorporating Chinese folk songs into her playing. This experience became the foundation of her "East-meets-West" aesthetic.
In 1977, she entered the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, becoming the first woman in China to receive a Master of Arts in composition.
In 1986, she moved to New York to study at Columbia University with Chou Wen-chung and Mario Davidovsky, earning her DMA in 1993. Since 1998, she has served as the Lorena Cravens/Millsap/Missouri Distinguished Professor of Composition at the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) Conservatory.
Chen Yi's music is characterized by its rhythmic vitality, structural complexity, and deeply personal narratives.
She frequently utilizes Chinese folk melodies, Beijing Opera vocalizations, and traditional instrumental gestures (like the slides of the pipa or erhu) translated through Western orchestral and chamber instruments.