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Instrumental music from a distance age,

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The melody of China,

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Accentuated by... an exclusive blending of East and West.

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THE MUSIC OF SHEN YUN

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[Johnny Stuart – Music Director] Min-d Blowing! The music is just phenomenal.

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[Diane Wilkinson – Floral Designer] My husband was even brought to tears.

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He’s a big man and he’s never in tears except with music.

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[Mennato Forgione – Director of Business Development] Great energy and just reach the levels of vibrate within the audience.

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[Leon Natker – Conductor] Putting together classical Chinese instruments

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and classical western instruments is a way toward the future from me as a musician.

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[Milen Nachev – Conductor, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] It’s so difficult to achieve the perfect integration for every orchestra.

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This is most challenging working onto any music.

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[Keng-Wei Kou - Conductor, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] All around the world,

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many orchestras have tried to combine the elements of Chinese and western mucsic and it almost always fail.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] Both the musical systems are excellent but it’s just like cooking,

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you might have great ingredients

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but if you don’t understand the characteristics of the ingredients

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and just stir fire random things together, it simply won’t taste good.

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Shen Yun’s original music features the perfect harmony of classical eastern and western music.

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The western orchestra is the foundation enhancing the distinct sound of Chinese instruments.

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The melody of ancient middle kingdom severs at the bedrock

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and it is with the western orchestra that Shen Yun brings them to life.

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This is a new frontier in classical music and it what makes Shun Yun’s music unique.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] Shen Yun has a unique way of blending east and west and as composers,

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we need to have a foundation of both western and eastern traditions.

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Shen Yun artistic goals and aspirations are very demanding that requires a lot of us both technically and spiritually.

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There’re certain special methods exclusive to Shen Yun.

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So what are these exclusive methods? Let’s get a little closer and see for ourselves.

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DEEPLY ROOTED IN A GRAND CULTURE

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Located in New York State, Shen Yun Performing Arts mission

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is to revise the traditional culture that had almost been lost.

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Classical Chinese Dance is Shen Yun’s main art form

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and most original Shen Yun’s music is created for its dances.

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It displays China traditional melodies.

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Just like that, music can also present different times, places, characters and moods.

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China has 5 millennia worth of culture.

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From the melodic styles of over 50 ethnic groups to grand imperial court music and […] folk tunes.

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This heritage is an endless source of inspiration.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] The music also embody this.

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We have to get the form of the music right.

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For example, The Lady of The Tang court were very elegant.

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During the Qing Dynasty, the princesses have this noble air.

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The male dancers are masculate and vigorous. The Tang imperial drum is all drums and brass.

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On the other hand, the female dancers display gentle beauty,

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so you hear most strings, pipa, lighter instrument.

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Creating Daoism music we go for mystical air and a strong sense of integrity.

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Buddha’s music is solemn and merciful, the […] embodies the dignity.

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Put key chains on the same melody, the […] for the Monkey King suddenly becomes nimble and playful.

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As for Pigsy, the trumbon at the body accentuate the clumsiness and the Sona (??) on top,

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gives you a very comical feeling.

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And in each corner of China, you’ll find different customs and styles.

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[Junyi Tan - Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] Northeastern music for example, tends to favor this sona.

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The region south of the Yangzi River tends to use the pipa a little more.

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Mongolians use a lot of vibratos.

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And other ethnic groups have their own unique styles and characteristics.

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China was once known as The Land of the Divine,

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a magnificent civilization said to has been bestowed from above.

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From the earliest music of the ancient Emperors to the bells and chimes of four millennia gold;

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from the classical poetry of the Zhou Dynasty and Warring States to those of the Han Dynasty;

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from the grand melodies of the Swei and Tang to Song Dynasty poetry based music;

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the opera and drama of the Yuan Dynasty all the way to the folk songs and ditty of the Ming and Qing

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and even the emergent original tunes and Pekking opera.

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Each Dynasty adopted vastly different musical forms.

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Their melodies are rich yet simple.

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Each with its own heritage and lasting contribution.

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[Keng-Wei Kou - Conductor, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] Most people assume that Chinese music only has a pentatonic skill,

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but actually historical records show that as earliest the Yellow Emperor,

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around 2,600B.C, a twelve known scale was already in use.

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Ancient Chinese music had many kinds of instruments

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and a very comprehensive system of music theory and principles.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] The Tang Dynasty Performance Group has as many as a hundred and eighty musicians.

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Some say that was the earliest symphony orchestra.

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Looking back at history's development over thousands of years,

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we see that China's traditional music is wolven into human kind’s culture legacy.

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Through early cultural exchange,

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the 12 tone chromatic system invented by a Ming Dynasty prince spread from China to the west.

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Today it is the basis of western music.

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It was as if an age of creativity has swept across the world

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by the time that Yuan Dynasty was producing a range of operas and other arts.

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The west, likewise entered their renaissance period and western music was reaching its pinnacle.

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Evolving from accompaniment to dance and […], the symphony orchestra was gradually refined and perfected.

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Shen Yun uses the symphony orchestra as the core then integrate Chinese instruments

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creating a profoundly fulfilling musical experience for the people of today.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] We wanted to choose a form that all nationalities could accept.

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The western orchestra sound is terrific and is a widely accepted form,

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so we took these two comprehensive systems and combined the best each has to offer.

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[Junyi Tan - Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] Shen Yun music is based on Chinese melodies.

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We use the western orchestra as a backdrop, as the way of underlining.

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We’re not entirely using western arrangement methods.

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DISTINCT ARRANGEMENT METHODS

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Traditional Chinese music emphasizes the expression of inner feelings.

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The ancients always use musical instruments to convey their states of mind.

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Western music, meanwhile, emphasizes the effect of the ensemble and to achieve that,

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arrangement and harmony are of utmost importance.

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Shen Yun combines these two approaches.

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[Junyi Tan - Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] Between these two systems,

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the first major distinction is the instrument, but the most fundamental different is the internality.

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Just look at these strings, the erhu (??) and the violin have completely difference timbre or tone caller.

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The pipa is plucked and there is no equivalent to it among western instruments.

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Once these two instruments appear, the western symphony can’t submerge that.

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That's because their musical features are so unique.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] The ancient focused on each individual note

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and each note could be expressed in many different ways.

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They also emphasized the transitions between notes.

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It just like how Chinese dance stresses that space between one movement and the next should have rythm to it.

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Chinese music is also this way the rhythms

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and feelings between notes are big parts of Chinese music special tonality.

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For example, on the piano you play do re mi,

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but on the Chinese instrument you rarely hear note played like that.

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The score may not say anything more, may just say do re mi,

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but it’s up to the musician to bring out the feeling.

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That kind of feeling.

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When Chinese and western instruments come together,

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some instruments can be combined well but others simply can’t.

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So what method can be used to put them in harmony?

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[Junyi Tan - Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] These past few years,

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Shen Yun has defined its own arrangement methods.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] It’s the same with different musical temperament,

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we come up with some special ways making them work together.

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PURE ENERGY

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[Tony Carroll – Entrepreneur] It’s a wonderful culture. All the things are beneficial to humanity in general.

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[Elizabath Stafford – Arts Philanthropist] It’s almost heavenly.

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[Amer Moheidden – Drummer] Seriously, I love all the music [….]

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[Haitao Wang – Student] It has the righteous energy. It fills you with words.

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[Janice Bostic – International Union] I’m in pain 24 hours a day

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and I don’t take pain pills because they do not work.

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And I lost myself in music tonight and I don’t feel any pain right now.

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When people today are struct by such feelings strange of performance,

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perhaps they do not realize the ancient wisdom behind it all.

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[Junyi Tan - Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] The Chinese character or word for ‘medicine’ comes from the word for ‘music’.

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When you add the grass radical to ‘music’, you’ll get the word ‘medicine’.

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Ancient Chinese know that music has the power to heal. Modern medicine has now proven this.

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Over the course of 5,000 years, the world view that man

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and heaven are one and that all matter has life has permeated all aspects of Chinese culture including music.

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The Records of The Grand Historian states ‘music is a harmony with heaven and earth’;

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‘virtuous elegant music is an alignment with the motions of matter and with principles of human health,

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it possesses a pure energy.’

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] The 5 notes of the ancient pentatonic scale for example,

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are connected to China's theory of 5 elements.

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The first note, gong(?), is connect to the earth element which cause one to the digestive system.

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Music based on this note makes the person feel serene.

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The third note, jue(?) was connected to the wood element and relates to liver health.

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In the past it was the concept of elegant music that nurtured virtue

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that places the person organs in harmony.

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It really has a healing effect.

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A lot of music nowadays is dedicant, noisy, chaotic and provoke senses it wounds your body.

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Shen Yun just use its classical composing method.

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A DIVINE REALM

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As Shen Yun gains international prominence, its original music has also drawn wide attention.

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In 2012, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra played its international debut at Carnegie Hall.

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In 2013, it began touring.

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[Col. Baron – U.S. Army and Air Force, retired] It was the most outstanding performance that we’ve seen.

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[Betsy Swann – Writer] You know with the music you can picture the mountains and the seasons and,

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you know, snow falling and for me, the visual was all nature.

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[Pandora Spelios – Greek radio hostess] It sent you to another place, like fairy tale.

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[Michele Berk – Hollywood Producer] The music of China has such haunting melody. It just seduces you.

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[Jim Crill – Producer] The music captured all the dynamics of the human spirit.

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[Michael Duckett – Social scientist and physician] The unspoken words that were so loud that you can feel them in yourself.

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[Michael Blaszko – Case Management Supervisor] It gets you right here.

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Music comes from the heart. Be performing music or enjoying it, it is actually heart to heart communication.

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[Dale Robertson – Entrepreneur] It is so moving. It transcends all cultures, all languages.

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I mean it makes you celebrate humanity

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[Margaux Brooks – Film producer] You transcended to a higher stage of consciousness which is a divine state of mind.

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[Arthur galbraith – Cancer researcher] For one thing it has an incredible spiritual message,

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something that goes beyond just traditional religion. It’s just like cosmic.

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Indeed, beyond territorial boundaries, beyond religious divisions, from ancient time,

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Chinese people felt in their hearts a very natural connection with the heavens.

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People revere the heavens and the divine and believe that somewhere in the cosmos,

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there is a higher wisdom and that there is some magnificent Law guiding the circle of life,

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that our existence has a more profound meaning.

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Actually, the way of seeking wisdom from heaven is not so mysterious.

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Purify the heart, regulate the breathing, and refine oneself.

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The concept of self-cultivation was infused throughout ancient Chinese cultures.

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It could be seen across all professions and every level of society.

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Many of China's famous ancient artists were in fact, cultivators.

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The ancients said, through music, the depths can be seen, virtuous sound is music,

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the sound of moral excellence is music to the ears.

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They focused on inner cultivation.

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When the ancients played the zither, they were actually cultivating their hearts and minds

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even in today’s China, the society is eroded by atheism,

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this culture of cultivation dating back thousands of years has not vanished.

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In the […] of the city, a group of artist is reviving the tradition,

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calmly putting into practice the way of self-cultivation.

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[Jing Xian – Composer, Shen Yun Performing Arts] The main difference is Shen Yun approaches things from higher stand point.

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It has a higher spiritual level that is a divine nature.

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The ancient said, the Sage plays music in accordance with heaven.

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This was Chinese culture traditional approach.

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I used to be quite the bragger used to think I’m really something.

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Now I feel like I can’t brag at all.

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I realize that my self improvement is what's most important.

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I can’t be like I was in the past writing music for my personal fame and gain.

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Now I think more about what the audience truly needs.

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When I write, I’m now with the mindset of trying to find a harmony with heaven.

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[Patrick Swiatek – Violin, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] My first impression when I saw Shen Yun, I want to play there.

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[George Sullivan – French Horn, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] I had no idea what this was like when I came here,

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but I was just terribly moved. The culture is actually amazing.

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The ‘divine’ is just not my everyday vocabulary until I came here.

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And I see so much effort everywhere. It’s got to be Falun Dafa,

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the meditation. It is an amazing experience.

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I know because of that, its' improved my health, it improved my playing, it improved me as a person.

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I become more compassionate towards people.

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[Leatra Hillhouse – Oboe, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] everybody here is very genuine and it encourages you to become better.

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It encourages you to be a better person, to be a better musician.

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It makes you excited. It makes you proud to be a part of something like this.

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[Milen Nachev – Conductor, Shen Yun Symphony Orchestra] During concert, everybody around me is so deep inside of the music that I even don’t need to conduct.

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Just put my thoughts into the emotion and lead them with eyes.

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That’s, well, such a magical moment.

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[Kim Brown – Marketing Manager] At of the pureness of the soul is how they create beautiful arts, so I think it’s fascinating and you can tell.

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[Anita Swiatek – Concertmaster, Germany] Shen Yun must be getting help from above. It’s so powerful.

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Throughout our human kind's extensive history,

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the mission of art has long been to take those divine sounds and celestral melodies,

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and the deep inner wisdom behind them, and warm people's hearts.

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[Michael Burgos – IT professional] This is something that timeless that can be shared through our generation and to generations to come.

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[Lisa Sherman – Dietitian] I would absolutely recommend this show,

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not just to my friends but to my enemies too.

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It would help sweeten the whole world, help everybody to become more kind-hearted and

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more light-hearted and to see the world from that perspective of beauty.