16 | Wednesday, October 14, 2020 HONG KONG EDITION | CHINA DAILY YOUTH Words of encouragement
Music star Gong Linna helps teachers find their voice as they learn uplifting songs based on classic Chinese poems to pass down to their students, Chen Nan reports.
hen a chorus consist Chinese poems is a great way to intro ing of 31 music teach duce traditional Chinese culture to ers performs the song, the young students,” says Lin. Tan Te, or Disturbed, “I cannot wait to apply what I’ve GongW Linna, who originally per learned with Gong during the past formed the song 10 years ago, laughs few months to my classes and just to and joins them onstage. see what the response would be like,” The song means a lot to Gong. says Lin, who adds that she has been Written by her German husband, drawn to traditional Chinese culture songwriter Robert Zollitsch, who is since childhood. also known as Lao Luo in China, the song brought Gong into the lime Growing passion light when it was released online in There is a high demand for music 2010. Her powerful voice, wide vocal education among her students and range and solid singing technique their parents, since the benefits of made Gong a sensation on the inter art education have become more net. widely recognized, according to Lin, However, this is the first time that who was also impressed by Gong’s Tan Te has been turned into a choral passion for music. “With her celebri song, which was adapted by Zol ty status, she enjoys sharing her litsch himself just for the music knowledge about music and helping teachers’ chorus. He replaced the us to improve our singing skills,” traditional Chinese musical instru says Lin. ments, such as sheng (Chinese wind Gong, who started singing at the instrument), bamboo flute and age of 5, was born and raised in Gui yangqin (Chinese dulcimer), with yang, capital of Southwest China’s human voices singing different Guizhou province. With Guiyang parts. being home to numerous ethnic The performance, staged in Bei groups, Gong would often listen to jing on Oct 9, marks the end of a their folk songs and imitate their fiveday music education program dances. It was probably that early initiated by Gong, which seeks to exposure that helped mold her dis inspire joy and love for singing Chi tinctive voice and style. nese songs based on classic poems. She was enrolled to study folk The 31 music teachers were music at the China Conservatory of trained by Gong, alongside other Music in Beijing at 16, and she held musical experts, including professor her first solo concert in 1999, per Wang Anguo from Capital Normal forming with the China National University, musicologist Zhao Traditional Orchestra, one of the Zhongming, sheng player Nie Yun most prestigious traditional music lei, who works with the Jingju Thea orchestras in the country. tre Company of Beijing, as well as In 2000, she won as one of the top authorities in the field of traditional winners in a Chinese national sing Chinese poetry, such as Gu Qian, a ing competition and gradually PhD in ancient Chinese literature. became a popular figure, perform Gong says: “I’ve been keen on ing at various galas. popularizing Chinese songs adapted After marrying Zollitsch, Gong from traditional Chinese poems, has been dedicated to her own and promoting singing techniques exploration of “new Chinese art I’ve learned from Chinese ethnic music”, which aims at preserving the groups. These music teachers can essence of traditional Chinese folk now pass on the knowledge to their music in new forms. students, mostly teenagers, who will The couple has released songs form our future audiences.” Clockwise from top: Gong Linna (hand raised) sings with 31 music teachers (and one of their daughters) in Beijing on Oct 9 to mark a based on Chinese poems that The program, which is supported music education program highlighting songs based on classic poems, initiated by Gong. Their performance is accompanied with depict the 24 solar terms, a tradi by the Beijing Cultural and Arts traditional instruments, such as guqin. Nie Yunlei, a sheng player and also one of the instructors, performs. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY tional Chinese calendar that sum Fund, was scheduled to start earlier marizes different seasonal this year, but was postponed to April phenomena. due to the coronavirus pandemic. In sing the song but also shared the outbreak, Gong says. “Even though During the first half of this year, April, Gong launched an online song with their own students. we couldn’t go outside to enjoy the they also developed a new album course to teach the first song, a one Zhu Jinxiang, a music teacher beautiful spring weather, we sang inspired by Shan Hai Jing, or The minute piece titled Happy Song, from Beijing No 101 High School, Combining music with traditional Chinese the song to relieve some of our nega Classic of Mountains and Seas, a which was written by Zollitsch and recalls that when he learned to sing poems is a great way to introduce tive emotions.” 2,000yearold collection of mythic released in 2013. Happy Song, he felt relaxed and joy One of those attending Gong’s geography, animals and folklore. “It was not a song adapted from ful. He also taught his students to traditional Chinese culture to the young music education program is Lin Gong’s future plan includes Chinese poems, but I decided to sing the song, during the period students. I cannot wait to apply what Jing, who has been teaching music launching more training programs have it open the online course as a when all of his classes were taking at Yongfeng School affiliated to for music teachers, especially those warmup to start the program in an place online. I’ve learned with Gong ... to my classes...” Tsinghua University High School who teach students with special uplifting way,” Gong recalls. “We all “We ended up spending around Lin Jing, a music teacher participating in Gong Linna’s program for 20 years. Lin teaches the stu needs. shared similar emotions, such as eight months working from home. dents — mostly under 12 years old “I am looking forward to seeing anxiety, depression and fear, when The sudden change made me anx — not only how to sing, but also the music teachers’ students per the viral outbreak began earlier this ious. However, thanks to music, I Chinese poems by her husband, Haoran. The poem describes the how to play guqin (Chinese zither), form the songs. That’s how those year. I wanted to cheer people up gradually calmed down and found many of which have cheerful and observations and thoughts of the a sevenstringed traditional Chi Chinese songs are passed on,” says with Happy Song.” my own tempo,” says Zhu. encouraging lyrics. poet upon waking up on a pleasant nese instrument with a history Gong. She didn’t expect the response to With the musical training pro One of the songs, Spring Dawn, is spring morning. stretching back more than 3,000 be so unanimously positive. The gram, Gong taught more songs based on a Tang Dynasty (618907) When this spring came, people years. Contact the writer at music teachers not only learned to that were adapted from traditional poem of the same title by Meng stayed at home due to the COVID19 “Combining music with traditional [email protected] Chorus festival in tune with the public in challenging times
By CHEN NAN Conservatory and Institute. tiated programs offering training to “People need music, especially children living in povertystricken It’s not difficult to sing the praises when facing the mutual challenge areas of the country. This year, vet of the China International Chorus brought about by the coronavirus eran Chinese mezzosoprano Li Ke Festival. Established in 1992, it is the pandemic,” says Jin Chengzhi, one joined the program. Li has been largest festival of its kind in the of the cohosts of the opening gala. devoted to teaching choral singing country and gathers choirs from Jin is also the artistic director and to children living in Jingle county, both home and abroad in Beijing. conductor of the Shanghai Rainbow Xinzhou city of North China’s However, the pandemic, as with so Indoor Chorus, which is credited Shanxi province. much of public life, has forced the with popularizing the art form in Li, a former singer with the China festival, held every two years, to the country and known for its hits, National Symphony Orchestra, was retune its approach. This year it such as Where On Earth Did You one of the lead singers when con goes online. Leave the Key to My Apartment, ductor Seiji Ozawa and the Boston On Oct 5, the curtain was raised Zhang Shichao? and The Sofa Is So Symphony Orchestra performed on the 15th iteration of the festival Far. The choir’s humorous style has Beethoven’s Symphony No 9 in D with an opening gala, which fea attracted legions of fans. minor, Ode to Joy, in China in 1979. tured more than 20 international International choirs also per Since 2017, Li has traveled to Jin choirs, and attracted in excess of 12 formed during the opening gala, gle county, more than 500 kilome million viewers. More than 450 including the Vienna Boys’ Choir ters from the capital, to give music choirs applied to participate in the and Schola Cantorum of Oxford, a The children’s choir affiliated to the National Centre for the Performing Arts of China sings on the Great courses to children and teachers. festival, including 340 from across British chamber vocal ensemble. Wall in Beijing. It is among the 450odd choirs that attended the China International Chorus Festival. She has helped set up two choirs for China. Around 100 events, such as Chinese choirs that sang included a PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY the county — an adult’s and a chil seminars, competitions, master children’s choir from Beijing No 171 dren’s choir — both of which com classes and choral showcases will Middle School, and the Beijing Phil peted in this year’s China take place online until Oct 31. harmonic Choir. currently living in. charge of a choral program. Now what I can do and what is possible”. International Chorus Festival and Throughout the festival, there will This year, the festival pays tribute “One of the most difficult aspects we’ve lost control of much of that.” “One of the reasons that I contin qualified for the final round of the be directorial master classes from to the people who fought on the of dealing with this time of quaran Having just got through COVID ue to stay strong in this work is that I competition. the likes of Xu Dechang, conductor front line against COVID19. tine, other than the immediate 19 himself, as did his wife, who had know that we all need each other in “Art education is an important of the children’s choir of Beijing No Tim Sharp, executive director of health threat, has been our loss of to go to the hospital with pneumo our network. We need to support part of the poverty alleviation cam 171 Middle School; Yan Baoling, con the American Choral Directors control,” Sharp says. nia, Sharp recalls that “it was a very each other,” Sharp says. “Music can paign. Music is a universal language ductor, composer and professor at Association and the vicepresident “As choral directors, we are gener tough time for us and it was a scary give people infinite hope for a better and it plants the seed of art in those the Zhejiang Conservatory of Music; for the International Federation for ally ‘control freaks’, which goes time”, but they “survived it” and are future. Music can offer people inspi children’s hearts,” says Li, 68, who and music educator Michalis Pat Choral Music, highlights the partic along with our job. We are in charge now back to working at home, rational power.” has donated two pianos to schools seas, director of the Greek Kodaly ular challenges of the times we are of a lot of singers and we are in which gives him “a new sense of For a decade, the festival has ini in Jingle county.