At the 59th Grammy Awards in 2017,
There is a link,
It's a tribute to the music masters who passed away last year,
Familiar European and American faces kept flashing,
They are all world-famous legendary musicians,
Suddenly, an oriental face appeared on the screen!
She's the Grammy of the year,
The only Chinese musician to be honored,
The Grammy's introduction to her is:
The first lady of Chinese Opera
China's first opera lady
Can you imagine when she took this picture,
Are you 90 years old?
Her voice has danced all over the world,
Known as the "warbler of China",
Her "Ballad of the Great Wall",
"The Final Victory Is Ours",
Works such as "Clam Shell" are household names in China!
She is a world-renowned soprano singer, vocal educator,
One of the founders of modern vocal music education in China,
She has won the "Golden Bell Award", the highest honor award for Chinese music and art.
The French government also awarded her the "Order of the French National Officer".
She has won numerous awards in music throughout her life,
It is also Liao Changyong, Wei Song, Wang Zuoxin and many others,
The mentor of the world's famous music stars,
She is a legendary woman who is revered as a gentleman,
It is a real national treasure master in China!
She's over 90 years old,
I still insist on teaching the students.
She has not accepted a single "closed disciple",
Because she didn't close her doors until the last moment of her life......
Her life is a century,
March 4 is the first anniversary of her death.
Today, we should all pay tribute to her!
She is Zhou Xiaoyan
On August 17, 1917, Zhou Xiaoyan was born in Wuhan, Hubei.
His father, Zhou Cangbai, was the first generation of bankers in the mainland.
He has made many contributions to the revolutionary cause of the mainland.
Mother Dong Yanliang was born in a scholarly family.
Zhou Cangbai
My father has no musical cells, and he can't play and sing everything.
But she loves music! When her mother was pregnant with her,
My father took my mother to a concert every day,
He also said that "music is the best prenatal education".
When she was a little older, her father bought her a lot of musical instruments.
Guitar, banjo, piano, violin......
Let her play with her brothers every day.
Under the influence of his father,
She developed a keen interest in music from a young age.
At the age of 18,
She has a dream of making a big splash in music,
Admitted to Shanghai National College of Music,
Learn Xi two main courses: piano and vocal music.
In 1937, the Anti-Japanese War broke out.
Shanghai fell and was ruled by the Japanese army,
She was unwilling to stay in the occupied area and be a submissive of the Japanese.
He resolutely gave up his studies and returned to his hometown Wuhan.
She is firmly on the road to realizing her dreams,
But he also has the courage to give up his future for the nation at any time!
After returning to her hometown, she quickly threw herself into the anti-Japanese movement.
She helped the soldiers sew cotton clothes,
Go to the hospital to help take care of the wounded,
and friends formed a Wuhan chorus to sing anti-Japanese songs,
Since then, she has embarked on the road of music to save the country.
"The Great Wall is thousands of miles long,
Outside the Great Wall is the hometown,
……
Forty thousand compatriots are the same,
The new Great Wall is thousands of miles long. ”
She just turned 20 years old with tears in her eyes,
In the streets, in hospitals, under artillery fire,
With her unique voice,
Sang "The Ballad of the Great Wall" affectionately over and over again.
After her singing "Ballad of the Great Wall" was recorded on a record,
It quickly became popular all over the motherland!
This song has touched countless Chinese,
It also stimulates the patriotic enthusiasm of overseas Chinese!
Overseas Chinese are enthusiastically donating money and materials to the motherland.
Some even give up outright
The superior life abroad returns to China to resist the war!
sang "The Ballad of the Great Wall" with tears, which became a strong agent for fierce people's hearts
is not only "The Ballad of the Great Wall",
"Song of Eight Hundred Heroes",
"The Final Victory Is Ours" and so on,
The popular anti-Japanese song,
She sang it all for the first time!
Throughout her life,
The biggest influence on her is,
Her world-minded father,
Let her understand what is the highest and most good!
One place after another was occupied, one city after another fell,
Her father was convinced that China would win.
Father thinks that when the war is over,
If China wants to build, it needs a large number of learned talents.
So it was decided to send her and her eldest brother to study in France,
Before she left for France, her father instructed:
"Don't forget that you are a Chinese,
If we learn well, we must win glory for the Chinese everywhere.
Whether you have a diploma or not is secondary, you have to learn real skills.
After completing your studies, you must come back and serve the motherland. ”
At that young age, she had taken her father's words to heart.
In 1938, after she arrived in Paris, France,
Entered the Russian Conservatory in Paris to study Xi vocal music.
After 7 years of hard study,
At the age of 28, he appeared on the stage of the National Theater in Paris.
With exquisite skills, unique singing voice,
conquered the fastidious French in an instant,
The next day, her photo, name,
It appeared in the major French newspapers!
She is thriving in Europe,
Able to speak English, German, French,
Songs of various countries are sung in Italian and Russian.
At the age of 29, he appeared in the White House Theater in London, England.
And then in Luxembourg,
Solo concerts,
After that, he was invited to visit Berlin, Germany.
Solo concerts again,
After the performance, the German newspaper excitedly reported:
"A Chinese warbler sings Schubert's song!"
She also worked in Paris for Zhao Yuanren, Qian Sanqiang,
Zhu Kezhen and other masters sang songs of the Chinese War of Resistance,
It has stimulated the patriotic enthusiasm of overseas Chinese to return to China.
Read Zhao Yuanren's story here.
The Paris Weekly once commented:
"Her flawless vocal technique, legato, skipping,
Light, semi-fortiss, and fortissima are bright,
Unusual enjoyment. ”
Zhou Xiaoyan
In 1947, she ascended to the rank of world-class musician.
Gafu Hall, where concerts are held,
Successfully held his own solo concert,
After that, she was also invited to participate in the twentieth century,
One of the most important music events:
The first "Prague Spring" concert,
Also in attendance was Shostakovich,
Menuhin and other masters.
She has brought Chinese music works to the international stage!
This event established her position in the world music industry,
Invitations from all over the world are flooding the world,
She has become the world-famous "Chinese warbler"!
9 years in Europe,
She is always thinking about her motherland on the other side of the ocean.
As soon as she had the opportunity, she spread Chinese culture to Westerners.
Every time she takes the stage, she is wearing a cheongsam,
Every time he performs, he insists on singing Chinese songs.
Someone asked a French sinologist,
Why did you become interested in Chinese?
He replied, "I was,
I heard a Chinese girl singing a Chinese song,
It makes me feel that Chinese Chinese language is beautiful!"
And the Chinese girl he was talking about,
It was Zhou Xiaoyan......
No matter how good it is abroad, it is someone else's home,
At the height of her career in Europe,
resolutely chose to return to the motherland, which was poor and white at that time.
In 1947, with a patriotic heart,
and the dream of saving the country through music embarked on the road back to China.
After returning home, she ran around for her suffering compatriots,
Shanghai students launched the "Anti-Hunger and Anti-Civil War" campaign,
She accepted the students' invitation without saying a word.
He sang at Fudan University, Jiaotong University and other universities.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China
She was hired as a vocal teacher by the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.
Since then, he has been teaching for nearly 70 years.
When she returned to China, she was already over 30 years old.
Family and friends are anxious for her,
persuaded her to find a similar man and get married.
But she wouldn't,
She's going to wait for the best person for her to show up!
People who lack nothing but love,
Only then can I have the confidence to wait for pure love.
This beautiful, strong, independent woman,
finally waited for her true destiny,
Won the love she wanted.
He is the grandmaster of the Chinese generation of films,
Zhang Junxiang
Zhang Junxiang at Yale University in the United States
Zhang Junxiang, who is seven years older than her,
In 1927, he was admitted to the Department of Western Literature of Tsinghua University.
In 1936, he was admitted as a publicly-funded international student with excellent results.
Entered the Yale Graduate School of Drama,
Specializing in directing, part-time screenwriting and other subjects.
After graduating with a master's degree in 1939,
Then he traveled across the ocean and returned to the motherland in the smoke of gunpowder.
He is a passionate patriotic young man.
In 1952, this pair of talented and beautiful women finally became married.
held a simple wedding,
Promise each other that they will never leave each other for the rest of their lives,
Later, their lives did fulfill each other's original promises,
Their love and marriage are still rumored to be good stories today.
However, the happy and warm days did not last long,
And that catastrophe came with a bang!
She can't read, she can't sing, she can't teach students,
The young daughter was sent to Heilongjiang to cut the queue.
The husband who created the art of cinema was sent to raise pigs,
She was sent to raise chickens as a music and art teacher.
A pair of talented and good-looking artists were been
People ridiculed her as "Pig Male" and "Chicken Woman".
Her father was critically ill, and she applied to the organization.
I hope to go home and see my father for the last time,
Such a reasonable request was cruelly denied,
The answer was, "When people die, what are you going to do?"
In those absurd days,
She could only swallow all her unwillingness and tears.
What pained her the most was not what happened to her.
Rather, a large number of books and records were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution.
China's education level and cultural level are regressing rapidly!
In such a difficult time,
She never gave up on nurturing students.
She risked being criticized,
Take students to their homes to listen to old French records that "survived",
Lecture them, teach them to sing,
During the Cultural Revolution,
She has cultivated a group of students with international standards!
After the end of the Cultural Revolution,
An American journalist asked her:
"You've suffered a lot in your life,
Do you regret coming back from France?"
She replied, "No regrets."
This is my home country.
I did my part for her, and I don't regret it.
If I didn't contribute to her, I would regret it. ”
When I went abroad, my father said to me:
First, don't forget that you are Chinese,
Second, come back to serve the motherland after completing your studies.
At that time, I thought I had already learned,
I performed it and received affirmation and praise,
Should be back.
Motherland, this is not illusory,
No matter how poor she is, no matter how backward she is, no matter how difficult it is,
A person must always be full of the motherland
Sincere affection and unhesitating love.
This love is unforgettable and cannot be destroyed.
This is her simple "truth".
Some foreign journalists have ill intentions,
I want to hear her talk about the darkness of the Cultural Revolution,
She didn't say a word about the motherland, but just said:
"It taught me a lot of things, like raising chickens."
She survived this catastrophe,
Get back on the podium, pick up the chalk,
We are passionate about the promotion of education.
In her class, whether you are rich or poor,
She will treat them all equally.
She has only one criterion for accepting students.
That is: "Is he patriotic?"
She is very helpful to all her students,
They have put forward such a principle:
Always understand that you are Chinese,
We must work for the motherland and sing for the people.
In 1984, at the Vienna International Vocal Competition,
She took 4 Chinese students who she personally trained,
defeated another 243 Golden Voices from all over the world,
Won three gold awards and one silver award in one fell swoop!
Shock the whole world!
Even the chairman of the jury exclaimed:
"In less than 20 years,
The Western opera stage will be occupied by the Chinese"!
At the age when it should have been retired,
She still walks on the road,
As soon as I hear the singing, when I see the students,
Her eyes lit up with energy!
His wife Zhang Junxiang once said:
"Xiao Yan, except for lying down on the bed and sleeping,
The rest of the time was all given to her students. ”
In her life, there are no days off,
She is always available for students to attend classes whenever they need them.
She said that her knowledge and experience will not be taken with her in the future.
At any time, as long as the student is willing to learn, she is willing to teach.
Not only does she teach her students how to sing,
They are also taught how to behave.
She told the students,
If you want to be a perfect singer,
You must first cultivate your inner beauty,
Only those who are beautiful inside,
in order to sing a shocking song!
If there is a student who has difficulties in life,
She would let the students live in their own homes,
Quietly help poor students pay their tuition,
She is reluctant to let any talented student,
Buried because of economic conditions.
Opera is not popular in China,
She has cultivated a large number of outstanding opera talents,
But many students go abroad after completing their studies.
Because there is no place for it in China.
In order to help the motherland retain talents,
In order to give these students a Chinese stage,
At the age of 70, she founded Zhou Xiaoyan Opera Center!
There was a saying at the time
"Chinese opera has entered a trough",
But she didn't believe it,
She wants to bring Chinese opera to create brilliance!
She took her students to rehearse the classic opera "Rigoletto",
As a result, I accidentally fell during rehearsal,
Resulting in a fracture of the femur in the thigh.
Even in the hospital room,
She still insists on guiding the actors,
In the end, the performance of "Rigoletto" was a great success,
It proves that opera can also shine in China!
In 1996, hand in hand with her,
My wife who has been in the wind and rain for 40 years has passed away......
Someone persuaded her that it was time for her to live abroad and retire.
And she said resolutely:
"I'm not going,
My students are all here,
What am I going to do there!
I don't do it for foreigners to train students.
I only train students for China. ”
The year 1995 marked the 50th anniversary of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War.
At the age of 78, she stands on the Great Wall,
Wearing a red flower cheongsam on a black background,
sang "The Ballad of the Great Wall" with tears again,
When she was 20 years old, she cried because the country hated the family feud,
At the age of 78, she cried again,
That's because of seeing the prosperity of the motherland!
She sighed:
"I've been from 1917 to the present,
I've experienced a lot, I've witnessed a lot,
The poverty and weakness of the old China, the development of the new China,
There are many more talented people than me,
They may not be as lucky as me to live this big.
So I want to live every day,
can give more and live a more meaningful life. ”
She said she had to pay more,
That's what she said, and that's what she did.
At the age of 81, she was diagnosed with a cerebral thrombosis.
Being unable to speak is a symptom of a stroke.
A month later, the condition has just improved somewhat.
She called the students to come to class.
Later, an acupuncturist approached her,
said that she was sure that she could be cured, and when she heard it,
The first sentence he said was:
"Great, I'm working again!"
After the first day of treatment, she was able to walk with her hands raised.
She was excited: "I can wear high heels again!"
I can play the piano again!"
Sure enough, 3 days later, she was really wearing high heels,
Step briskly and listen to the students' concerts.
At the age of 82, she had another major operation,
After the operation, she caused pneumonia, and her relatives came to see her.
She lay on the hospital bed as if talking to herself:
"I just had a dream,
Take students to participate in international competitions, the location suddenly changes,
The repertoire has also changed, and I'm sweating in a hurry!"
She defeated the disease again and again,
Walk back to the world from the ghost gate again and again.
It's because she's to her own students,
There are still too many worries that can't be let go!
Her son used to be very envious of his mother's students,
Because mom gave them all her time,
When he grew up, he gradually understood.
He wrote this letter to his mother:
"You have only your students in your mind, not your children,
Now I feel that you are right,
If you only have children in mind at that time,
Even if we were to make a product, there would only be two ......."
From 2000 to 2002, she was in Shanghai,
He has presided over three international opera master classes.
More than a dozen foreign experts were invited to teach.
It has promoted the exchange of music and culture between China and the West.
Because of her contributions, she was awarded,
Golden Bell Award, the highest honor award for Chinese music and art,
The French government also awarded her the Order of Merit of France.
For us, we can live with oxygen,
But for her, she can't live without students!
During the SARS period, school classes were suspended in Shanghai.
This period of time made her particularly difficult,
She said bitterly, "I'm sick to death."
I can't afford to live without students,
They are my life!"
On 18 June 2005,
At the age of 88,
He led the singing of "The Ballad of the Great Wall" on the stage of the Shanghai Grand Theatre.
Someone advised her not to sing, in case it broke down,
ruined a lifetime's reputation,
She smiled indifferently and said:
"It's been 60 years since the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, and we should sing it.
This time it's not about the voice, it's about the spirit. ”
When she was 95 years old,
She also insisted on 20 classes a week.
One student said,
He is a close disciple of Teacher Zhou.
She immediately retorted: Who told you that I closed the door!
Someone asked her when she was going to close.
She replied:
"When the coffin is closed, I will work for the rest of my life!"
Batches of students under her education,
It gradually grows into a good tree, pointing straight to the clouds.
She has produced many world-renowned singers,
These students are either staying in the country.
nurturing a new generation of musical talents for the motherland;
or active on the international stage,
Strive to win honor for China!
This great teacher is truly peach and plum all over the world!
Do you know?
These famous singers are all from her disciples.
Liu Jie, who was originally a railway worker,
He was the first for the new China
Singer who won the International Vocal Award.
Zhang Jianyi, a world-famous tenor singer,
At the end of the 20th century, it was taken by the Cambridge International Biographical Center in England,
Awarded the "Outstanding Talent of the Twentieth Century" award,
In 2005, he was awarded the "Highest Achievement Award for 100 Musicians".
He was also selected for the book "Outstanding Musicians of the Twentieth Century".
Anyone who knows will be surprised!
Before he met Zhou Xiaoyan,
is a glassfactory worker with no knowledge of music theory.
Wei Song, her eldest apprentice,
National first-class actor, famous tenor singer,
Judge of the International Vocal Competition in Paris, France,
He is currently the director of the Shanghai Opera House.
Known as the best tenor in the world today!