18 | Monday, May 11, 2020 HONG KONG EDITION | CHINA DAILY LIFE
hinese singer Gong Linna like telling stories,” Li told Gong. has been forced to cancel or “When she sang, her voice was postpone all of her upcom like wind blowing in my face, fresh ing shows due to the coro and soothing. I learned so much Cnavirus pandemic, including an from her, which was beyond my April concert at Stanford University Journey to expectation,” recalls Gong. in the United States, which has been During her trip to Midu, Gong postponed until early 2021. also met 71yearold Li Longying, a Since January, the singer has been regionallevel inheritor of intangible staying at her home in Dali, South cultural heritage, who sings Hua west China’s Yunnan province, deng Opera, and 77yearold Li where she has had lots of time to Shouchang, a veteran performer read books and listen to music. discover folk and composer of the opera form, When she opened the book, Col who heads a local troupe. lection of Chinese Folk Music, writ Huadeng Opera is a local tradi ten by professor He Yunfeng from tional folk opera form in which per the Central Conservatory of Music, formers holding handkerchiefs and Gong was intrigued. hand fans dance and sing in the The book, which introduces the local language. history and culture of Chinese eth “They showed me the moves and nic groups’ music and collects nearly songs of Huadeng Opera, which I 600 songs of Chinese ethnic groups, have never seen before. I learned a inspired Gong to explore Chinese lot from them, much more than just folk music. reading the book,” recalls Gong, add “I bought the book about two ing that she also taught them to sing years ago, but I was busy with tour her songs, such as Tan Te, in return. ing and I didn’t have enough time to Gong then headed toward the vil read it. The viral outbreak has lages of Nanjian Yi autonomous allowed me to slow down. When I county, Yunnan, about 30 kilome read the book, listened to the folk ters away from Midu. songs and read the Mandarin trans Nanjian is known for tiaocai, a lation of the lyrics, which are mostly style of Yi ethnic folk dance. During performed in local dialects, I was so celebrations, once the guests have interested and I thought why not taken their seats, performers of tiao explore those folk songs by traveling cai begin dancing while carrying the to those villages mentioned in the dishes on their heads. book by myself?” says Gong, who In 2008, tiaocai was placed on the was born in Guiyang, the capital of national intangible cultural heritage Southwest China’s Guizhou prov Inspired by a book, singer Gong Linna goes on an expedition to find the people list. ince. She started learning Chinese One of the people Gong visited in folk singing at a very young age and who keep China’s musical legacies alive, Chen Nan reports. Nanjian was 54yearold Lu Chaojin, enrolled at the Chinese Conservato who lives in a village called Apaxin, ry of Music in Beijing at the age of 16. part of Baohua township, and hid She achieved fame in 2010 by per den among the mountains. He forming the song, Tan Te, which was learned to perform tiaocai at 16 written by her husband, German years old from his father and grand composer Robert Zollitsch, better father. He has trained about 3,000 known among Chinese audiences as people to practice the dance and Lao Luo. cofounded 27 tiaocai performing The couple has been devoted to troupes in Nanjian. He also led his promoting and popularizing Chi students to perform on national tele nese folk songs, traditional musical vision in Beijing. instruments and traditional culture “He taught me to dance while car by releasing songs based on tradi rying dishes on my head but I failed. tional poems and the 24 Solar It was so hard to sing, dance and Terms. present the dishes intact. I really On March 26, Gong set out on her admire his skills,” Gong says. journey and her first stop was a The local government has helped small village in Midu, a county in the to set up research centers to keep the Dali Bai autonomous prefecture in traditional art forms alive. Unfortu western Yunnan province, where nately, Gong adds that few young Xiao He Tang Shui (A Little Stream), people are willing to learn folk songs one of the most wellknown folk and tiaocai dance since most of songs of China, was born. them are working in big cities now. In 2015, when China’s first lady “Folk music is a timeless phenom Peng Liyuan, once a renowned sing enon. It starts from one place, travels er, visited the Juilliard School of per to more places and evolves with dif forming arts in New York, soprano ferent cultural influences. I want Liv Redpath performed the piece more people to enjoy and learn Chi during a celebration gala. nese folk music,” says Gong, who After a twohour drive through plans to travel to more places to col the mountainous area, Gong found lect folk songs. 78yearold Li Caifeng, a national After her trips to Midu and Nanji level inheritor of local folk songs, an, Gong returned to her home in who performed the song for Gong in Dali to review the video and audio the local dialect. She told Gong that materials she collected. she has been singing the song since She has decided to introduce her she was 7 years old. Li also per recent experiences into the online formed other local folk songs, such singing course she launched during as Hong Wawa, a lullaby which has the coronavirus outbreak for young been passed down for generations. Chinese students and music lovers. “It’s much more important to Clockwise from top: Local performer, 58yearold Abenzhi, an inheritor of the intangible cultural heritage of tiaocai, a Yi ethnic dishcarry make twists while singing than to ing folk dance, presents a performance in Nanjian Yi autonomous county, Yunnan province; singer Gong Linna talks with 54yearold per Contact the writer at reach high notes, since singing is former Lu Chaojin; local tiaocai dancers perform at a festive event; and Gong poses with local people in Nanjian. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY [email protected] Annual ballet workshop theme will reflect on pandemic
By CHEN NAN can test your ideas to see if you want, and have the talent, to Every spring, the National Ballet become a choreographer. Anything of China holds its annual ballet crea could inspire you to create and you tive workshop, which brings togeth are allowed to make mistakes,” er young choreographers with their Wang says. original works. In 2019, the National Ballet of This year, despite the coronavirus China marked the 60th anniversary outbreak, which forced the National of its establishment with celebra Ballet of China to cancel all of its tions of the legacy of the country’s shows in theaters, the company has first ballet troupe. The company’s decided to continue with the launch classic ballet productions, both of the creative workshop. adaptations of Western ballets and With six works — four choreo original Chinese pieces, including graphic ballet pieces and two video Swan Lake, Giselle, Red Detachment performances — the workshop will of Women and Raise the Red Lan be livestreamed on Tuesday. The six tern, as well as concerts by the com works are a reflection on the influ pany’s symphony orchestra, were ence of the outbreak. all staged in Beijing. One of the works, titled A Lesson, Left: Dancers of the National Ballet of China are rehearsing for the annual ballet creative workshop, which will be livestreamed on Tuesday. According to Feng, a former bal is created by dancerchoreographer Right: Feng Ying, president of the National Ballet of China, coaches a dancer of the troupe during a rehearsal in Beijing. Six works based on lerina with the National Ballet of Wang Sizheng, who is also the the impact of COVID19 will be staged online PHOTOS BY JIANG DONG / CHINA DAILY China, the workshop has become a director of this year’s workshop. As popular project with audiences, this year marks the 10th anniversa Wang was born in Jiujiang, Jiang birthday with my friends. This The scenes of Wang’s parents at ple dancer with China National who “want to see new works and ry of the National Ballet of China’s xi province, and joined the National year’s birthday is quite different,” he home are featured in his video piece Opera & Dance Drama Theater and fresh faces onstage every year”. workshop, Wang wants it to be Ballet of China in 2007 after gradu says. and Wang also asked his students to In Mist and Rain — Autumn, chore “We didn’t stop dancing because unique. ating from the high school affiliated Because of the viral outbreak, he dance with their parents, which is ographer Li Yang’s latest piece, of the viral outbreak. Since our regu As a teacher of the ballet school of to Beijing Dance Academy the same has stayed with his parents for also included in the production. which mourns the people who died lar shows were canceled, we have the National Ballet of China, Wang, year. He played roles in the classics months, which made Wang realize “It’s a lesson for all of us, to learn as a result of the pandemic. more time to concentrate on train who loves recording his life with his performed by the National Ballet of that he should have spent more and to reflect when our lives are For Wang, the ballet workshop ing our dancers,” says Feng, adding camera, shot a documentary, which China, including The Red Detach time with them. turned upside down by the virus,” means a lot to him personally, since that the company has launched a focuses on his students and his own ment of Women, Raise the Red Lan “I realized that my parents are he adds. his debut choreographic work was series of online programs to keep in life. tern and Swan Lake. not young any more. For example, Other works to be staged during staged at the inaugural workshop in touch with audiences, such as hav “Like many schools in China, we Due to the viral outbreak, Wang my father takes medicine every day the ballet workshop include Guard 2010, when Feng Ying, president of ing dancers teach basic ballet tech launched online classes amid the enjoyed more time with his parents to control his blood pressure. It ian Angel, choreographed by Zheng the National Ballet of China, decid niques to the general public and by coronavirus pandemic. I felt closer at his home in Jiangxi. On March 17, inspired me to think about my rela Yu, a dancer of the National Ballet ed to launch the initiative to inspire sharing music played by members to my students through the camera he had his 30th birthday at home, tionship with my parents and to of China, which centers on the and showcase young choreogra of the company’s symphony orches since we could see each other’s which was memorable. “I left home create the documentary, A Lesson, health workers fighting on the front phers. tra. “We are ready to welcome our facial expressions,” says the 30year at a young age to study dancing in to share with my students,” Wang lines against the coronavirus; 36.2, “You don’t have to be a choreogra audiences back to the theater once old. Beijing, so every year I had my says. choreographed by Hu Yang, princi pher to join in the workshop. You the viral outbreak ends.”