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| All-woman ensemble plays classical, world and folk on traditional acoustic Chinese instruments. Coldplay's Clocks, Enya's Only Time, more. |
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| 1 Miracle |
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| 2 Clocks |
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| 3 Liu San Jie |
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| 4 Earthly Stars (Unsung Heroes) |
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| 5 Freedom |
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| 6 Shangri-La |
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| 7 Reel Around the Sun |
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| 8 A Girl's Dream |
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| 9 Forbidden City |
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| 10 The Great Valley |
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| 11 Alamuhan |
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| 12 Mountains and Rivers |
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| 13 Only Time |
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| 14 New Classicism: Symphony No. 40. In G Minor First Movement Molto ... |
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| 15 [DVD] |
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Album Review
The CD with packed-in DVD format is perfect for the flashy Twelve Girls Band, the band that plays Western pop with traditional Chinese instruments. Before the album hit, late-night television was filled with ads for the group. The nearly inescapable ads featured a breathy announcer singing the mystical and enchanting praises of the band. On tracks like the gentle "Liu San Jie" and the wistful "A Girl'S Dream," they are enchanting, but Twelve Girls Band excel when it comes to excitement. Their uplifting version of Coldplay's "Clocks" is the big selling point, but it's the driving "Freedom" that really showcase's the band's tight, fast playing. The late-night ads also play up the blending of Western and Eastern musics, but "Eastern Energy" is more about Western music being played on Eastern instruments than any sort of blending. It works to the listener's benefit since these women are obvious lovers of Western pop; it comes through in their enthusiasm. A Western-based orchestra backs their 12 traditional instruments, and there's not a dissonant speck of noise to be found. Packing in the DVD gives you just enough video of the band's live show, a Riverdance-styled spectacle. It's an exciting enough video to buy tickets when they come to town and the audio portion makes a nice souvenir. The television ads and press releases throw their hyperbole at the thin mystical side of the band, but they would've been on-point if they just had said "thrilling". ~ David Jeffries, All Music Guide
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• Biography
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