Wu Fei & Shanir Blumenkranz

Together, Wu Fei and Shanir Ezra Blumenkranz testify to the magic of musical recombination, of putting two seemingly disparate elements together and finding excitement within the gap. Born in Beijing but now based in Nashville, Fei became a key member of New York’s improvisational scene two decades ago, releasing records on Tzadik and with Gyan Riley. It wasn’t just her mastery of the mighty curved guzheng that earned her attention but also her flexibility with the instrument, using its millennia-old history as a springboard for modern composition and improvisation. Likewise, Blumenkranz—born in Brooklyn, educated in Boston—became a key part of an improvisational scene anchored around John Zorn, playing bass and oud not only with Zorn but also with Jon Madof, Cyro Baptista, and Jamie Saft.

In 2019, Blumenkranz became a vital piece of Hello Gold Mountain, Fei’s symphony about Jewish refugees who found sanctuary in China during World War II. In the years since, they have slowly built a duo project, culminating in a riveting 2024 set at the Lincoln Center. During “Mountain Ivy,” as Fei plucked impressionistic patterns from her guzheng, Blumenkranz bounded between enormous percussive notes and gnarled bow scrapes on the double bass while Fei’s voice rose in response. Elsewhere, the dizzying lines of his oud interlaced with those of her guzheng, creating patterns that suggested light refracted through an endless series of crystals. There are few players quite like Fei or Blumenkranz, separately; together, they make a staggering tandem.