6-wire world music ensemble biography

6-wire is inspired by the historical connection between the erhu, the Chinese 2-stringed violin, and the 4-stringed violin – both essential leading instruments in the East and West. As a Chamber Music America grantee with unique instrumentation, the Delaware-based world music ensemble is a site-specific, pioneering American ensemble featuring 8 core members that mix traditional world music with pop and jazz elements.

Founded and directed by the award-winning Chinese-American violinist, composer and producer Xiang Gao, 6-wire celebrates diversity in performance, weaves stories and context into their concerts, and transforms how live instrumental music is experienced.

6-wire offers the options of performing entirely on acoustic instruments or with their own wireless sound system and cutting edge electronic sound libraries designed by sound engineers exclusively for the ensemble. For select concert venues, 6-wire features the circular PianoArc seen during Lady Gaga’s Super Bowl halftime show.

Ensemble-in-residence at the University of Delaware since 2010, 6-wire performs internationally in world music concerts, new music festivals, university concert series, community concerts, and for large TV and outdoor events to fulfill its mission: to promote cultural exchange while attracting new audiences with unique repertoire and sounds from around the world. With solid training and professional experience in styles from western classical to pop, 6-wire draws people of all ages to classical and world music concerts.

6-wire’s current concert project, “Conflict Connections”, includes pre/post concert lectures promoting world peace and cultural understanding, bringing artists and musical styles from historically conflicting regions/countries together on stage. Featured collaborators from Iran, Syria, India, Pakistan, China, Afghanistan, Japan, Korea, Israel, Palestine, Latin America and the U.S., include many Grammy-winning master musicians and elite virtuosi such as Sandeep Das (Indian tabla drums), E Shawn Qaissaunee (Afghan dutar lute), Mike Penny (Japanese shamisen lute), Wu Tong (Chinese mouth organ and vocalist), and Chen Zimbalista (Israeli percussionist and conductor) among others.

Grammy-winning sound engineer Andreas Meyer produced 6-wire’s new Conflict Connections album.