Some Remarks The Performance Of Chinese And Foreign Vocal Works

As is generally known, it has been fifty or sixty years since the introduction of bel canto into China. In our times when Chinese and Western cultural elements conflict and interact, the elder generation of singers has absorbed seriously the European traditional musical culture on the one hand, and carried on and highlighted the Chinese national musical culture. As a result, there have appeared some excellent singers, though along with some less successful ones.There are a variety of reasons, both internal and external, for such a polarized situation. I have myself a period of more than ten years of singing training, and met a number of difficulties and problems, such as articulation, the stability and the penetrative power of the voice, and so on. However, through the courses and practice during my years as a postgraduate, I had quite a few of the problems mentioned above solved. Therefore, I decided to take some characteristic Chinese and foreign works as examples and share some opinions on vocal performance.I primarily focus on two works, "Pace, pace, mio dio", an aria sung by Leonora, from La forza del destino by Verdi, and a folk song called "When do the Flowers of Pagodatree Blossom", from my home town, Sichuan Province. These works are discussed in two aspects, the understanding of the songs and performing techniques. I deal with the aria in terms of the sound, pronunciation, articulation and affective expression. As to the folk song, I explore the performing techniques by demonstrating the integration of the vernacular of Sichuan Province and bel canto, as well as the mastery of national style and local color.Having held this recital of graduation, I realize, more than ever before, that we should absorb the resonance technique of Western vocal performance, and, at the same time, pay attention to the beauty and aroma of Chinese traditional music and language, making the words and voice perfectly matched. Thus, we can satisfy the requirement of the sound and expression expected from a singer.