The music department held a recital entitled ‘LOVE… From Opera’ on Jan. 27 in Ruth Taylor Recital Hall that explored different forms of love through opera. Three professors, including Chia-Wei Lee, professor of music, organized the concert as part of the department’s spring events.
Alongside Taiwanese native Lee, the production featured two other Taiwanese musicians: Pei-Chi Hong, professor of piano at Tainan National University of the Arts, and Ming-Fang Lo, professor of voice at Chung Yuan Christian University.
The concert began with Mozart’s composition from Don Giovanni, “La ci darem la mano,” which features a passionate interaction between a wealthy man and a peasant girl. Lee, a baritone, performed the part of the man, with soprano Lo as the girl he attempts to seduce.
“These works explore multiple dimensions of love, including friendship, seduction, past passion and parenthood,” Lee wrote in an email interview. “The audience will gain insight into each composer’s distinctive techniques for portraying love, as well as how musical expression shapes the emotional experience and interpretive choices of the performance.”
Hong, a pianist, played collaboratively during the event. Her performance channelled what she called the “colors” and sounds of an orchestra on the piano. Each song encapsulated the instruments of a full orchestra, which Hong performed on the piano.
“Even though you don’t know the meaning of the words, if you hear the color, or the harmony or the vibration, then your heart will know,” Hong said.
The mood altered depending on the composition’s story. Lee performed a Giuseppe Verdi baritone aria, a solo piece called “Pari Siamo,” as a man terrorized by the curse he was put under. The music circulated in a series of crescendos and decrescendos, which Lee intended to showcase the anger and grief of a reflective man.
“The composer has his own ideas about the opera or the story. Performers have their own stories about the same opera, sometimes they are not the same,” Lee said. “We need to use a bridge to involve both [parties] and send it to the audience.”
One of the last songs, a piece by Verdi, entitled “Madamigella Valery,” created a discourse between Lee and Lo: A young fallen woman sacrifices her love to protect a man’s reputation. The performers danced and sang a waltz, blending their voices to portray mutual understanding between the pair. Hong accompanied on the piano, mimicking a conversation alongside the singers.
Onstage, Lo performed actions in response to the music she was singing. Through music, she said that she allows herself to get into the character and express the feelings of her operatic persona.
“It’s through the music in motion,” Lo said. “Including music, language and style altogether to feel the love.”
The music department regularly sends music development and vocal students to Asian countries to do exchange concerts with local universities in Taiwan, according to Lee, who has been involved in the program for over 20 years. The trio will perform in Taiwan in the spring alongside student guests.
*This article was updated Feb. 4, 2026.
