You are currently browsing the tag archive for the 'music' tag.
C-pop or Chinese popular music has two variants: Cantopop which is performed in Cantonese and originates from Hong Kong and Mandopop which is performed in Mandarin and comes from Taiwan but also China and Hong Kong too. Since returning from our trip to China last December, I’ve been really getting in to Mandopop. I was already listening to singers like Faye Wong, Teresa Teng, Gigi Leung, Vicki Zhao Wei, and Zhou Xun. Coming back from China with CDs by S.H.E and Jasmine Fish Leong whetted my appetite and we’ve been listening to a lot of Mandopop. The kids love S.H.E and we listen to them in the house and car. Hua Mei sings their songs around the house and she likes to watch their concert dvds.
I think that it actually is helping her Chinese a little. Singers and bands that I’ve really liked lately are:
male singers:
Jay Chou
Wang Lee Hom
Dao Lang
Stanley Huang
bands:
F.I.R.
Da Mouth
dance music:
Jolin Tsai
Elva Hsiao
Cyndi Wang
female singers:
Fish Leong
Cheer Chen
Evonne Hsu
Stefanie Sun
A-Mei
Joanna Wang
Jane Zhang
Yodai
Ding Dang
Cantopop stars singing in Mandarin
Jacky Cheung
Sammi Cheng
Gigi Leung
Twins
Karen Mok
Joey Yung
A few singers are actually American or Canadian born Taiwanese who return to Taiwan to become recording stars. There are also quite a few singers from Singapore or Malaysia. Chinese actresses like Vicki Zhao Wei,
Zhou Xun
and Li Bing Bing have made some hit records.
Hip hop and rap have influenced the music.
I’ve been listening to the Internet radio station Mandarin Live. The Chinese Music Community website is a great way to keep up on the latest releases. Youtube is also a great way to discover new bands and singers. Yesasia is a good place to buy cds. I have to confess that I’d rather the kids listen to S.H.E or Cyndi Wang than High School Musical, Hannah Montana or whoever else is popular these days. I suppose it’s a guilty pleasure but I do like the music and it helps my Chinese too.
Recently I discovered a Taiwanese jazz singer/songwriter named Joanna Wang. She’s been touted as the Chinese Norah Jones. She was born in Taiwan but raised in Los Angeles and is the daughter of a famous Taiwanese music producer. Last Fall she released her debut album “Start from Here.” The release had an full length CD all sung in English and an EP with songs in Chinese. It’s a strong album. She has recently released her second album. Check out a couple of MVs of songs from her first album here and here.
I’ve been getting into Chinese pop music lately and have been searching out names on the Internet, watching YouTube videos and happily found that iTunes actually has some mp3s that can be downloaded such as Jane Zhang, Sun Yanzi and Wang Leehom.
Wang Leehom is a recent favorite that I’ve been listening to on my way to work. He is a Chinese American born in New York and graduated from Williams College. He signed a recording contract in Taiwan when he was visting his grandparents. I downloaded his album “Heroes of Earth” from iTunes. It was recorded during his “chinked-out” phase and the music incorporates Beijing Opera elements along with rap, hip hop and pop music. I’ve not been much of a fan of rap but I really like the way that Chinese sounds with it. Here are some music videos from the album:
btw Wang Leehom starred in the movie “Lust Caution” and also sang at the Beijing Olympics closing ceremonies.
For the past few years I’ve been getting into Chinese popular music. One of my favorite artists is Faye Wong (Wong Fei). She’s been a big star in China for the past fifteen years although she has been in semi-retirement for the past few years. She also has appeared in some movies, probably best known for her role in Wang Kar Wai’s Chungking Express, a great movie. Here’s probably my favorite song by her called “No Regrets (Zhi mi bu hui).”
She also does a really good cover of the Cranberries hit “Dreams” for the Chungking Express soundtrack:
This Fall, Karen and I went out to dinner with her godmother’s daughter and her family. They were hosting a couple of exchange students from China. We were talking about music and I mentioned that I liked Wong Fei. One student replied, “Yeah, my mom likes her too.” Oh, well.
Cold Fairyland is another Chinese band that I really like. They are from Shanghai. I guess you could classify their music as New Age but they use traditional Chinese instruments (pipa) in their music. They’re excellent.
Both of the kids love music. We found in China that whenever we heard music, Xia Mei would start to shake and shimmy. Since we’ve been back I’ve been playing a lot of music on the stereo. Hua Mei likes to jump around and dance for Xia Mei and make her laugh. One of our favorites is S.H.E, a Taiwanese girl group that is very popular in China. In Guangzhou, Molly, our CHSFS rep, recommended them to me. I have to admit that I like it (and I plead guilty to any cultural bias since I definitely would not listen to the English language equivalent). It’s fun to hear Chinese used in rap music.
In the early mornings when the kids can’t sleep, I’ve been entertaining them with a Puffy concert dvd I got for them. I can turn down the lights, they’ll watch it and often fall back to sleep.
I know in a few years that their musical preferences will be out of my control but at least for the time being I can play some music that is palatable for all of us.
