Last week, yuan Yawei broke through the siege with a song "Subway to Spring" and advanced to the semifinals.
Yuan Yawei's interpretation is very narrative and wins the full house.
This is a classic that is about to be forgotten by everyone. It is the theme song of the same name for the film debut "The Subway To Spring" starring Xu Jinglei and directed by Zhang Yibai 15 years ago, which was originally sung by Yu Quan and composed and produced by Zhang Yadong.
Many people appreciate Zhang Yadong's musical charm mostly through Faye Wong, and the familiar songs such as "Only Love Strangers", "Stuffy", "You Are Happy So I Am Happy" are all from Zhang Yadong's hand. He is a hermit, hiding behind music, turning his hands into clouds and covering his hands into rain.
His music is between classical and popular, and the aura that naturally emanates between the notes is sometimes obscure and low-key, and sometimes has a long afterglow, forming a unique Zhang Yadong-style music.
Zhang Yadong created major works
"Only Love Strangers", "Stuffy", "You are happy so I am happy" - Faye Wong
"The Queen and the Dream", "As early as the beginning", "Dance to the music" - Li Yuchun
"The Subway to Spring" - Hazumi
"Race against the clock" - Na Ying
"Flowers" - Ye Bei
"Sunset Boulevard", "Light in the Night" - Zhang Liangying
"Endless Shakespeare" - Zhao Wei
"Immortal" - Rene Liu
"Secret Stream", "Baby" - Karen Mok
Production of "Sunny Days" and "Mountains and Rivers" - Dou Wei
Produced "Born like a Summer Flower" - Park Shu
Produced "Will Love" - Faye Wong
Produced "Elsewhere" - Xu Wei
Production of "Hanabi" - Wang Feng
Soundtrack of the movie "Lan Yu", "Yesterday" and "Hero"
01
With Faye Wong's heart, there is a spirit rhinoceros
The long-term cooperation between Zhang Yadong and Faye Wong can be said to have added a bright color to the Chinese music scene in the 90s. Many people think that their first cooperation stemmed from 1996's "Impetuous", in fact, as early as 1994, Zhang Yadong wrote a song for Faye Wong, "Gone with the Wind", which was included in the album "Pleasing Yourself".
Previously, Zhang Yadong participated in the production of Dou Wei's album "Sunny Days", and after Dou Wei's introduction, he had the first real cooperation with Faye Wong, that is, "Impetuous" in 1996.
"Impetuous" caused a strong response as soon as it came out, British rock and folk temperament, is a revolutionary album of Faye Wong, since then Zhang Yadong has become Faye Wong's royal producer and opened a long-term cooperation.
Subsequently, 1999's "Only Love Strangers", 2000's "Fables" and 2003's "Will Love" were all produced by Zhang Yadong.
In particular, "Will Love" has enabled Faye Wong to win the Best Chinese Female Singer of the Taiwan Golden Melody Awards, pushing her to the throne of the Supreme Queen of Heaven, it can be said that Faye Wong has achieved Zhang Yadong, and Zhang Yadong has also made Faye Wong embark on a maverick musical road.
He said that without Faye Wong, there would be no current state of career, and Faye Wong gave him a particularly great help from the beginning. It is also because he helps Faye Wong make music, only in Hong Kong and Taiwan will people know Zhang Yadong, and there is no doubt that because of Faye Wong, zhang Yadong's market has been broadened.
Many people say that Zhang Yadong and Faye Wong are very similar, in fact, they are not very similar, Faye Wong is a person of fire, the kind that Leo loves to come out of, and Zhang Yadong is a Pisces, who loves to hide when things happen. But it is such two people who feel out of tune, but there is a spark in the music.
Zhang Yadong and Faye Wong have known each other for a long time, but their usual words are very few, and the cooperation basically stems from a sense of trust, that is, having a sharp mind. It is this kind of sympathy that has prompted their long-term cooperation, and Zhang Yadong has also publicly stated that Faye Wong is the most comprehensible among the singers he has worked with, and that recording a song is achieved in one go and is very confident.
Although Faye Wong gradually retired after the release of "Will Love", the two still maintained contact. In 2016, Faye Wong invited Zhang Yadong again to compose a new song "Dust" for her.
As well as the sensational "Phantom Music" concert at the end of last year, also by Zhang Yadong as the music director and live guitarist, Tianhou Faye wong and her royal producer jointly created a dreamlike concert for fans, it can be said that the man who understands Faye Wong the most in music may be Zhang Yadong.
02
A unique producer
Zhang Yadong was a child to learn cello, when the family was in difficulty, there was no money to buy a piano, so his mother lent him a worn-out cello for him to learn, he also remembered that the cello board was cracked, can only be glued with a lot of tape.
In the blink of an eye, many years have passed, and today he is known as the best musician in the mainland. The artists he has worked with are all first-line singers, and the classic albums he has participated in the production are not only those of Faye Wong.
Dou Wei's "Mountains and Rivers" and Xu Wei's "Elsewhere".
Park Shu's "Born like a Summer Flower":
Wang Feng's "Fireworks":
There are also Li Yuchun, Karen Mok, Zhang Liangying, Liu Ruoying who later cooperated... They are all heavyweight singers in the Chinese music scene.
Zhang Yadong is Li Yuchun's Bole, as early as When Li Yuchun participated in the super girl, he noticed her, he always thought that Chunchun's voice was very recognizable, and had his own ideas in music, so after her super girl won the championship, he helped Chunchun make the first song of her debut, "Happy Winter".
Later, he completed Li Yuchun's first solo album "Queen and Dream", and single-handedly arranged the 5 songs of the entire album and all the productions, integrating the diversified elements of Latin, lyricism, rock and jazz, and making a good start for Li Yuchun's development in the Chinese music scene.
In 2014, he once again produced a concept album for Li Yuchun, "1987 I Didn't Know I Would Meet You", and the sales of word of mouth were very good.
Although Zhang Yadong and Chunchun have not cooperated for seven years, Li Yuchun's first album and first single were composed by Zhang Yadong, and Zhang Yadong understands Li Yuchun's original musical dream better than other music producers.
Therefore, in the album, Zhang Yadong created "Ruchu" for her, so that everyone heard Li Yuchun, who did not forget his original heart and insisted on doing a good job.
Zhang Yadong is very suitable for this kind of conceptual record, that is, an album has a specific theme, and the albums produced by him are almost all labeled with his unique personal label.
When making Faye Wong's Fable, he was in Italy, there was a kind of exotic style, and his mood was more melancholy at the time, so the style of the whole album was very European, and the song speed was also very slow, only "Chanel" was slightly cheerful, and the rest were gray.
Later, in an interview, he also admitted that most of "Fables" expressed his own feelings, he should review, he was helping Faye Wong make a record, should not put too much emphasis on himself.
Zhang Yadong makes songs, likes to use minor keys, melancholy, very dark, which may also be related to his own personality. He also scored films, such as the movie "Lan Yu", "Yesterday", etc., most of which exude a sad tone.
However, when composing the theme song of Zhang Yimou's film "Hero", he showed a different style from the past, with a majestic atmosphere and quite oriental charm.
03
Songwriter of guest singers
The industry recognizes Zhang Yadong as the first producer in the mainland, although this statement needs to be verified, but I have to admit that if it were not for this expressionless and weak man, the weight and gold content of the mainland music producer would not be so high.
There are no musicians who applaud and are not criticized, and so is Zhang Yadong, who made a name for himself by Faye Wong. Some people regard him as a genius who is obsessed with electronic music, while others scoff at his music. Although his fame is getting bigger and bigger, everyone is more concerned about the famous singers who work with him.
So at the end of 1997, when he quietly released an album called "Ya Tung" in Hong Kong, almost everyone was surprised and a little curious.
Zhang Yadong said that he wanted to do something that would not make him blush after many years, so "Ya Tung" is not a pop album, it is very private, and the album is full of psychedelic electronic music that he is obsessed with.
Zhang Yadong actually has a good voice, although he can't talk about any singing skills, but this clumsiness and nature have a kind of skill and experience that is natural. His voice came out so lazily, a little sticky, but with an inexplicable fresh charm.
In 2009, he released his second album, Undercurrent, this time singing only the song "Slow Current" in it. The other songs were performed by 9 singers, including Faye Wong, Karen Mok, Park Shu, Yuan Yawei, Tahara, and Miyu Sakamoto.
The whole album also fully shows Zhang Yadong's deep innermost feelings, he hopes to get comfort in the submerged notes, so it is also named "Undercurrent", Zhang Yadong once again showed his first-class production level, the tune of each song is closely linked to the theme, very unified, he also successfully won the 10th Chinese Music Media Awards Best Producer.
Whether it is making his own music or helping other singers to make albums, Zhang Yadong has shown great sincerity, and it is precisely because of his rigor and persistence that his music has become the golden sign of the Chinese music scene.
Zhang Yadong is now the premier musician in the mainland, his subtle and romantic, deep and introverted personality, which is quite in tune with his music. Good music can change the way we live, and Zhang Yadong has always insisted on making good music behind the scenes, leisurely and charming, if you have loved Faye Wong, then you will also meet him.
About the author: Liu Nini, a contracted author of Taoji Music, is a secretarial dog living in Chengdu. In this laid-back city, occasionally serious, occasionally literary. Insist on buying CDs, love essential music, and are committed to being an audiophile who listens to music from a point of view.
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Text: Jonny