Appassionato: A life enriched by music, and vice versa

Charles Cao Quin said the music is the same, but every performer’s artistic treatment of it is different. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY

There are few greater gifts than to discover one’s true passion in life. As such, the award-winning Chinese bass-baritone Charles Cao Quin said music has brought joy to his life — but only now, after the varied experiences he has had over time, has he been able to fully comprehend and take advantage of his musical abilities to the fullest.

“I have much to be grateful for. It (music) has given me purpose, accomplishment, and spiritual well-being,” said Cao, 58. He credits much of his personal development to his passion for music, and believes his appreciation and understanding of the art has improved with time.

While he has taken part in numerous performances both at home and abroad, on Sept 13, for the first time, he will sing with the London Chinese Philharmonic Choir, staging a concert in London to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.

It will be the premiere in the United Kingdom of The Yellow River Cantata, written by Chinese composer Xian Xinghai in 1939, set during the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1937-45).

Born in Beijing, Cao initially went to Britain at age 28, in 1986, to take part in the Grimsby International Competition for Singers representing China. Hard work and a sensational voice won him first prize, much to the amazement of the British music community. It changed his life.

Afterward, he accepted a scholarship to study at London’s prestigious Royal College of Music before becoming a freelance musician, performer and voice tutor for a decade — professions that took him all over the country and beyond.

Fate took another turn for Cao in 2000, when he spent a couple of years in China on a scholarship as a specially appointed professor with a senior management position.

Then, in 2002, he accepted a new challenge as director of the East Coast Music Academy in Grimsby. Since then, he has been vice principal at the Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education, Croydon College near London, and at Warwickshire College in the Midlands, and has worked independently as an education specialist.

Despite the shift from professional musician to teaching, Cao said he has always found joy in music. “Music is a reflection of life, for it takes the most dramatic emotions from life experiences. As a young man, I thought I understood the meanings behind songs. But looking back now, I was merely singing the words,” he said.

In September’s concert, Cao will sing the solo Ode to the Yellow River, which praises the history and presence of China’s Yellow River, signifying cultural pride.

While it’s a song Cao performed many times in China before he left for the UK, he said that this time will be different. After three decades of living overseas, singing the familiar words have made him feel nostalgic. Cao said he has seen how China has become a stronger nation, and his pride comes through when he sings the words.

“When Ode to the Yellow River was written, the words represented the musician’s dream and his hope of China achieving great strength sometime in the future. However, singing them now, I know this dream has become reality. I now sing with confidence and pride.”

He likens the role of the performer to that of the craftsman, who tirelessly strives for perfection, and in the process adds his own interpretation and artistic style.

“The music is the same, but every performer’s artistic treatment of it is different. Every pause, punctuation and the loudness of the words can convey something special about the performer’s own unique emotions,” said Cao.