Wow! This video is just inspiring. It is about Liu Wei, a contestant on “China’s Got Talent.” He is going to play “Marriage D’amour” without hands. He lost his arms at 10 from an accident. I like this take by Lyndsey Parker over at Yahoo Music blogs: “Armless Pianist Liu Wei Defies Odds On ‘China’s Got Talent’.” I will try to not complain about anything in my life in the next 10 days.
(If you are inside China, your may want the same version hosted on Tudou).
This is 张燕 (Zhang Yan) performing “夜来香,” a modern Chinese classic. I can’t quite put my finger on why I think this video is really good – perhaps the confidence projected by 张燕. In English, “夜来香” means “evening primrose,” a flower that opens in the evening. The Chinese characters literally mean “fragrance of the night.” By the backdrop, many of you will recognize this is early 1900′s music – of the same variety in Shanghai nightclubs that time. The microphone is a big give-away. “夜来香” was actually first performed in the 1940′s by Yoshiko Yamaguchi. (Click here for the original.)
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在那遥远的地方 (In That Distant Place) is a very popular folk song written in 1939. Over the years, this song has taken on many forms. Chinese, old or young, all know it. Below is a composition by 马九越 using the pipa, dizi, and erhu instruments.
Occasionally I get asked what are some Chinese values. This is an example, I think. My grandparents, my parents, and people of my generation all know this song well. If you look around China, there is this pattern of cross generational connection. Reaching back and smoothing out the generational gap within society is the value. “In that distant place” in Chinese “New Age” style:
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It is a patriotic song, as the title should make it all apparent – “Dear Chinese People.” I liked this video for its imagery. The majority of the Chinese people are proud and very forward looking for the progress China has made in the last three decades. This video sums up that sentiment rather well. I know this type of videos may not sit well with many Westerners – because their media tells them every day everything is wrong with their society or everyone outside of their national borders are bad. Especially with the global economic crisis, Westerners seem unable to celebrate anymore. (Ok, unless if you are the Spaniards who have just won the World Cup, in which case the party is still going strong.) So, the video offers this contrast.
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If there is a music that can make one’s soul weep, 二泉映月 (Moon Reflected on Second Spring) is it. It was composed and played by 华彦钧 (Huà Yànjūn), more commonly known as 阿炳 (“Blind” Abing), who lived during one of the most tumultuous periods of modern Chinese history. Only with the most miserable human condition could someone make this music. Famous Japanese conductor, Seiji Ozawa was quoted in Chinese, “此曲只应跪听” which means this piece should be heard while kneeling down.
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What happens when you mesh up American style rap with an opera written roughly 500 years ago? This song, “在梅边” (“Beside the Plum Blossom”) by 王力宏 (Wang LiHong) draws inspiration from 牡丹亭 (The Peony Pavilion), a play written by Tang Xianzu during the Ming Dynasty(1368 to 1644) using the 昆曲 (Kunqu) style opera and music.
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China has 56 ethnic groups. They include Russians, Mongols, Uyghurs, Koreans, and many others. Here is a modern Chinese take on all of them: 中华大家庭 (the Big Chinese Family). The lyrics actually enumerate the groups individually.
Chinese culture is rich and amazing. Did you know that the main melody at the 2008 Beijing Olympics medal ceremonies were composed using only musical instruments that were made 2,450 years ago? That melody was a version of “茉莉花” or “Jasmine Flower.” It was adapted by famous Chinese composer Tan Dun and Wang Hesheng (of the Chinese Army orchestra) using the ancient instruments for the 2008 Olympics medal ceremonies. According to this China Daily article, “Classical piece will ring in ears of winners“:
“The main melody, which Tan described as “glorious, heartwarming and full of respect”, was recorded using the digital recording of a 2,450-year-old bell set excavated from a site in Hubei.”
For the last two centuries, the Chinese psyche has been defined in large part by the humiliations and sufferings brought about by foreigners (see the Opium War, the Second Opium War, and the Nanjing Massacre). After the founding of the current Peoples Republic of China, it was the disastrous policies of the Cultural Revolution and the Great Leap Forward which furthered that wound. The latter were the Chinese inflicting pain onto themselves.
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Everyone knows China is going through an industrial revolution right now. In developed countries such as the U.S., this took place in the late 19th century. The ratio between the number of rural and urban residents basically swapped because industrialization freed the bulk of the population from having to work in the fields to produce food for all. This phenomenon is occurring in China right now with her massive GDP growth in the last three decades. Despite the hundreds of millions of people having moved to urban areas, the number of Chinese citizens residing in the rural areas is still staggering – 750 million. If the final ratio is similar to other developed countries (which is likely), the scale of this population movement in the coming decades is mind-numbing. Imagine one billion people on the move in only a few decades!
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Panda loves bamboo, and so did ancient Chinese musicians. Here is an image of a ceramic xiao (箫) player excavated from an Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) tomb in Sichuan province (also home to pandas). The dizi (笛子) is held horizontally. Both are made of bamboo. What do you get when you add the Mongolian morin khurr to the mix? Here is a composition involving these instruments: “梦回鄂尔多斯 (Dreaming Ordus).” Ordus (鄂尔多斯) is a city in Inner Mongolia, China. |
It’s not often a guy working on his PhD in theoretical computer science is also one of the hottest Chinese DJs in North America, but there’s always an exception and Louis Yu (余雷) fits that role. Originally from Guilin, China, he’s currently in Vancouver, Canada studying at the University of Victoria while also doing a weekly podcast featuring world indie music.
And where can you find his 30 minute weekly podcast? It’s right here on www.wooozy.cn where you can catch this week’s show plus access the archive for all previous editions once you’re hooked. The difference with Louis’ show is that all the introductions are in Mandarin rather than English. It’s his way to bring a new style of music to an audience more familiar with Asian pop in a easy to digest manner. Starting in September, he’ll be switching to a show highlighting an equal balance of both Western & Chinese music.
Lou was kind enough to share his thoughts on China’s current music scene. As he is a Chinese expat very familiar with indie music throughout the world, I felt his opinions would be a nice contrast to the western voices we’ve heard reporting from China.
Few years ago I visited Chengdu and drove all the way to Jiuzhaigou (九寨沟). I got a chance to see the pristine side of Sichuan province and a number of local performances. I stumbled upon this music video by Tibetan Chinese singer, Kelsang Metok (格桑梅朵), “Falling in Love with Jiuzhaigou (九寨沟).” It gives a great intro to that region and reminded me of many things I saw during that trip.
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We’ve done some posts on China and Taiwan music in the past, but those were about the general music scene. Today I’d like to feature two videos created by Brendan Madden, who lives in Qingdao, is a teacher and member of the band Dama Llamas, and keeps up with the scene in northern China. I’ll also feature a few other bands you might not know, and some comments about where I think things are headed.
These two mini-documentaries show the trials and tribulations of trying to establish modern music venues in China. So far, the audience has too many non-Chinese expats along with too few locals, though locals form most of the bands themselves. Right now, Beijing is the hot spot in northern China with the most popular bands in the country. Outside of Beijing, legitimate venues are hard to come by and the money isn’t very lucrative. In these places, rock n’ roll comes strictly from the heart.
There’s a new phenomenon sweeping China. Back in January on a Chinese web page, a new video made its way from there into the hearts of internet users all across the country, spawning a wave of related items such as cartoons, documentaries and grass-mud horse dolls.
Heart Sutra: Calligraphy by Wendy Lee
The San Diego Chinese Art Society recently presented the Thirteenth Annual San Diego International Music & Arts Festival. Sometimes we tend to forget about Chinese who have emigrated to other countries but continue to keep in touch with their culture in a new environment. The San Diego Chinese community has many organizations dedicated to keeping their ancestral culture alive, and the events these organizations hold are supported not just by Chinese Americans but by the San Diego residents from all ethnic groups.
We covered China’s underground music scene in a previous thread and with the new year approaching, I wanted to introduce some alternative artists from Taiwan. I’m sure everyone already knows the most popular Mando-pop stars, so here are a few that are a little less known. Most of these musicians either made their debuts or saw an upsurge in their popularity over the course of 2008. An article I read recently in the Taipei Times was the initial catalyst in my search for finding newer artists.
Chinese culture has undergone tremendous change in the last 20 years. We tend to notice the big events: Massive new skyscrapers, world class airports, new symphony halls, the Olympic Games, 5 star hotels and restaurants, etc. But what we might not see is that below the surface, there are other changes taking place.
China has developed an exciting indie music scene throughout the country. Though strongest in Beijing, excellent bands have appeared in Shanghai, Guangzhou and other parts of the country. Though there is a huge pop music industry with many very popular singers, these are acts that are less known but have developed a core following among the young. I’d like to introduce you to a few bands and hear about others you know that you can share with us. Follow the links to their myspace sites and the songs will usually play automatically. For the Neocha site which is in China, you need to click on the “play” button. I’ve included descriptions of each band either from the web or from my own knowledge. Read more…
A few weeks ago, accusations and charges of fakery in the Opening Ceremony flew in the Western media like hotcakes when it was discovered that two Chinese girls had participated in performance of the “Hymn to the Motherland” in the Opening Ceremony. We had a discussion here a few weeks ago.
Well – a few days ago, it was found out that the Australians also faked – not just one signer – but the entire orchestra! I thought this would make for an entertaining read.
We don’t need to get into the politics again… but I just wanted to follow up in case some of you missed the story…
The Olympics are over (except for the Paralympics, that is) and people have trickled out of Beijing, but still in their heads and mine is probably this catchy (some say annoying) song that was sung by an ensemble of veritable who’s-who in today’s Chinese popular music world. Chinese people seem to really like this kind of qunxing (群星) or star-ensemble singing, where phrases are sung by their favorite stars.
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