CHINESE MUSIC, LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE (Essay Sample)

Chinese Music Name of Student Institution of Affiliation Course name and code Name of Professor Date Singapore: The Sparrow with a Bamboo Twig by Liang Wern Fook The song The Sparrow with a Bamboo Twig was first released in 1990 as part of Liang Wern Fook’s album Xin Jia Po Pai (Singapore Pie) ("Liang Wern Fook’s songs," n.d.). The song is classified under the Xinyao genre of Mandarin songs (a fusion of acoustic harmony and a cappella). Using three dialects; Cantonese, Hokkien, and Mandarin, the song is a narration of life in Singapore, with the author recounting the different times and experiences his family and friends had in the 20th century. It is made up of seven verses and does not carry any distinct chorus, yet its tune, rhythmic acoustics and harmony are soothing. The first verse enlightens the listener of a time when the persona’s father resided in Hoi Shan Street, around the same time there was a Japanese attack in 1941. The singer mentions that he was born while they lived at Tekka (a multi-use building comprising of a wet market, food centre and short) located in Little India, Singapore. The term Tekka means “the foot of the small bamboos” in the Hokkiens dialect, and also “bamboo clumps” in Mandarin. This building played a role in shaping the artist’s life and musical career. The initial two verses are in the Cantonese dialect. The third and fourth verses inform of his school years, years he spent with his childhood friends and his religious beliefs. The listener learns that he has a Buddhist upbringing where the protagonist could run to Buddha’s feet to pray whenever he felt he had done wrong such as “not studying hard, verse 4 line 3.” The singer then takes a positive twist when he informs of how well and better his life is going, and how he treasures the things he possesses. The verse also reflects the development of Singapore as a country, one that did not have much but currently vaunts long strides in development, something which its citizen treasures. The lyrics end in a cheerful mood where the singer is excited about his cousin’s return from San Francisco (employing the Hokkien dialect). He insinuates that his friend had left but now is coming back home “like a little sparrow carrying a twig verse 6 line 3,4.,” indicating the friend had left for greener pastures and is now returning home well-off than he was as the comparison of a sparrow flying back with a twig insinuates good fortune. The song ends with a romantic moment (in Cantonese) where the friend (referred to as the little sparrow carrying a twig) spots a pretty lady at the head or the street. The fact that we are told the lady has a beautiful knot in her hair indicates the love-struck character, already realizing the beauty surrounding them. Dr Lian Wern Fook, 49, is a writer, award-winning Singer-composer, and educator in Chinese literature and language. He is regarded as a pioneer of the xinyao movement, with over 200 songs and two Mandarin musicals to his name. During the 1980s, Liang and other university students were influenced by the Campus Folk Song Movement from Taiwan. They began composing and performing their songs often identified by clean acoustics, and a group of people singing and harmonizing together, accompanied by a guitar. At an interview, Liang acknowledges the influence of the changing times and his upbringing process to have shaped his music. Liang’s songs enjoy massive popularity, with six of his songs being voted in the top ten list of Xinyao songs. Liang’s songs have a distinctive style, with some expressing the feelings of young people, socio-political issues, local culture, and love for Singapore (Chor & Chin, n.d.). For someone willing to learn about Singaporean culture, Liang’s songs could be the best fit. The Sparrow with a bamboo twig brings about the theme of nostalgia in a poetic, artful, yet refreshing and appealing way. The melodies in the song are soothing, artistic, and not overly dramatic. The Swallow with a Bamboo Twig is played on radio and participates in spreading the Cantonese dialect. The singer confesses that the song is about his feelings towards his country, and adopts a rich sense of time and place in the lyrics as well as affection and pride for his country Singapore (Keane, 2016). The song sends a warm and heartfelt message that home is always best. Mainland China: A Piece of Red Cloth by Cui Jian The song A Piece of Red Cloth was first performed on May 20, 1989, by Chinese singer and guitarist Cui Jian, on a makeshift stage at Tiananmen Square. The performance occurred 15 days before a crackdown, at the height of mass protests in dozens of Chinese cities, engulfed with a tense mood, panicking the then leadership. The song is made up of four verses and a chorus. The song A Piece of Red Cloth is a tune about alienation under the popular Rock genre. The title borrows from the fact that the singer blindfolded his eyes using a red cloth (a symbolism of feelings) and led a performance to motivate the young student activists, viewing them as heroes. The first verse narrates how the singer sees happiness in the sky even with his eyes blindfolded with a piece of red cloth. He then accepts that the joy, makes him feel a sense of peace, oblivious of the hard times they faced. He introduces romance in the third verse, revealing that his hand was clasped by someone ready to make a life-changing decision. The artist brings about an ironic undertone that he is held by a hand, strong and hard, yet not as cold as steel. He senses the warmth in the person’s blood, a feeling that puts him in a state of tranquillity. He specifies that the land he is in is not a wasteland, an allusion to the environment in China during the time of performance. The land is dry and cracked, and he felt like drinking water, yet, his mouth was already locked up in the intimacies of a kiss. He informs that he is not leaving. Cui divulges that his songs are a mixture of politics and love, hiding political meanings within his love lyrics ("一块红布 (A piece of red cloth)," n.d.). Cui Jian is regarded as the father of China’s rock music and an iconic symbol representing the voice of Chinese youth during the landmark 1989 Tiananmen Square student protest where he performed Nothing to My Name and A Piece of Red Cloth. He was born in 1961 in Beijing and ruled the 1980s rock n roll music scenes with his Rock on the New March and Restart. Cui used to be a trumpet performer in Beijing Symphony Orchestra, where he focused on performing world-renown tunes. Cui had successfully merged the strong influence of Western music beats into the local folk music in North Shanxi province on the Huangtu Plateau. He boasts the first rock tune to be sung in China, Penniless. By the time of A Piece o...