Professional vocalists who wish to pursue a traditional Chinese singing career have a tough road to follow in China. Alto Ms. Yang Jiansheng spoke with The Epoch Times about the far-reaching significance of NTDTV's vocal competition.
After 1949 China became a cultural desert. According to Yang no art was created except that which served the political ends of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and artists must perform whatever music the CCP tells them to sing.
Yang said, "I felt very lonely and heavy-hearted when I joined the Central Philharmonic Orchestra because you have to have connections to give a performance and get a promotion."
Yang said that pop songs flooded the market and classical vocalists had no opportunities to perform. Members and vocalists of the Central Philharmonic Orchestra became backup singers or played accompaniment for pop singers. Classically trained singers worked as entertainers in hotels. She said she once heard some Westerners joke that they didn't need to buy tickets to the opera since they could listen to world-class arias in any hotel.
According to Yang, although opportunities aren't any better abroad, at least there are choices. "Overseas—even if I have to take a low-level job to make a living—I am still free to choose what I sing, and I have time to pursue classical art. It is very sad that in China an artist can't choose what they want to sing, but has to sell his art to make a living and go against his conscience to sing what he should not."
She says many fine Chinese singers living in other countries must change their focus—run a restaurant, do housekeeping or nursing, even be a street performer in train stations, food markets or on the street. "Only the highest-level singers gain recognition in the international arena. However,what they sing does not belong to their culture, but that of the West."
Yang Jiansheng explained that the folk songs in the competition express traditional values. She believes this is a positive change from the grassroots that will replace the CCP's fake folk songs and lay a solid foundation for reviving traditional folk songs in China.
Ms. Yang says NTDTV has paved the way and played a key role in popularizing pure Chinese traditional culture since it was founded in 2002. NTDV's Spectacular has become the grandest international event of the Chinese New Year, bringing the very best of Chinese classical performing arts into the international arena.
New Tang Dynasty Television (NTDTV) will hold the first International Chinese Vocal Competition this month in New York. The competition is designed to foster cultural exchange and promote authentic traditional vocal arts. Participants will compete in two categories: folk singing and Bel Canto, and may select Chinese traditional, folk, or classical pieces, TV or movie scores, and arias or art songs. The Epoch Times is proud to support this important event.
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