A wild blend of Chinese and western
Tan Jing and her team choose the Er Hu and Pipa to combine with western musical instruments for the London Concert. The Er Hu, or two-stringed "Chinese violin", and the Pi Pa, a four-stringed "Chinese lute", are the two instruments largely responsible for the unique qualities of Chinese music, as their timbre is distinct from other kinds of stringed instruments found in the world.
On the other hand, it was reasoned that Chinese folk music is performed on western musical instruments may serve to put foreign audiences in better touch with this musical tradition and enjoy it more.
This wild mixture of Chinese folk music and Western rock music seems destined to be a headliner in the coming-up concert. The combination is likely better experienced than imagined.
When Tan was asked if being accompanied by a mix of traditional Chinese music and western instrument playing would make it much harder to sing, she said no and explained, "you naturally follow the melody, so if the concert calls up in you a fresh response, then you sing in this new mood."
At Tan's suggestion, Glenn Hughes is learning the Shanxi Ballad "Missing you baby", so the audience will enjoy a musical dialogue between a wonderful group of Chinese and British artists. Tan Jing may also sing some popular English songs such as Thank You For The Music, Time to Say Goodbye, and The show Must Go On.
Mixed-style performances have been explored by many Chinese artists as a way to introduce Chinese music to the world. Tan mentioned that Wang Lihong, a singer-songwriter of popular music, loved incorporating Chinese folk music and the tunes of minorities into his work. Tan Jing herself also tried to produce songs in the style of Beijing-opera, for instance, "Make-up time".
Tan is willing to embrace all kinds of challenging styles in her musical journey and calls herself "Miss Challenger".
Music, the universal language
Music is a universal language and Tan Jing understands this deeply, having given a number of international performances. She feels foreign audiences listen with curiosity, as they are unable to understand the ballads literally, and the same is true of Chinese who listen to foreign ballads.
No matter whether domestic or foreign, people relate to emotions expressed in musical form; they can feel the same sorrow, joy, anger and love in the music. That's the reason generations of Chinese musicians pursued an overseas musical journey, as a way to spread Chinese stories throughout the world.
Following in the footsteps of her forerunners, including the internationally acclaimed Beijing Opera master Mei Lanfang and Taiwanese pop singer Teresa Deng, Tan Jing is helping in a big way to raise the profile of her country's culture. She is hoping the London stop of her musical journey will bring Chinese and Europeans closer.
