The Seattle Symphony and Music Director Xian Zhang Release Live Performances of Qigang Chen’s Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled) and L’éloignement, Out August 21

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First Seattle Symphony Media album with Music Director Xian Zhang highlights her commitment to championing music that bridges cultures

The live recording features sopranos Meng Meng, Mei Gui Zhang and Seattle-born Tess Altiveros, With Yang Jin (Pipa), Cathy Yang (Erhu) and Lucina Yue (Zheng)

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Seattle, WA – On August 21, 2026, the Seattle Symphony releases a live concert album featuring Chinese-French composer Qigang Chen’s Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled) and L’Éloignement, marking the first Seattle Symphony recording with Music Director Xian Zhang. Recorded before live audiences at Benaroya Hall, the album reflects Zhang’s commitment to championing composers whose music draws on diverse cultural traditions.

The centerpiece of the recording, Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled), was presented during Zhang’s inaugural season as Music Director in February 2026. A concert suite for orchestra, three sopranos and traditional Chinese instruments, the work blends the expressive traditions of Peking opera with contemporary Western orchestral writing. The recording features sopranos Meng Meng, Mei Gui Zhang and Seattle-born Tess Altiveros, together with Yang Jin on pipa, Cathy Yang on erhu and Lucina Yue on zheng. Completing the album is L’Éloignement, Chen’s poignant work for string orchestra, which Zhang first introduced to Seattle audiences while guest conducting the Symphony in 2023.

“Qigang Chen’s music has been deeply meaningful to me for many years,” said Zhang. “The way he blends Eastern and Western musical influences creates unique and colorful sound worlds. It was a joy to conduct and record his music with the Seattle Symphony, whose musicians brought extraordinary artistry and imagination to these performances. I am delighted that listeners will now have the chance to hear them and to discover, or rediscover, the beauty, emotion and richness of Qigang Chen’s music.”

Born in China and later settling in France, Qigang Chen studied with Olivier Messiaen — he was the legendary composer’s final pupil — before forging an internationally acclaimed career distinguished by his synthesis of Eastern and Western musical traditions. His music has been performed by leading orchestras around the world and celebrated for its vibrant orchestral color, emotional depth and cultural imagination.

Recorded live at Benaroya Hall and produced by the Seattle Symphony’s Director of Audio & Recording, Dmitriy Lipay, the album continues Seattle Symphony Media’s tradition of audiophile-quality recordings, capturing the orchestra’s acclaimed sound with exceptional clarity and depth. The Seattle Symphony has released more than 150 recordings, earning five GRAMMY® Awards and 27 GRAMMY® nominations.

The cover art is by award-winning Seattle-based photographer Steve Korn, from his “Ghosts” passion project, a series of images that explore movement and stillness via local ballet dancers shifting and jumping beneath colorful, rippling scarves — which, in this context, look like veils. This image features dancer Olivia Sander, who is currently based in Walnut Creek, California, but hails from Bainbridge Island, Washington. 

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Recording Details

Qigang Chen 
Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled), L'Éloignement 

Xian Zhang conductor
Meng Meng soprano
Mei Gui Zhang soprano
Tess Altiveros soprano
Yang Jin pipa
Cathy Yang erhu
Lucina Yue zheng
Seattle Symphony

Worldwide Release Date 
August 21, 2026

Label: Seattle Symphony Media
Catalog Number: SSM1029
Producer: Dmitriy Lipay

The Seattle Symphony and Music Director Xian Zhang present live performances of Qigang Chen’s Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled) and L’Éloignement, recorded before a live audience in the stunning acoustics of Benaroya Hall. Both works bridge Eastern and Western musical cultures while creating intriguing sound worlds of unexpected colors and textures.
 

Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled), L'Éloignement 
[1] Ingénue (Ingénue) …......................................... 03:31
[2] Pudique (Chaste) …........................................... 03:48
[3] Libertine (Libertine) …....................................... 02:42
[4] Sensible (Sensitive) …........................................ 03:27
[5] Tendre (Tender) …............................................. 06:02
[6] Jalouse (Jealous) …............................................ 01:57
[7] Mélancolique (Melancholic) ….......................... 05:13
[8] Hystérique (Hysterical) ….................................. 02:02
[9] Voluptueuse (Voluptuous) …............................. 10:00
[10]  L'Éloignement …..............................................15:01

TOTAL TIME …...................... 53:50 

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Xian Zhang|Conductor

In 2025/2026, GRAMMY® and Emmy Award-winning conductor Xian Zhang celebrated her first season as Music Director of the Seattle Symphony, where she has been a long-term collaborator since 2008. Zhang also marks her 10th season as Music Director of the New Jersey Symphony and first season as Principal Guest Conductor of the China NCPA Orchestra in Beijing. Following her tenure as Music Director of Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano (2009–2016), she continues as Conductor Emeritus. As a guest conductor, Zhang also appears regularly with Los Angeles Philharmonic and Philadelphia Orchestra. Her 2022 Deutsche Grammophon recording with the latter (Letters for The Future with Time for Three) won GRAMMY® awards for Best Contemporary Classical Composition (Kevin Puts’ Contact) and Best Classical Instrumental Solo. Other recent guest conducting highlights include the New York Philharmonic, National Arts Centre Ottawa, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Finnish National Opera, The Metropolitan Opera, Boston Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra, Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo, San Francisco Symphony, Montreal Symphony, Baltimore Symphony and Orchestra of St Luke’s.

Meng Meng|Soprano

Renowned Chinese soprano Meng Meng is a graduate of the China Conservatory of Music who studied under the famous vocal professor Zhu Yiwei and is currently on the faculty at Shaoyang University. Starting in 2002, she has performed in composer Qigang Chen’s major symphonic work, Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled), with orchestras in Hong Kong, Europe, the United States and at BBC Proms in London, as well as three concerts at Carnegie Hall among many other leading concert halls and opera houses in Cairo and Sydney. She has collaborated with world famous conductors, including Yu Long, Muhai Tang, Zhang Guoyong, Zhang Yi, Edo de Waart, Yang Yang, Xian Zhang and more. In 2018, Meng Meng performed in Chen’s choral-orchestral work, Jiang Tcheng Tse.

Tess Altiveros|Soprano

Tess Altiveros is highly sought after in opera houses and concert halls alike. A Seattle-born artist, Altiveros frequently performs with the Seattle Symphony and Seattle Opera. Operatic roles include Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro (Opera Idaho, Opera Montana, Kentucky Opera), Mimì in La Bohème (Opera Montana) and Female Soldier in The Falling and the Rising (Des Moines Metro Opera, Arizona Opera, Seattle Opera, Opera Montana and Opera Memphis). Recent concert appearances include Bach’s St Matthew Passion with Dame Jane Glover, John Muehleisen’s Borders at Carnegie Hall and João Guilherme Ripper’s Cinco Poemas de Vinicius de Moraes with the Seattle Symphony.

Mei Gui Zhang|Soprano

Chinese soprano Mei Gui Zhang, from Chengdu in Sichuan Province, was born into a musical family, studied at Sichuan Conservatory of Music, Shanghai Conservatory of Music and the Mannes School of Music in New York City, and received professional training at the Lindemann Young Artist Development Program at the Metropolitan Opera. A sought-after performer on both opera and concert stages, Zhang has appeared several times at the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, New York Philharmonic, Verbier Festival, Philadelphia Orchestra and more. She recently completed a recital tour in China, performing a program that combined traditional Chinese songs, Lieder and Chanson.

Yang Jin|Pipa

Yang Jin is a leading pipa soloist of her generation and winner of the Chinese Golden Bell Award for Music, China’s highest national honor. She has performed with the Seattle Symphony, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, and is a collaborator with Silkroad Ensemble. Dedicated to new music, she has commissioned and premiered chamber music for pipa by leading contemporary composers. Jin is Visiting Professor at Bard College Conservatory of Music and co-founder of the Chinese Musicians Association of North America.

Cathy Yang|Erhu

Cathy Yang is an internationally renowned erhu virtuoso and currently Artist-in-Residence at the University of Delaware. She has received major honors, including the Gold Prize in the Longvin Cup competition. She performed twice for former President Joe Biden and collaborated with cellist Yo-Yo Ma and the National Symphony Orchestra, with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and most recently the Seattle Symphony in Iris Dévoilée (Iris Unveiled) under Music Director Xian Zhang (2026). She has performed at The United Nations Headquarters, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center and the City Hall Concert Hall in Hong Kong, and has been heard around the world on China’s most watched TV station: CCTV.

Lucina Yue|Zheng

Lucina Yue is based in New York City. Among the new generation, she is a leading figure in the globalization of the ancient Chinese plucked string instrument konghou and a lineage holder of the Qin zheng tradition. She holds a Master’s in Asian Cultural Studies and Music Performance. She is a recipient of the New York Artist Grants and in 2025, she was personally awarded the Asian Contribution Medal by then-New York City Mayor Eric Adams. In 2018, Yue became the first Chinese musician to perform a solo at Madison Square Garden and the first konghou virtuoso to appear at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.

Seattle Symphony

Under the leadership of Music Director Xian Zhang, the Seattle Symphony unleashes the power of music, brings people together and lifts the human spirit. Recognized as one of the “most vital American orchestras” (NPR), the Seattle Symphony is internationally acclaimed for its inventive programming, community-minded initiatives and superb recordings on the Seattle Symphony Media label. With a strong commitment to new music and a legacy of over 150 recordings, the orchestra has won five GRAMMY Awards, 27 GRAMMY nominations, two Emmy Awards and was named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. The Symphony performs in Benaroya Hall in the heart of downtown Seattle from September through July, reaching over 500,000 people annually through live performances and radio broadcasts.

Benaroya Hall

Benaroya Hall, the home of the Seattle Symphony, is located in downtown Seattle. Opened in 1998, Benaroya Hall is the most-visited performing arts venue in Seattle. It has received numerous awards, including a 2001 American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Honor Award for outstanding architecture. Benaroya Hall has three versatile performance venues, the S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall and Octave 9: Raisbeck Music Center, all renowned for their pristine acoustics, luxurious design and prime location. For additional information, including rental information and event listings, visit benaroyahall.org.

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Music Director Xian Zhang is generously sponsored by Dr. and Mrs. Charles and Lisa Simonyi and an anonymous donor.

Xian Zhang’s position is generously underwritten as the Harriet Overton Stimson Music Director.

The Seattle Symphony’s 2026 performances of Iris Dévoilée were generously sponsored by an anonymous donor.

Xian Zhang’s 2023 performances of L’Éloignement with the Seattle Symphony were generously sponsored by Patricia Tall-Takacs and Gary Takacs, and Susan Y. Buske.

The Seattle Symphony is grateful to Joan S. Watjen for her generous support of Seattle Symphony Media, in memory of Craig M. Watjen.