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Imogen Heap sings about Hangzhou in Chinese
By Xu Wenwen and Zhu Chunhang |
March 5, 2013, Tuesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
ENGLISH singer Imogen Heap has recorded the Chinese version of her song òXizi She Knowsó in Hangzhou, accompanied by a chorus of locals.
The song was composed for the city.
Two years ago the Grammy Award-winning singer, composer and songwriter lived in the city for six weeks. She wrote a song and filmed a video about the city. The video was shot in 24 locations over 24 hours, depicting 24 activities by locals, in a range of daily life.
They include locals eating breakfast in a restaurant, catching a bus, students doing eye exercises and people dancing outdoors in a square.
òThe music is really about the city?s everyday beauty, which doesn?t have to be wonderful and special but involves normal and small things,ó Heap told a press conference in Hangzhou last week when asked why she focused on ordinary people.
The lyrics are about the history and culture of Hangzhou. In the song, Xizi refers to West Lake, which is compared with a woman.
The lyrics were translated by noted poet Pan Wei, who is based in Hangzhou, and volunteer Veronica Zhao.
Heap sang the Chinese lyric by reading the pinyin and copying Zhao's demonstration version.
Last week, Heap was in the city to record the chorus of locals, the same people who performed in the video, including qigong practitioners, market vendors, old dancers and models. They sang at a recording studio and Heap mixed their singing as a chorus.
Heap mixed lots of city sounds into the music, including a pupil from Daomao Lane Primary School chanting "1, 2, 3, 4," (yi, er, san, si) during eye exercises, a rumbling newspaper press and a woman shouting at the top of her lungs.
"We felt Heap's acute art sense while she directed the video, and her ideas always amazed us," said Qiu Xudong, a team leader from Zhejiang Provincial University for the Elderly. The team staged a cheongsam (qipao) fashion show at a building construction site in the video - Heap's unconventional idea.
"Imogen is like our old friend, who knows Hangzhou and understands us," said Zhang Chenguang, a retired coal miner who performed a flag dance in the video.
Heap said the bilingual video and song are not enough. "I want to come back again so we can do three or four versions of the video for variety," she said. She also wants to make a documentary.
Her trip last week was sponsored by the Hangzhou Information Office and British Cultural Association. She was aided by City Express, a local newspaper that organized Heap's stay and filming two years ago.
"Xizi She Knows" (English) will be in Heap's next album, yet to be titled. The video (English/Chinese) will be used for promotion by the Hangzhou Information Office.
Heap said she plans to take partin next year's annual Xihu Music Festival in Hangzhou.
Q: What?s the reaction among fans to òXizi She Knowsó?
A: Very positive, indeed. Lots of interesting discussions have been sparked on what Hangzhou or China in general means to people. My being there and those who followed the story or who?ve found out about it have added perhaps another aspect to a large conversation in a positive way.
Q: Why makes say the project is òcrazyó?
A: It was crazy because every single day is packed with meeting people and I?ve never been so publicly in social life. I?m actually quite reserved and I really took a big step, since the language, the food and so many things are new to me.
Q: You have made music projects around the world. How does Hangzhou compare?
A: One big difference here is that I see how the older generation, who are mostly responsive to the whole project, enjoy their time and how they get together for costume and traditional dancing. Although business is growing fast in the city, I find people enjoy their life, maybe because of the calm West Lake, or because it?s just how people manage to live.
Q: You said the project changed you. How?
A: When I came back to the UK, I noticed that òlife is only one.ó What I got from the project is that each day is a new day and every single corner is a big surprise, so I should concentrate to be in the moment, not let the good things pass. I felt a deep connection and empathy with a place I had felt I had little common ground with. It?s almost like a second home. From the comments to the video, this perhaps can inspire others to take a second look to feel a connection. And lots of people want to come to Hangzhou now.
Q: What do you miss the most about the city?
A: I miss cycling about the city and walking by the lake and in the tea fields. The Grand Canal. Seeing badminton under bridges and refined dancing ladies with umbrellas. The food I?m slightly afraid to eat, but it tastes delicious. I miss caramelized pig?s cheeks!
The song was composed for the city.
Two years ago the Grammy Award-winning singer, composer and songwriter lived in the city for six weeks. She wrote a song and filmed a video about the city. The video was shot in 24 locations over 24 hours, depicting 24 activities by locals, in a range of daily life.
They include locals eating breakfast in a restaurant, catching a bus, students doing eye exercises and people dancing outdoors in a square.
òThe music is really about the city?s everyday beauty, which doesn?t have to be wonderful and special but involves normal and small things,ó Heap told a press conference in Hangzhou last week when asked why she focused on ordinary people.
The lyrics are about the history and culture of Hangzhou. In the song, Xizi refers to West Lake, which is compared with a woman.
The lyrics were translated by noted poet Pan Wei, who is based in Hangzhou, and volunteer Veronica Zhao.
Heap sang the Chinese lyric by reading the pinyin and copying Zhao's demonstration version.
Last week, Heap was in the city to record the chorus of locals, the same people who performed in the video, including qigong practitioners, market vendors, old dancers and models. They sang at a recording studio and Heap mixed their singing as a chorus.
Heap mixed lots of city sounds into the music, including a pupil from Daomao Lane Primary School chanting "1, 2, 3, 4," (yi, er, san, si) during eye exercises, a rumbling newspaper press and a woman shouting at the top of her lungs.
"We felt Heap's acute art sense while she directed the video, and her ideas always amazed us," said Qiu Xudong, a team leader from Zhejiang Provincial University for the Elderly. The team staged a cheongsam (qipao) fashion show at a building construction site in the video - Heap's unconventional idea.
"Imogen is like our old friend, who knows Hangzhou and understands us," said Zhang Chenguang, a retired coal miner who performed a flag dance in the video.
Heap said the bilingual video and song are not enough. "I want to come back again so we can do three or four versions of the video for variety," she said. She also wants to make a documentary.
Her trip last week was sponsored by the Hangzhou Information Office and British Cultural Association. She was aided by City Express, a local newspaper that organized Heap's stay and filming two years ago.
"Xizi She Knows" (English) will be in Heap's next album, yet to be titled. The video (English/Chinese) will be used for promotion by the Hangzhou Information Office.
Heap said she plans to take partin next year's annual Xihu Music Festival in Hangzhou.
Q: What?s the reaction among fans to òXizi She Knowsó?
A: Very positive, indeed. Lots of interesting discussions have been sparked on what Hangzhou or China in general means to people. My being there and those who followed the story or who?ve found out about it have added perhaps another aspect to a large conversation in a positive way.
Q: Why makes say the project is òcrazyó?
A: It was crazy because every single day is packed with meeting people and I?ve never been so publicly in social life. I?m actually quite reserved and I really took a big step, since the language, the food and so many things are new to me.
Q: You have made music projects around the world. How does Hangzhou compare?
A: One big difference here is that I see how the older generation, who are mostly responsive to the whole project, enjoy their time and how they get together for costume and traditional dancing. Although business is growing fast in the city, I find people enjoy their life, maybe because of the calm West Lake, or because it?s just how people manage to live.
Q: You said the project changed you. How?
A: When I came back to the UK, I noticed that òlife is only one.ó What I got from the project is that each day is a new day and every single corner is a big surprise, so I should concentrate to be in the moment, not let the good things pass. I felt a deep connection and empathy with a place I had felt I had little common ground with. It?s almost like a second home. From the comments to the video, this perhaps can inspire others to take a second look to feel a connection. And lots of people want to come to Hangzhou now.
Q: What do you miss the most about the city?
A: I miss cycling about the city and walking by the lake and in the tea fields. The Grand Canal. Seeing badminton under bridges and refined dancing ladies with umbrellas. The food I?m slightly afraid to eat, but it tastes delicious. I miss caramelized pig?s cheeks!
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