Xinhua News Agency, Hong Kong, October 17th Title: “Music Messenger” Mo Hualun: Traveling all over the world and singing China
Xinhua News Agency reporter Lu Min
He was born in Beijing and grew up in Hong Kong, studying in the United States, and appearing on the stage in Europe; he was born with big eyes and high nose bridge, and had a “good voice” praised by Pavarotti; he knew Chinese, English, Italian, German, French and other languages; he dressed up and sang opera, but couldn’t hear the sound, and he couldn’t tell where he was from.
Some people say he is an “international person”, and he says “I am 100% Chinese”.
He was willing to be a “music messenger” and consciously assumed the mission of promoting Chinese culture. The combination of “Three Tenors in China” (“Three Highs in China”) composed by Dai Yuqiang and Wei Song has been in the past 10 years and has performed all over the world.
He is the art director and tenor singer Mo Hualun of the Hong Kong Opera House. In July this year, he was awarded the Bronze Bauhinia Star Award by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government.
”Music does not distinguish between national boundaries. I hope the epidemic will pass as soon as possible. I can go to more countries and sing Chinese culture to the world.” He said.
A sentence awakened the Chinese heart
In the 1980s, Mo Hualun obtained a master’s degree in music from the Music College of Manhattan, New York, and went to Germany to apply for the Berlin Opera House. “The German examiner asked me where I came from, and I said I came from New York. He said, ‘No, where were you born?’ I said it was Beijing, China, and later in Hong Kong, he said, ‘Then you are Chinese’.” Mo Hualun said, “This sentence awakened me. I am Chinese. No matter where I go to the world, my roots are in China.”
Cinema Berlin SongCinema Berlin SongCinemaTheater is one of the top ten opera houses in the world. Mo Hualun has taken more than 400 exams.Stand out of your life and win the exam in one fell swoop. “Opera culture is a Western culture. As a Chinese, singing well is far from enough. It is better than the Babaylan family to have a chance to give you.” He started as a child, and became the first Chinese protagonist in the Berlin Opera Academy. Since then, he has traveled to world-renowned opera houses, played roles in more than 60 operas, and won a place for the Chinese on the mainstream Western opera stage.
In 1995, when Hong Kong was about to return to the motherland, Mo Hualun chose to settle back to Hong Kong and gradually shifted his career to Asia, and later devoted himself more to the mainland. The wanderer who has been out for many years has returned to his motherland. When he sang patriotic songs such as “I Love You China” and “My Motherland” in his mother tongue, he was always in agitation.
On October 3, 2019, to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of New China, the “Three Highs in China” held a concert at the Cinema Hong Kong Cultural Center. At that time, Hong Kong was deeply involved in the “Amendment Regulations Storm”, and the road was blocked by the police several times due to riots near the theater. What Mo Hualun did not expect was that the last return song of the day, “My Motherland and Me”, became a chorus of the whole audience. “Everyone in the mainland knows the song Cinema, but I didn’t expect Hong Kong audiences to sing, spontaneously.” He said, “When Hong Kong was at its most chaotic time, we stood up and sang loudly, patriotism, Hong Kong, and the motherland.” Looking back on the situation that day, Mo Hualun is still “very excited and very touched.”
”Music is very powerful and can unite people. It is also the best tool to help us understand the motherland.” Mo Hualun said that patriotic music education in Hong Kong should start from primary school and kindergarten, and start from the simplest singing of the national anthem. “This is the most basic national condition education.”
Speaking Chinese folk songs in bel canto
Talking about Chinese culture in music language that Westerners can understand is the unique advantage of the “Three Highs in China”.
”The “Three Highs in China” are named “China”, which to some extent represents the national image. Therefore, from the beginning of its establishment, our mission is to promote Chinese culture on the international stage and express the cultural confidence of the Chinese nation. “Mo Hualun said.
Good music does not distinguish between national boundaries. They try to use bel canto singing “Westerns can understand” to perform Chinese folk songs. “BabaylanKangding Love Songs”, “Jasmine Flowers”, “In That Far Away Place”, “The Girl in Dazaka City”… has fascinated countless foreign audiences.
The “Three Highs in China” have performed more than a hundred shows around the world so far. “Half we sing are internationally familiar songs, and the other half are famous Chinese folk songs. “Mo Hualun said, “First sing their songs well, let them understand our professional standards, and then guide them to listen to us singing Chinese songs, which will be easy for them to accept. At the end of the performance, local audiences often stood up and ovated, saying that Chinese folk songs were so nice. ”
In November 2012, the “Three Highs in China” was invited to perform at the Royal Albert Concert Hall in London, England. “We sang “My Sun” first, and then sang “Fengyang Flower Drum”. The lyrics of this Anhui folk song are very interesting, such as ‘I can’t marry a good wife’ and ‘a pair of big feet’. Because of the English subtitles, the audience clapped their hands and laughed, and the audience burst into laughter. “Mo Hualun recalled the scene at that time, as if it was in front of him.
After the performance, Queen Elizabeth II of England went on stage to meet the actors. “She liked Chinese folk songs very much, and she said, ‘You sang very well’. “Mo Hualun said, “The evening party that day brought together world-class performing stars. As representatives from China, we have the opportunity to promote Chinese culture. We are very proud. ”
”We are all from the Bay Area”
Babylan Bay Area”
This year’s Mid-Autumn Festival, the “Bay Area Rising Moon” 2021 Greater Bay Area Mid-Autumn Movie Music Gala was held in Shenzhen. Many celebrities from both sides of the Taiwan Strait and Hong Kong and Macao performed on the same stage, with star-studded Komiks, and praise was buzzing. At the party, Mo Hualun participated in singing the two songs “My Chinese Heart” and “I hope people will last forever”.
”This is the first time to use the concept of the Greater Bay Area to hold a party, and it makes sense.” Mo Hualun said, “We are all from the Bay Area and sing songs related to the Greater Bay Area. The Greater Bay Area closely links everyone.”
When talking about the development opportunities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area for Hong Kong, Mo Hualun bluntly said that “it’s too important.” He said: “Not to mention anything else, there are more than a dozen or twenty opera houses in the Greater Bay Area, basically every city has them, and this performance market alone is amazing.” On how to strengthen exchanges and cooperation between the Hong Kong Opera House and theaters in other cities in the Greater Bay Area, Mo Hualun specially discussed with relevant departments of the SAR government, hoping to “more cooperation that can be implemented to achieve resource sharing.”
The opera “Madam Butterfly”, produced by Mo Hualun, was recently staged in Hong Kong. On the day of the interview, Mo Hualun greeted the starring actors from all over the country in the backstage. “The 10 leading actors have different nationalities. They come to Hong Kong to perform a classic Italian opera together. This is the Komiks international cultureCinema exchange of international culture.” Mo Hualun said, “Hong Kong has many institutional and mechanism conveniences, which is the advantage of ‘one country, two systems’. We should cherish and make good use of it to build our own cultural brand.”
Mo Hualun, who was just elected as a member of the Election Committee of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, has always paid attention to Hong Kong’s cultural construction. “If Hong Kong wants to become a truly world-class city, it must have a first-class culture, including first-class opera houses and first-class original works.”
In July this year, the National Arts Fund landed in Hong Kong and applied for an open project to the Hong Kong art group for the first time, which was inspiring to the Hong Kong entertainment industry. Mo Hualun revealed that they are planning the first Cantonese version of the original opera “Rice Xiang”, which tells the story of three generations of a Hong Kong rice shop who are working tirelessly for their dreams. They are currently applying for the national art fund, “making original works and establishing Hong Kong’s cultural brand, this is the way we need to go.”