Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Singing in Huairou
See photos about this week's posting in the Yahoo photo album. (Will open in a new browser window.)
After a May holiday week galloping around Huairou, Beijing and Tianjin with our daughter and son in law, a return to our regular regime at school seemed like a quiet rest. Lest we fall into a rut of an ordinary Saturday, we accepted an invitation from the organizing committee of the Huairou Speaks English Program to help judge the finals in the Foreign Song Contest. We began the experience knowing from our students how much the Chinese love to sing, and knowing too that the four tones which are basic to the language train the ear to sound and nuance.
On a rainy Saturday morning we upped our umbrellas and hiked to the Long Shan Hotel for an 8:30 appointment to meet our fellow judges. The seven judges, along with the many sponsors, were ushered into the luxuriously appointed reception area. There we met Hong Luo Si Secondary School English teacher Chen Li Hua (English name, Lily) who acted as our interpreter. An excellent, naturally fluent speaker, Chen Li Hua is a lively and delightful person. She was direct and forthright in her opinions and was able to distill the experience of teaching over 30 years in her comments as we talked about teaching in China. We were interested to know that Chen Li Hua was the teacher who inspired our friend Lui Keyan to follow an English teaching a career.
At the appointed hour we were led through the rain to the auditorium and escorted to the front row judges seats. The stage was ringed with potted plants, red, white and green, while the stage was set off with a backdrop montage of photos appropriate to the theme of “Foreign Songs Contest” (see photos). The stage was further decked out with encouraging mottos in English, - “Don’t be shy, just try,” and “Fly with the songs”. To the left of the stage the perennial sign of Huairou public places warned, “Keep Silence and Neat”. The patrons, two local industries, were duly noted: The Beijing Indserve Communication System Integration Co. Ltd., and EFFEM Foods (Beijing) Limited. The Undertakers were The Foreign Affairs Office of the Peoples Government of Huairou District and the Huairou Education Committee. Representatives of the sponsors and local government sat in a place of honour behind the judges. The judges’ table was tricked out with bouquets of flowers. Indeed we were an illustrious group. Television cameras and soundboard were set and ready to go. Strong lights flooded the stage. The judges received final instructions as to their duties – “no lower than 80, after all these performers have already won in the first round.” The auditorium was filled, many of these present to cheer on special friend and performer. The two masters of ceremonies, a man and a woman, one speaking Chinese, the other English, came front and centre. Of course we began with the required introduction of and thanks to dignitaries, sponsors, and special foreign guests, two from Canada. And then the show began.
The first singer sang in Italian. Qi Xinli wasn’t daunted by, Mia chiamo Mimi, the famous aria from La Boheme and had the phrasing and the Italian down pretty well. It isn’t easy being first. The judges, not knowing the level of performance to expect from the rest of the performers, were conservative with their mark. She is also a trained singer and music teacher. Put the mark down to the inexperience of the judges. Certainly her mark was too low and the judges made up for that with the following 19 performers. Marks moved to the 90’s in most cases. The program moved on with Wang Shuo, a young woman wearing a white off the shoulder dress who sang, “Yesterday Once More”; Wei Shaochen with his guitar, presenting an Bob Dylan styled, “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”. Next a chorus, all in white full-length gowns, sang Stephen Foster’s ,”Beautiful Dreamer” effected with hand motions and side to side movements. A very serious Zhang Deguang presented, “Seal It with a Kiss” and was followed by Zhang Quinglin in a tuxedo, presenting, in Italian, “O Sol Mio”. Wu Junwei, in her slim white Chinese chaosam, aroused the audience’s emotions with her dramatic rendering of the ballad “I Will Always Love You.” A senior, well into her 70’s gave us “The People of Yanbian Area Love Chairman Mao”, sung in Korean, followed by a very confident Chen Shuying with what seems to be a Chinese favourite - Auld Lang Syne. It was a song presented twice on this program.
Lest anyone think the program was stogy and rigid, five very lithe girls in silver, red and white and eye glitter, sang a Korean hit song, “Crystal”, as they moved to a lively beat. This was followed by a young lady, Dong Xu, in a fetching dress and applied flower tattoos, singing, “Before I Fall In Love”. Two guys in matching outfits and broad smiles, Peng Yao and Tang Bin, gave us, “Sailing”, then came three sequined spangled small girls, Gao Yuan, Yang Yi, and Guo Yuanyi, singing “Whatever Will Be Will Be”. Another Italian opera piece followed, from Gianneschi, “Oh My Beloved Pappa”, sung very emotionally by the appealing Xu Jinghui, in her long dress and shawl. Lui Haiquan tackled “The Straw Hat”, and, in spite of mike problems, carried it off. Next a very difficult Italian song, “Do You Know Mama”, was presented by Wei Taoye, another trained singer, her flowing white ball gown punctuated by red roses. Two students from a local secondary school, the girl in a black dress, the boy in a white tuxedo, Lu Jing and Duan Xu, had great stage movement as they sang to each other in an excellent version of “My All”. An original song presented by Lui Xing and Zhong Yue, two boys from Huairou Yi Zhong Secondary School, was mature, relaxed and professional. The contest ended with a large chorus of men in white shirts and black pants and women in gray shirts and black skirts, who delivered us a rousing version of …what else - “Auld Lang Syne”.
With much fanfare, and the rousing music from “Bonanza”, red costumed helpers carried the prizes which were presented by the sponsors, now come to life after a 2 hour stint of sitting looking dignified. The representative from the sponsor Indserve, a communications company, read prepared speech in which he announced the expansion of this enterprise in Huairou. The first prize went the opera singer who performed “Do You Know Mama”. The second prize was split between Wu Junwei, in her white body hugging chaosan and Lu Jing and Duan Xu our two students from Hong Luo Si School. The Vice Mayor of Huairou, a very engaging and energetic woman, made a series of appropriate remarks and thanks to the Committee, the judges and sponsors, and then we had the sumptuous lunch the Dragon Hill Hotel is famous for.
We sat with other judges and the two masters of ceremonies, and of course, Lily, who explained every toast, every word of thanks -- and there were many, as is the Chinese custom. We exchanged business cards with some of the judges, and generally had a sociable time. And by the way, as we left the hotel for home, we were again thanked profusely and paid for our participation in this, the very first Huairou Indserve Cup Foreign Songs Contest.
See photos about this week's posting in the Yahoo photo album. (Will open in a new browser window.)
After a May holiday week galloping around Huairou, Beijing and Tianjin with our daughter and son in law, a return to our regular regime at school seemed like a quiet rest. Lest we fall into a rut of an ordinary Saturday, we accepted an invitation from the organizing committee of the Huairou Speaks English Program to help judge the finals in the Foreign Song Contest. We began the experience knowing from our students how much the Chinese love to sing, and knowing too that the four tones which are basic to the language train the ear to sound and nuance.
On a rainy Saturday morning we upped our umbrellas and hiked to the Long Shan Hotel for an 8:30 appointment to meet our fellow judges. The seven judges, along with the many sponsors, were ushered into the luxuriously appointed reception area. There we met Hong Luo Si Secondary School English teacher Chen Li Hua (English name, Lily) who acted as our interpreter. An excellent, naturally fluent speaker, Chen Li Hua is a lively and delightful person. She was direct and forthright in her opinions and was able to distill the experience of teaching over 30 years in her comments as we talked about teaching in China. We were interested to know that Chen Li Hua was the teacher who inspired our friend Lui Keyan to follow an English teaching a career.
At the appointed hour we were led through the rain to the auditorium and escorted to the front row judges seats. The stage was ringed with potted plants, red, white and green, while the stage was set off with a backdrop montage of photos appropriate to the theme of “Foreign Songs Contest” (see photos). The stage was further decked out with encouraging mottos in English, - “Don’t be shy, just try,” and “Fly with the songs”. To the left of the stage the perennial sign of Huairou public places warned, “Keep Silence and Neat”. The patrons, two local industries, were duly noted: The Beijing Indserve Communication System Integration Co. Ltd., and EFFEM Foods (Beijing) Limited. The Undertakers were The Foreign Affairs Office of the Peoples Government of Huairou District and the Huairou Education Committee. Representatives of the sponsors and local government sat in a place of honour behind the judges. The judges’ table was tricked out with bouquets of flowers. Indeed we were an illustrious group. Television cameras and soundboard were set and ready to go. Strong lights flooded the stage. The judges received final instructions as to their duties – “no lower than 80, after all these performers have already won in the first round.” The auditorium was filled, many of these present to cheer on special friend and performer. The two masters of ceremonies, a man and a woman, one speaking Chinese, the other English, came front and centre. Of course we began with the required introduction of and thanks to dignitaries, sponsors, and special foreign guests, two from Canada. And then the show began.
The first singer sang in Italian. Qi Xinli wasn’t daunted by, Mia chiamo Mimi, the famous aria from La Boheme and had the phrasing and the Italian down pretty well. It isn’t easy being first. The judges, not knowing the level of performance to expect from the rest of the performers, were conservative with their mark. She is also a trained singer and music teacher. Put the mark down to the inexperience of the judges. Certainly her mark was too low and the judges made up for that with the following 19 performers. Marks moved to the 90’s in most cases. The program moved on with Wang Shuo, a young woman wearing a white off the shoulder dress who sang, “Yesterday Once More”; Wei Shaochen with his guitar, presenting an Bob Dylan styled, “Where Did You Sleep Last Night”. Next a chorus, all in white full-length gowns, sang Stephen Foster’s ,”Beautiful Dreamer” effected with hand motions and side to side movements. A very serious Zhang Deguang presented, “Seal It with a Kiss” and was followed by Zhang Quinglin in a tuxedo, presenting, in Italian, “O Sol Mio”. Wu Junwei, in her slim white Chinese chaosam, aroused the audience’s emotions with her dramatic rendering of the ballad “I Will Always Love You.” A senior, well into her 70’s gave us “The People of Yanbian Area Love Chairman Mao”, sung in Korean, followed by a very confident Chen Shuying with what seems to be a Chinese favourite - Auld Lang Syne. It was a song presented twice on this program.
Lest anyone think the program was stogy and rigid, five very lithe girls in silver, red and white and eye glitter, sang a Korean hit song, “Crystal”, as they moved to a lively beat. This was followed by a young lady, Dong Xu, in a fetching dress and applied flower tattoos, singing, “Before I Fall In Love”. Two guys in matching outfits and broad smiles, Peng Yao and Tang Bin, gave us, “Sailing”, then came three sequined spangled small girls, Gao Yuan, Yang Yi, and Guo Yuanyi, singing “Whatever Will Be Will Be”. Another Italian opera piece followed, from Gianneschi, “Oh My Beloved Pappa”, sung very emotionally by the appealing Xu Jinghui, in her long dress and shawl. Lui Haiquan tackled “The Straw Hat”, and, in spite of mike problems, carried it off. Next a very difficult Italian song, “Do You Know Mama”, was presented by Wei Taoye, another trained singer, her flowing white ball gown punctuated by red roses. Two students from a local secondary school, the girl in a black dress, the boy in a white tuxedo, Lu Jing and Duan Xu, had great stage movement as they sang to each other in an excellent version of “My All”. An original song presented by Lui Xing and Zhong Yue, two boys from Huairou Yi Zhong Secondary School, was mature, relaxed and professional. The contest ended with a large chorus of men in white shirts and black pants and women in gray shirts and black skirts, who delivered us a rousing version of …what else - “Auld Lang Syne”.
With much fanfare, and the rousing music from “Bonanza”, red costumed helpers carried the prizes which were presented by the sponsors, now come to life after a 2 hour stint of sitting looking dignified. The representative from the sponsor Indserve, a communications company, read prepared speech in which he announced the expansion of this enterprise in Huairou. The first prize went the opera singer who performed “Do You Know Mama”. The second prize was split between Wu Junwei, in her white body hugging chaosan and Lu Jing and Duan Xu our two students from Hong Luo Si School. The Vice Mayor of Huairou, a very engaging and energetic woman, made a series of appropriate remarks and thanks to the Committee, the judges and sponsors, and then we had the sumptuous lunch the Dragon Hill Hotel is famous for.
We sat with other judges and the two masters of ceremonies, and of course, Lily, who explained every toast, every word of thanks -- and there were many, as is the Chinese custom. We exchanged business cards with some of the judges, and generally had a sociable time. And by the way, as we left the hotel for home, we were again thanked profusely and paid for our participation in this, the very first Huairou Indserve Cup Foreign Songs Contest.
All text and photography © copyright Harkaway, 2003 - 2004
