A literary and musical journey across time and space
——"Poetry and Books as Companions, Walking with One Heart" Classic Literature Reading Concert was held in Xiamen University
On the evening of June 29th, on the midsummer night in the south, the warm and cool sea breeze blew away the scorching heat of the day, and a melodious new rhyme of ancient tunes came from the Junhai Haoyun Square of Xiang'an Campus of Xiamen University, and young students from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and musicians on both sides of the Taiwan Strait staged a literary and musical journey across time and space.
As an important part of the 2024 Cross-Strait Literature Forum and Youth Literature Exchange Activities, the "Poetry and Books as Companions, Walking with One Heart" Classic Literature Recitation Concert is hosted by the Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan Office of the Chinese Writers Association, the Fujian Provincial Federation of Literary and Art Circles, and the People's Government of Xiang'an District, Xiamen City.
Wen Puhua delivered a speech
Wen Puhua, deputy secretary of the Xiang'an District Party Committee of Xiamen City, welcomed the teachers and students on both sides of the strait on behalf of the organizing committee before the performance. He said: Xiang'an is a fertile ground for young people on both sides of the strait to study, start a business, and develop. The precipitation of history and modern innovation complement each other, traditional culture and modern civilization coexist in harmony here, and this event perfectly integrates classical poetry and modern music, which is the best interpretation of the spirit of Xiang'an. He said that he hoped that through this dialogue between poetry, books and music, young people on both sides of the strait would illuminate each other's hearts, inspire more sparks of wisdom, and promote in-depth cultural exchanges and understanding between the two sides of the strait. It is hoped that the "Classic Literature Recitation Concert" can become a bridge, not only connecting the past and the future, but also connecting the hearts of compatriots on both sides of the strait, and jointly writing a new glorious chapter of Chinese culture.
MU Neoclassical Orchestra from Taiwan
Xiamen young guqin master Wang Jiaying
The scene of the performance of "Chu Ci".
On the left side of the stage, there is a streamlined classical chamber orchestra from Taiwan, which is the MU Neoclassical Orchestra from Taiwan. On the right side of the stage is Wang Jiaying, a young guqin master from Xiamen. The collision and cooperation between Western classical music and traditional Chinese music has condensed the creativity and talent of young people on both sides of the strait. In the repertoire of the evening, from "Book of Songs" and "Chu Ci" to Tang and Song poems, from modern poetry classics to campus folk songs, from the thoughts of the predecessors of writers to the display of contemporary writers, young people on both sides of the strait used their voices to interpret the thousand-year-old context, bringing everyone resonance and emotion beyond the times.
"Looking at the Spring Breeze" singing scene
Taiwanese musician Yang Mu plays and sings by himself
The opening repertoire of the concert was unique and arranged by musician and composer Yang Mu from Taiwan, which skillfully combined the Taiwanese folk song "Wangchun Feng" and the Jiangnan folk song "Jasmine", and the familiar and moving melody instantly captured the hearts of the audience. When Yang Mu sat at the piano and sang the song "Farewell Kangqiao" by himself, the audience also raised their mobile phones to take pictures. This song was composed by Taiwanese composer Li Datao, and it was once popular on Taiwanese campuses that year. Yang Mu believes that the reason why this song has become a smash hit and has been passed down to this day is largely because of the charm of the language of Xu Zhimo's poetry. "I've been thinking, what is the future of Chinese music? I think it's in the lyrics. Where there is poetry, there is a song. "Excellent songs are bound to be in line with the poems and literature that the Chinese nation has recited for thousands of years.
"Four Rhymes of Homesickness" singing scene
In the 70s of the 20th century, Taiwan launched a modern folk song movement that advocated "poetry into songs", and since then, folk songs and poetry have worked together and flourished, opening up a new way out for each other. Among them, singer-songwriter Yang Xian's folk songs are mostly composed from Yu Guangzhong's poems, represented by "Four Rhymes of Homesickness": "Give me a scoop of Yangtze River water/Ah Yangtze River water/That wine-like Yangtze River water/The taste of drunkenness/It's the taste of homesickness/Give me a scoop of Yangtze River water/Ah Yangtze River water......" short words, with a catchy rhythm of singing and sighing, making the new poem more accessible to the public and easier to circulate. At the concert that night, when the singing sounded, everyone was instantly brought into the emotions of "nostalgia" and "homeland" in the poems.
"Hometown" singing scene
For Taiwan and Fujian, the Hokkien language is a deep connection. At the recitation concert, students from both sides of the strait recited classic poems in Hokkien, and the most touching was the original Hokkien song "Hometown". "In the spring, the grass sprouts/You care about my life like my mother/The spring breeze sends me away from my hometown/Like my mother, you are unwilling to me/The hometown where the socks are frozen/Now the new clothes have become old clothes/Only the warmth has not changed/Who knows the mood of missing my hometown." This song, composed by Yang Mu and lyrics by Xiamen female writer Bai Yin, naturally combines the style of ancient Fujian rhyme with the beautiful melody of pop, and the interlude of piano and string music slowly expresses the wanderer's deep longing for his mother and homeland.
Campus folk song singing scene
The performance scene of "Sanmao's Song".
"I came from the mountains, with orchid grass, planted on campus, hoping that the flowers will bloom early and ......" once marked the birth of vernacular poetry works into the familiar campus folk songs, the integration of classic poetry and music opened a new chapter, "Orchid Grass", "Country Road", "Spring You Come", "Floating Cloud Wanderer" and other songs that were once popular on both sides of the strait, inspired the resonance of writers and scholars on the scene, everyone spontaneously beat with the rhythm of music, reminiscing about their youth. Next, the works of Qiu Fengjia, Liang Qichao, Wen Yiduo, Dai Wangshu, Zheng Chouyu, Love, Yu Guang and other poets appeared one after another, and the works of the poets on both sides of the Taiwan Strait who participated in the event, Bai Ling, Yang Ke, Luo Zhicheng, Gu Yue, Lu Di, Zhan Che, and Yan Ailin, were also interspersed, as if taking all the audience through a whole century of modern poetry. That night, when the commemorative song "Sanmao's Song" made by the performance team for the writer Sanmao and the carefully selected Yu Guangzhong's work "Four Rhymes of Homesickness" slowly sounded, the audience was moved and sent the most sincere applause, thoughts and blessings to the family members of Sanmao and Yu Guangzhong on the scene.
The scene of the performance of "Big Data".
The scene of the performance of "Dream Butterfly".
Students from both sides of the strait performed in Hanfu
This activity has received enthusiastic response and active participation from young students from Taiwan. Hu Keer, a fourth-year student in the Department of Anthropology at National Taiwan University, told reporters that after arriving in Xiamen on the 28th, she and her classmates in Xiamen had rehearsed many times, and in between rehearsals, they also exchanged their own insights on literature. Many of the students were wearing Hanfu for the first time, and the exquisite decorations and movement exercises made them feel proud of being Chinese. After the performance, several Taiwanese students who participated in the recitation of ancient poems in Hokkien were so excited that they found the poet Yan Ailin to discuss the pronunciation of poetry recitation and late at night. It is understood that many young students in Taiwan have a strong interest in poetry, and many of them have spontaneously participated in various poetry clubs and reading clubs, loving and pursuing the breadth and profundity of Chinese poetry. Tu Shuwei, a young scholar and doctoral researcher in the Department of Chinese Literature at National Taiwan University, said that this classic literature recitation concert, original songs and poetry recitations are uneven and staggered, combining classical tradition and modern spirit, the voices and postures of young people, dancers and singers on both sides of the strait, rising and falling with the huge reserves of oriental spiritual civilization, connecting the rich and profound history and imagination of cross-strait culture.
The performance scene of "Song of the Seven Sons: Taiwan".
The scene of the performance of "Instant".
The scene of the performance of "Juvenile China Says".
Young students on both sides of the strait sang "Out of the Stopper"
"Heroes ride horses, ride horses to return to their hometowns", accompanied by the romantic pictures and melodious melodies under the golden sun, young students on both sides of the strait held hands and sang the song "Out of the Stopper" composed according to Xi Murong's poems, which drew a successful end to the concert. Junhai Haoyun Square in the night is like a warm blooming triangular plum, standing on the high steps and looking into the distance, the semi-circular LED screen on the stage is like a moon gradually rising from the sea level, which is in response to the poem: the green mountains are the same as the clouds and rain, and the bright moon was once two towns.
Group photo of all the participants
Typesetting: Xiao Yao
Editor: Liu Ya
Second trial: Zhang Junping
Third trial: Wang Yang