CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Monday, May 10, 2021 | 17 LIFE
China’s Three Tenors, (from left) Warren Mok, Wei Song and Dai Yuqiang are on a 24city nationwide tour. It has been 10 years since they last performed together as a trio. WANG JING / CHINA DAILY Tenor trio returns to wow fans Top classical singers reunite for a new tour after a decade, Chen Nan reports.
n 2011, tenors Dai Yuqiang, autonomous regions. Wei, who has performed major ed Kingdom’s Royal Philharmonic Organizers splashed some baijiu, or Wei Song and Warren Mok Zhang Shurong, director of the roles in operas such as Turandot, La Concert Orchestra in a concert enti Chinese white liquor, on the floor formed a trio and became China’s Three Tenors tour, says it Traviata, Carmen, and Madama tled Best Wishes from Beijing — Chi nearby the stage before the song known as China’s Three Ten has been 10 years since they last per Butterfly, says that they have cho na’s Three Tenors London Concert. began. Iors, the country’s equivalent of the formed together as a trio. sen to perform classic works for the “Pavarotti, Domingo and Carrer “The design received warm feed globally acclaimed trio that com “They represent the best of Chi tour. as are our idols. They have made the back from the audience. They lis prised of Luciano Pavarotti, Placi na’s classically trained singers,” “Those songs are very beautiful bel canto easier for the audience to tened to Toast Song while smelling do Domingo and Jose Carreras. In Zhang says. and have catchy melodies, which appreciate,” says the 63yearold the lingering fragrance of baijiu,” October that same year, they held Zhang was one of the organizers will be easy on the ears of the audi Mok. Born in Beijing and moved to recalls Zhang, director of the Tian their debut performance in Beijing for their first concert in 2011 in Bei ence,” says the 67yearold Wei. Hong Kong with his family at the jin concert. and have since toured worldwide jing. He recalls the three Chinese Recalling their collaboration age of 6, Mok has a master’s degree Dai, the third tenor, says the three holding more than 120 shows. tenors getting together just as the over the past 10 years, the three in music from the Manhattan of them are focused on producing The three tenors’ new tour kicked country’s classical music scene was Chinese tenors named some mem School of Music. He has worked the best sounds during performan off on May 2 and the trio will visit 24 gaining a fan base. It was also remi orable moments. One of the high with many international opera ces. He was the first and only Chi cities including Shanghai, Zhuhai in niscent of the phenomenal per lights was their performance at companies and played major roles nese student of Pavarotti, and has Guangdong province, Ningbo in formance staged by the Three Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubi in opera productions including played major roles in operas such as Zhejiang province, Zibo in Shand Tenors at the Forbidden City in Bei lee celebration in November 2012 Turandot, Carmen and Aida. Turandot, La Traviata, Carmen and ong province, and Changsha in jing, which saw Carreras, Pavarotti at the royal family’s invitation. “When we perform abroad, we La Boheme. Hunan province. The tour is sup and Domingo use their voices to They received a royal audience want to make Chinese culture, espe “We have different personalities ported by the Beijing Poly Theater support Beijing’s bid to host the with the queen and the perform cially Chinese folk songs, more but when we perform together Management, which operates sev 2008 Olympic Games on June 24, ance was viewed by hundreds of accessible through our perform onstage, we support each other and eral theaters nationwide. 2001. millions of TV viewers around the ance in a way that is familiar to the try to reach a perfect sound with our To mark the 100th anniversary of “At that time, Chinese symphony world. global audience,” Mok adds. voices,” says 58yearold Dai. “We are the founding of the Communist Par orchestras, original classical music On the eve of the Lunar New Year In September, the three Chinese happy to see that our concerts not ty of China, the tenors’ upcoming works and Chinese operas were in 2012, the three Chinese tenors tenors gave their first concert of only attract academically trained tour will feature popular Chinese emerging in the country. The popu kicked off their international tour at 2020 in Tianjin as the COVID19 students and classical music lovers, songs such as I Love You China, Sing larity of the shows by the three Chi the Lincoln Center for the Perform pandemic was under control, forc but also people who may not be a Song for the Party, In That Remote nese tenors proved that classical ing Arts in New York. That year, they ing some of their shows to be can familiar with classical music.” Place and Swan Geese. They will music, which is considered to be an performed in London, Los Angeles, celed. The concert was held also perform folk songs of the Inner elite art form, appeals to the general Sydney and Cologne. In July 2012, outdoors and it opened with a popu Contact the writer at Mongolia and the Xinjiang Uygur public,” Zhang says. they performed alongside the Unit lar Chinese song titled Toast Song. [email protected] Children’s books about Museum receives precious COVID19 published in UK Chinese art from alumnus
LONDON — A series of Chinese tion in China. The six books are Chicago — In a recent announce the years. I hope students embrace children’s picture books to help engaging and empathetic stories ment made by the University of this love. I hope the community children through the COVID19 about changes in family life during Michigan, the school acknowledges comes out to see it as well.” pandemic has been launched in The six books are the pandemic, and present a varie a collection of art and endowment In a statement posted on its web Britain. engaging and ty of situations from a child’s per with a combined value of around $5 site, the university wrote that hav The book series, named Fighting spective,” Wang says. million donated by alumnus Willi ing works of art that span such a the Epidemic: Staying at Home empathetic stories “They offer practical and reas am Weese to the UM Museum of Art. vast time period will allow the Series, was created in January last about changes in suring information, not only on Part of the donation that Weese museum not only to just tell about year, when Chinese publisher Phoe what key workers are doing and gave to UMMA are more than 1,000 the progression of techniques, nix Juvenile and Children’s Publish family life during the how everyone can help to fight the ceramic and decorative art pieces trends and tastes in Chinese ceram ing invited some of China’s top pandemic.” virus, but also show how to articu valued at $3.35 million from China’s ics, but also how those trends and children’s book writers and illustra late feelings of fear, sadness, bore Neolithic period to the Ming (1368 techniques filtered into the broader, tors to create six picture books Helen Wang, translator of the dom and missing loved ones. They 1644) and Qing (16441911) dynas more global ceramic arts scene. designed to help children through series also think of creative ways to help ties, with some pieces dating back to “We are incredibly grateful to the the pandemic. each other through difficult as early as 3,000 BC. Weese family for their generosity,” The English edition was pub off on a journey of imagination and times.” The endowment part of Weese’s says Natsu Oyobe, curator of Asian lished by New Classic Press in Brit adventure. Wang Yongbo, president of Phoe gift is a $1.7 million William C Weese art at UMMA. “I just know that the ain last month and its Kindle In another story The Mask that nix Juvenile and Children’s Pub MD Endowment aimed to “develop, passion and love they felt for these edition will also be available from Loved to Count, the N95 respirator lishing, says the series helped many promote and implement programs to pieces will continue to live on at this month. is a special mask that is saved for a families in China talk to young chil further the education, appreciation UMMA and inspire a new genera Written from the perspective of a person who really needs it. Impa dren about the pandemic, and he and understanding of ceramic arts”. tion of interest and scholarship for young child, the six books express tient to be used, the mask counts hopes young readers in Britain will “I have been studying and collect ceramics.” the theme of love through different everything it sees, and gradually enjoy reading these stories and ing Chinese art and ceramics since Oyobe also says the gift will great families and lives. learns that its role is also to bring share their experiences of coping Grandpa’s 14 Games and A the early 1980s — the craftsmanship ly strengthen UMMA’s place as a In one of the stories, A Journey of hope to its owner. with the pandemic. Journey of 9,000 Millimeters and history of the works has fascinat leader in ceramic arts and continue 9,000 Millimeters, a boy and his sis The bestselling books were The international rights to the are two of the series of Chinese ed me my entire life,” Weese says. “My to build its nationally renowned col ter have to entertain themselves translated into English by Helen book series have been sold to 19 children’s picture books. The goal in gifting this collection to the lection of Asian art. while their parents work in the hos Wang, a curator at the British countries worldwide, and will English edition was published University of Michigan is both to pre Select pieces from the Weese col pital during the pandemic. As they Museum and winner of the Marsh be translated into several lan by New Classic Press in Britain serve it for generations to come, and lection will be on display at UMMA measure the apartment — which Award for Children’s Literature in guages. last month. to help foster that same love and pas from as early as this fall. they find massive at 9,000mm Translation. sion for the exploration of technique long and 5,000mm wide, they set “This was a milestone publica XINHUA and history that I’ve developed over XINHUA