▲ Tenor Singer Lee Kwang Hee
"Yin Rongwan has been diligently preaching good music throughout his life, and his spirit has left the wise and wise hundred worlds with a fresh breeze." On March 19, the farewell ceremony of the body of Li Guangxi, a famous tenor singer, opera performance artist and first-class actor of the Central Opera House, summed up Li Guangxi's life.
Writer Bing Xin once wrote an inscription for Li Guangxi: "Go your own way and sing your own songs." Until 2021, 92-year-old Li Guangxi still sang on the stage. In Li Guangxi's heart, singing is his life, the stage is his paradise, Li Guangxi once said: "I chose the happiest profession." Serving the society with songs is the meaning and value of my life, and I am willing to do my best for this. ”
On top of talent, it must be put into practice
▲ In 1959, tenor Singer Lee Kwang-hee played Asker in the opera "The Cargo Man and the Miss" at the Central Opera House.
Born in Tianjin in 1929, Li Guangxi succeeded his father, who died prematurely, at the age of 17, and became a worker in the Tianjin Kailuan Mining Bureau, shouldering the burden of supporting his family. Although he did not study in a professional music school, with his love for music, he sang in every theater in Tianjin in a few years and became a well-known amateur singer. In 1953, the Central Opera House performed in Tianjin, and Li Guangxi was deeply shocked by his first contact with opera. Soon, Li Guangxi applied for the Central Opera House and was admitted on the spot. After that, Li Guangxi set a record of 30 consecutive performances without changing people with the Western classical opera "La Traviata" and "Cargo Lang and Miss", and won the reputation of "Opera Prince".
Li Guangxi is known as the "evergreen tree of the music world" by the industry. He once said in an interview that success is the result of talent and hard work. "Talent can help people deeply understand the beauty of artistic expression. When I was a child, I used to go home and imitate every time I watched a show, and I liked to think about it in my heart. After taking the stage at the age of 27, I traced the image stored in my heart and released it on the stage. ”
On top of talent, it must be put into practice. In order to maintain the elasticity and strength of his voice and appear in front of the audience at all times in the best condition, Li Guangxi insisted on swimming, holding dumbbells, and walking long roads for decades; he did not smoke or drink, insisted on practicing his voice every day, and even learned Russian in order to imitate Soviet songs. It is the persistence of dripping water through stones that Li Guangxi can present the most moving performance on the stage.
The first Chinese "Armang", radiant
In 1955, the famous Soviet soprano Wa A. Temin Qieva came to China to teach, and after a year of study, the theater decided to arrange a foreign opera as a graduation report for the students. Under the direction of Jie Min Qiyewa, Verdi's opera La Traviata became the first Western opera produced and performed by Chinese.
According to the national conditions at that time, Premier Zhou instructed that when performing "La Traviata," in addition to the Ministry of Culture, it is necessary to use the strength of the whole country to do a good job, and who is suitable for who is suitable to stage. Although Li Guangxi was a fledgling at that time, the leader felt that his conditions were good, so he ranked as a learning actor in the fourth group of the male protagonist Afried Armand, and watched the old actors rehearse every day.
▲ In 1956, tenor Singer Lee Guangxi played Alfred in the opera "La Traviata" performed at the Central Opera House.
"What I didn't expect was that two months later, when the rehearsal premiere was made, Soviet experts suggested that I be shown." Li Guangxi wrote in the article "Opera 'Traviata' 66 Years". Li Guangxi also mentioned in the article that the performance quality of "La Traviata" has been improved through practice and exchange. "In the early 1980s, the theater invited the famous American female conductor Caldwell. After working with us for a while, she said that she has worked with many world-renowned singers in New York, but the Chinese actors perform the most touching. ”
▲ On National Day in 1959, teacher Li Guangxi and her lover Ms. Wang Ziwei were at Beihai Bridge.
In life, people are like a spring breeze
Radiant on the stage, in life, Li Guangxi is also an elder who makes people feel like a spring breeze.
"I was very impressed when I first entered the theater and saw Teacher Li, wearing a white shirt, a straight posture, healthy and sunny, always with a smile on my face, and I was very concerned about and cared for us at that time. Every time I met him on a different occasion, I always asked: 'How are you?' What about theaters? From my 1993 international competition to starring in the first new opera "Rigoletto", to "Drinking Song" in "La Traviata" with Mr. Li, Mr. Li gave me so much teaching, help and guidance. "Mo Hong, vice president of the Central Opera House, recalled that in 2014, Mo Hong's first record was about to be published, and she asked Li Guangxi to help write the preface, Li Guangxi did not say a word, not only made the preface but also mentioned the words for her record, which made Mo Hong very moved." Teacher Li loves the stage and opera career. He is the senior teacher and colleague I have admired since I was a child! ”
Because she lives in the same building, You Hongfei, a soprano singer at the Central Opera House, used to go to Li Guangxi's house on the seventh floor to sit during the New Year's Festival, or when she was confused artistically. "In the past few years, Teacher Li personally opened the door for me. In the past two years, his legs and feet have not been very convenient, but my aunt opened the door for me, and I could see him sitting at the table waiting for me at a glance. Every time he went to Teacher Li's house, he dressed very neatly, even if it was hot and did not wear a suit, he would wear a clean and tidy white shirt. Then he would personally make me a cup of tea and talk to me kindly for a long time. ”
In 2019, You Hongfei went to Italy as a visiting scholar to study. When she returned from school, the first thing she thought of was to report the results of her studies to Li Guangxi. "Teacher Li said to me at that time: 'You can make up your mind to learn, it's really not simple!' Teacher Li said that when he stood on the stage, he wanted to send every word he sang into the ears of the audience. And I also hope to find this relaxed, clear singing style from Italy. So Teacher Li is particularly happy to see my learning results. ”
For the death of Li Guangxi, You Hongfei has many regrets. "On the day Teacher Li died, I thought about going to his house to help. While pressing the elevator, I suddenly thought that this road from the third floor to the seventh floor might be the last time I walked... After returning from studying in Italy, I hope to record and expound my learning results and the first foreign opera "La Traviata" staged by the Central Opera House with new audio-visual technology and graphic treatises. Last year, I recorded an interview with Teacher Li, who told a lot of stories and details when performing "La Traviata". Originally, in March this year, we had made an appointment with Teacher Li to let Teacher Li lead the young actors to sing "La Traviata" again on the stage of the upcoming Grand Theater of the Central Opera House, singing the popular "Toast Song", but these can no longer be realized... However, I know that the spirit of Teacher Li will always remain in the hearts of this generation of young actors. Yu Hongfei said with tears.
March 25, 2022 China Culture Daily
The first edition featured a special report
"Li Guangxi: "Serving the society with songs is the meaning and value of my life""
Editor-in-charge: Chen Xiaoyue