Enlisting
2020
/
Orchestra / Large Ensemble (7+ players)
Program Notes
Enlisting sets a poem of the same title by Yang Jiong (650-c.695), a poet of the Tang Dynasty. The poem is a visceral call-to-arms full of flashing imagery of wartime and tumult. I sought to create sonic parallels of these stark images in sound, fixating at times on the intensity of conflict and the tense stillness of its shadow.
'I wanted to get as close to the source as possible and let the poem stand on its own legs'
China Daily
Then came arguably the most operatic of pieces in the form of American composer Nicholas Bentz’s interpretation of Yang Jiong’s 'Enlisting.' Written for two baritones and a bass, the piece’s thick orchestral and forward drive not only created a powerful visualization of the drive toward war, but featured exquisite vocal writing
OperaWire
Performance history
December 14, 2025
Chengdu, China
Chengdu Symphony Orchestra
Chengdu Concert Hall
Echoes of Ancient Tang Poems
Chen Lin, conductor
December 5, 2025
Guiyang, China
Guiyang Symphony Orchestra
Guiyang Grand Theater
Echoes of Ancient Tang Poems
Yang Yang, conductor
January 7, 2023
Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia Orchestra
Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center
Echoes of Ancient Tang Poems
Lio Kuokman, conductor
January 6, 2023
Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia Orchestra
Verizon Hall, Kimmel Center
Echoes of Ancient Tang Poems
Lio Kuokman, conductor
November 24, 2020
Suzhou, China
Suzhou Symphony
Suzhou Concert Hall
Echoes of Ancient Tang Poems
Lin Daye, conductor
