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Twelve Girls Band music biography continued...

ensemble, he determined that it should consist of 12 members because in ancient Chinese mythology it's the 12 jinchai (12 hairpins) that represent womanhood. Hand picked, each member is in her twenties and is conservatory trained and a veteran of top orchestras, including the China Academy of Music, the Chinese National Orchestra and the Central Conservatory of Music. All members are multi-instrumentalists, and perform with classic instruments such as the gu zheng (ancient zither with movable bridges and 16-25 strings) pipa (four-stringed lute with pear shaped body) yang qin (Chinese hammered dulcimer with a near-square soundboard), ehru (two stringed Chinese fiddle) and dizi (bamboo flute) along with other traditional instruments. For inspiration, The Twelve Girls Band turned to the art of Yue Fang, the female ensembles that played in the royal courts of the Tang Dynasty, centuries ago. By playing modern arrangements on classical instruments, Twelve Girls Band crafted something unique in world music—a sort of pop sound meets classical Chinese artistry.



The group debuted their modern compositions on ancient instruments in China and Japan during the Northern summer of 2003. Word of mouth spread, show after show was sold-out, and in Japan their debut album topped the charts for 30 weeks. Their self-titled debut was released in North America in August 2004 with cover versions of Coldplay's "Clocks" and Enya's "Only Time" included, and a massive television advertising campaign announcing the group's arrival. In the same year they were named "International Artist of the Year" at the Japan Golden Disc Award ceremonies. Past recipients of this honorary award include Madonna, Celine Dion and Mariah Carey.
Considering the global success of crossover artists like Enya, The Buena Vista Social Club and Riverdance, there's every reason to expect the exhilarating style of the Twelve Girls Band to strike a similar chord the world over. Their talent, passion and enthusiasm will no doubt make this a certainty.