Life and Leisure

Songs with a different shade of red

By Sun Li (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-11-06 06:53

The Hong Kong Friendship Choir performs at the first China Red Song Choir Competition in Chongqing. Provided to China Daily

The choirs from Hong Kong and Taiwan were greeted with a standing ovation in the first China Red Song Choir Competition recently held in Chongqing.

The audience gave a resounding thumbs-up to the somewhat unconventional choice of songs by the two choirs.

The Hong Kong Friendship Choir presented Below the Lion Rock and My Chinese Heart.

A famous Cantopop number, Below the Lion Rock is the theme song of a namesake TV series on how ordinary Hong Kong citizens struggle through adversity with a cheerful face, while the latter is a patriotic song sung in Putonghua (standard Mandarin) that became a big hit both on the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong after the 1984 CCTV Spring Festival Gala.

"Red songs are about unity, diligence and are aimed at encouraging people when faced with obstacles," says Steven Cheng Kin, director of the choir. "Our songs may be different from those of other choirs in terms of genre and style, but they can uplift spirits, which is the defining feature of a red song."

The choir, founded earlier this year, consists of 37 members ranging in age from 20 to 60.

According to Cheng, they are all amateurs but share a common passion for motivational songs, such as Below the Lion Rock.

The choir got in only two weekends of rehearsals before participating in the competition, Cheng reveals. Also, since not all the singers are fluent in Putonghua, they had to pay special attention to the pronunciation for My Chinese Heart, he adds.

"We were like primary school students, following a teacher at the University of Hong Kong to read the words out loud," Cheng says.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's Kaohsiung Folk Choir gave the red song a romantic touch.

Wearing the unique costumes of the Gaoshan ethnic group, in splendid choral harmony, they sang The Moon Represents My Heart, one of the most famous Chinese Mandarin love songs and a classic of Taiwan icon Teresa Teng.

Su Shun-kuo, founder of the choir, says the song carries a special message.

"The Chinese are one big family. The Straits won't break the bond among us," Su says. "As the lyric goes, 'my affection is real, my love is true'. We want to express this love to our families on the Chinese mainland."

The Kaohsiung Folk Choir, too, is comprised of amateurs. It has more than 40 members whose average age is 50.

China Daily