Buddah Passion

Decca releases the world-premiere recording of this epic choral work, composed and conducted by the OSCAR, Grammy and BAFTA award-winning and UNESCO Global Goodwill Ambassador Tan Dun. The monumental work, involving massed choirs, large orchestra, six percussionists and an array of soloists including indigenous singers, traditional Chinese instruments and a dancing pipa player, is the first such ‘Passion’ on a Buddhist rather than Christian narrative.

Inspired by a visit to the vast myriad of ancient caves containing countless musical murals in the Dunhuang desert: “these musical paintings depict more than four thousand musical instruments, three thousand musicians and five hundred orchestras”, said Tan Dan. “I was so deeply moved that I could almost hear the sounds emanating from the murals”. After years of research, composing, and striving to bring the murals to life, Buddha Passion was completed in 2019. Set at the foot of the Himalayas and inspired by Chinese and Sanskrit texts, the captivating and life-affirming score fuses the ancient wisdom of Buddhism with the musical tradition of JS Bach’s Passions, featuring hypnotic orchestral textures and Eastern vocal techniques.