For young singers Zhao Juncheng (left) and Luo Junman (right), Principal Tan gave a lot of guidance.
Zhao Juncheng said that "The Romance of Men" sung with Tan Yonglin is a deep and unforgettable memory.
Bay Area Music Love Letters The Bay Area
On September 21, the "Bay Area Rising Moon" 2021 Greater Bay Area Mid-Autumn Festival Film Music Gala will not be missing the figure of "Principal" Tan Yonglin, because he is the best representative of classic Cantonese songs. For this upcoming party, the "principal" who has experienced the Cantonese Golden Melody era expressed great expectation and happiness. For the Greater Bay Area, the "principal" of The Ancestral Guangdong Xinhui has many special emotions: "My second open-air concert was held in Yuexiu Mountain, Guangzhou, and the fans in Guangdong are particularly passionate and powerful!" ”
In the golden years of Cantonese golden songs, the "principal" used countless "golden songs" to make a scene. In his memory, in the music scene of that era, there were countless recognizable singers who composed the "golden years" of Cantonese songs together, igniting the resonance of everyone, "the songs of our time, the melody is very beautiful, the lyrics are also very elegant, simple and easy to be remembered, and everyone will feel that this is related to them."
For the future of the music scene, "Principal Tan", who was interviewed with Zhao Juncheng and Luo Junman, looks forward to the emergence of more outstanding singers, and also hopes that young people in the entire Greater Bay Area and Hong Kong can continue to close the distance and compose more good works. Written by: Nandu reporter Ding Huifeng trainee reporter Lin Wenqi
01 Bay Area Complex
When mentioning the Greater Bay Area, Tan Yonglin, whose ancestors are from Xinhui, Guangdong, said that he has deep feelings for the Greater Bay Area, "After the Hong Kong Open Stadium concert, my second open-air concert was held in Yuexiu Mountain, Guangzhou. Every time you hold a concert in Guangdong, there is no pressure, and you don't have to pay attention to when to tilt your tongue! Haha, Guangdong fans are particularly passionate, but also particularly powerful. In addition, my father's feelings for the motherland also had a great impact on Tan Yonglin, "Although he has left us, in my heart, many of the things he has said are the first."
Nandu: Originally from Xinhui, Guangdong, what are your special feelings or impressions of the Greater Bay Area?
Tam: Absolutely. Because I speak Cantonese, every time I hold a concert in Guangdong, there is no pressure at all, and I don't have to pay attention to when to tilt my tongue haha.
Nandu: What are your deep impressions of Guangzhou?
Tan Yonglin: I don't know how many concerts I have held in Guangzhou. I had an open-air concert at the Hong Kong Stadium, and the second open-air concert was in Yuexiu Mountain, Guangzhou, when you weren't born haha.
Nandu: Hong Kong is also the pearl of the Greater Bay Area, in 1997, you held a golden song return concert when Hong Kong returned to the motherland, this year is the 24th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to the motherland, standing today looking back at that time, what are your feelings?
Tam Wing Lin: After the return of Hong Kong in 1997, after so many years, I have seen many changes in Hong Kong, and there are also many opportunities after the return. Hong Kong artists have had many opportunities to perform in the mainland, and there have been more exchanges, and I think everyone's hearts will be closer.
Nandu: Your father was a veteran of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, how did he feel about the motherland? Did it affect you?
Tam Wing Lin: Absolutely. When I was a child, I used to hear Daddy say that he was a member of the Nineteenth Route Army, a transport brigade leader, and had more than forty thousand drivers and soldiers. He also said that he used to be a singer, singing is very good, but because he often goes to the school field to lead the exercises, his voice is dumb, haha. Although he has left us, in my heart, many of the things he has said have come first. Now I often look through some materials and find that many of the things he told me back then were true. He once mentioned that in 1936, he represented China to Berlin to participate in the Olympic Games. At that time, there was a top watch that was given to him by a high-level person, and I don't know if it was true, but that top watch was still there, very precious, and it was an heirloom.
Nandu: Speaking of the Greater Bay Area, what are some of the beautiful things about the Greater Bay Area in your heart?
Tan Yonglin: When the epidemic situation is clear, I still want to go for a walk. Originally there was a plan at the end of this year, because there are so many cities and fans in the entire Greater Bay Area, if you can meet the fans on stage, of course, it is very happy. And the fans in Guangdong are particularly passionate and powerful, I can also interact with Cantonese fans on stage, ah, communication is particularly fluent, of course, I am happy.
02 Golden Melody Years
In the era of golden songs in the Hong Kong music scene, the figure of Tam Wing Lin is indispensable, whether in the Wen Na Band or the individual period, the "principal" branded a chapter of "叱咤" in the Cantonese music scene at that time with the love song style. Looking back on that era, Tan Yonglin said that the biggest feature of that year was that every singer who emerged in the music scene at that time was very recognizable. To this day, Tan Yonglin still has not stopped composing the legend of the "Golden Melody Years", and he revealed that he has begun to prepare a new album.
Nandu: You are a witness to the golden age of Cantonese pop songs, what is the special style and spirit of that era in retrospect?
Tam Wing Lin: Among the Hong Kong singers of that era, everyone had their own characteristics. Speaking of which, like our predecessors Xu Guanjie and Rowan, as soon as their voices come out, you will know who they are, and the recognition is super strong. Female singers include Xu Xiaofeng, Ye Qianwen, etc., all of whom can recognize their voices when they listen. Later, like brother (Zhang Guorong), Chen Baiqiang, Mei Yanfang, as soon as you open your mouth, you will know who is singing.
But today, it's a bit of a joke. For example, if I have a friend coming back from abroad and listening to a song on the radio, we are chatting and he suddenly says, Hey, ten minutes have passed, why is this song so long? It's not over yet. In fact, these are three songs for three people, but he didn't hear it and thought it was one person. That proves that the voice and style are really too close. It may also be that the style of the song is too close, and everyone has become unable to go out of their own route.
Nandu: How did you make your own character and recognition?
Tan Yonglin: With strength (laughs), yes, with hard work, of course, there is a little luck, but I also have to do it with my heart. Take every opportunity and sing these songs. And I really ignore any of them, and I try it whenever I get the chance. Regardless of the outcome, I enjoyed the process. All those things that will come are unknown to me, but I will enjoy the process.
Nandu: You sang a lot of Cantonese love songs, "Love in late autumn", "Flowers in the Water", "Can't Say Goodbye", "The Favorite of a Lifetime", etc., these songs are now very familiar to the post-90s and 00s, what qualities do you think these songs have, can be sung across generations?
Tan Yonglin: The songs of our time had beautiful melodies and elegant lyrics, simple and easy to remember, and people would think that it was related to them. There is something about love, there is something about frustration and loss, and it is very easy to resonate. But now the melody of the song is relatively less this, sometimes the lyrics are too deep, containing too many appeals, it becomes customized for some fans, and it is difficult to be burned by the "point" of everyone's resonance.
Nandu: Is Principal Tan preparing a new song?
Tan Yonglin: Gary and I are both preparing.
Zhao Juncheng: This year, a song "My World" has been released, and now we are preparing a second new single, called "Love Second".
Tan Yonglin: What is the first thing about "love second"?
Zhao Juncheng: Friendship comes first.
Tan Yonglin: Haha, can speak. I'm also working on a new album and have already recorded a few songs. When the time comes to see if Luo Junman has a chance to develop in music, his voice is also very good.
Nandu: Are there any tips to keep you alive that you can share?
Tan Yonglin: Yes, eat more preservatives (laughs). Just kidding, do more exercise. We used to play football on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays during the day, and badminton on Mondays and Fridays. Now play bowling on Monday and Friday.
Zhao Juncheng: The principal is very good at bowling!
Tan Yonglin: Ordinary, it used to be more powerful. But now, if you get started, it's OK, close to the level of the team.
03 Younger generation
Since 1986, when the concert was held, Tan Yonglin said to the fans, "The Red Pavilion is like a 10,000-person school, you have to come to night school (listen to songs) every day, and I am with you every night, teaching you some principles of being a person with songs, I feel like the principal of this school!" Since then, "Principal Tan" has become everyone's name for Tan Yonglin. For young singers, "Principal Tan" did give them a lot of guidance.
Nandu: In the current Hong Kong and mainland music scenes, in addition to the juniors Zhao Juncheng and Luo Junman who were interviewed with you, do you have singers who are very liked and optimistic?
Tan Yonglin: Zhao Juncheng and Luo Junman, of course, it also depends on their own efforts and luck, but also on whether they can seize the opportunity, the opportunity is not randomly falling from the sky, but also to strive for it themselves. There are also some singers in Hong Kong that I am more optimistic about, such as the recent "Legend of Sound Dreams" program that has sent a group of young students. Although Yan Mingxi in the show is only 16 years old, he sings well. There is also a student, Yumi, and I am also very optimistic about her. The male singers are relatively weak, and these two girls are very malleable, one is 16 years old and the other is 14 years old, but their typhoons and emotions when singing are in place.
Nandu: If you have the opportunity, will you come to the concert with the two juniors Zhao Juncheng and Luo Junman?
Tan Yonglin: They are all artists ( artists ), so it depends on their respective schedules. I have a lot of songs that can be sung together, and when I have time, I can also tour together.
Nandu: What guidance and support do you usually have for the two young juniors, Zhao Juncheng and Luo Junmandu?
Tan Yonglin: I'm quite strict, but let them say it themselves.
Zhao Juncheng: In the past two or three years, I have gone on concert tours with the principal, and we have been to many places in the Greater Bay Area. Including me and the principal in my hometown of Zhaoqing sang the song I composed, "The Romance of Men", which is a very deep and unforgettable memory. The principal was very strict with me, and there was probably a surprise test in every rehearsal. For example, he himself was rehearsing a song and would suddenly call me "Gary to try it." So I'm in "combat mode" all the time, and I have to be ready every minute.
Luo Junman: This is the first time I have officially cooperated with the principal on stage. They often sing together in private.
Tan Yonglin: Privately we play football together a lot.
Luo Junman: Yes, so this time I am also very nervous, Gary has always been in the "combat state", but I am the first time to enter the "combat state", this time a small test of the bull knife, I hope to cooperate more in the principal's tour in the future. The principal would give us a lot of advice in private, such as gently "stuffing" a little tip into our "pocket" while maintaining our singing style. But this has been used very well. A senior with such stage experience can teach us so that we don't have to take so many S-shaped paths.
Nandu: Can Zhao Juncheng and Luo Junman reveal their future work plans?
Zhao Juncheng: My new song is planned to be promoted in the Greater Bay Area in October. The main thing is the work planning in music.
Luo Junman: I just finished filming a drama "Black Gold Storm" and filmed it in Hong Kong. After preparing to return to the mainland, there are many senior musicians in Hong Kong in the Greater Bay Area, and they also hope to have musical cooperation in the future.
Zhao Juncheng: Because we also love food, we have plans to start a business in the direction of food in the Greater Bay Area. The state also encourages Young people in Hong Kong to come and start a business, and we would like to come and develop a career other than singing.
Tam Wing Lin: Speaking of this, I also have a lot of ideas, we should bring the distance between Hong Kong and the young people in the Greater Bay Area closer, have more contact, and let everyone know more about the development of the motherland. There are many young people in Hong Kong who do not understand, and it has been difficult for them to go to the mainland to understand the epidemic in recent years. I have experienced it myself since the 1990s and seen the development of the country, especially the Greater Bay Area, like a rocket lifting off. Now there are so many opportunities, so that young people can come to the Greater Bay Area to perform more, and there will be more communication between young people and young people, and it will be easier for everyone to exchange views with each other. When young people from Hong Kong come to the mainland, they can write their feelings and voices into works and sing them, which will be easier to run into.
Nandu: Does the principal have anything to share with the young people today?
Tan Yonglin: The times are really different. The child still has to teach, not to scold him, but to reason with them. Tell them that Chinese have a tradition of respecting teachers, respecting others, and knowing etiquette. Now many children are addicted to "playing the machine" and do not chat and communicate with the elders, I have seen too much.