Various Artists - Calypso Kings & Pink Gin / Various - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

This album features three types of the most popular Chines lutes The tenor ruan, the bass ruan, and the pipa with Xu Pingxin providing accompaniment on the yangqin and drum. The Ruan are a family of long-necked, round-bodied, plucked lutes with four strings. The ruan is an indigenous instrument of China with a history of more than 2000 years. It is recorded in many ancient Chinese literary works. In recent decades it has developed into a family of three types an alto, tenor, and a bass. Ms. Miao Xiaoyun is a musician of outstanding virtuosity and versatility. She plays several types of Chinese lutes, including tenor ruan, bass ruan, and pipa. Born in Beijing, Ms. Miao started to learn various plucked instruments at an early age with renowned teachers in China, among them Wang Fandi, Wang Zhongbing, and Pan Yuzhang. In 1978 she won a competition for the entrance examination to the Central Conservatoire of Music in Beijing. Upon graduation in 1982, she became the first teacher in the China Conservatoire of Music to establish the ruan as a major instrument. She has toured widely, both in China and abroad, giving many concerts.

Juxtaposing the musical talents of vocalists Bomber, Wrangler, Killer and Small Island Pride, the art of the 1950s Trinidadian calypso resonates on this recording. These witty songs provide a lesson in picong, the game of teasing intrinsic to the genre, from these crowned Calypso Kings.

According to the original liner notes, this selection of 1930s Trinidadian calypso is colorful and exuberant and richly expressive and often hilariously funny. From tales of Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie to dancer Bojangles Robinson's million dollar feet, these songs offer social commentary through calypso's inimitable raffish rhymes.