Singing up a revolution

Briton Ian Inglis is a professional Red song singer and makes "big money" on TV. "So why not?" he asks. Provided to China Daily
 

Welshman makes a good living with songs that recall the fervor of China's New Beginning

The Welsh are famous for producing singers with rich and powerful vocal cords and Ian Inglis proved just that when he recently appeared on a Chinese TV show with two other foreigners, were guests of Show Me First, performing "Red songs", or revolutionary songs composed to extol the homeland and the Communist Party of China.

Inglis says he first heard of Red songs in 2003 when he made his maiden trip to China.

"Back in university, I once studied Russian. I'm fond of revolutionary songs of the former Soviet Union and I guess those songs have their Chinese counterparts, but I didn't know the term," Inglis says.

"After I came across it in a VCD store, I bought a Red song album and learnt my first Red song, Socialism Is Great," he says, adding that it was also the first Red song he performed on stage.

A Briton with a keen interest in China's history and politics, Inglis says learning Red songs is an effective way to understand the country and its people.

"For example, I learnt a lot about the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945) from revolutionary songs," Inglis says. "To people who are deeply interested in that part of history, Red songs are a fabulous help."

Thanks to his amazing language abilities, Inglis seldom has difficulties in learning the lyrics. But the Briton has a major obstacle to overcome - his poor concentration.

"On stage, I'm always wondering where I should look and what move I should make, and that's so distracting that I often forget the lyrics.

"Or, if I see a charming lady in the audience, my mind becomes blank, too," Inglis says, smiling.

To boost his concentration, Inglis claims he drinks a mix of sorghum-based Erguotou (a brand of Chinese liquor) and Wang Lao Ji (a herbal tea) before every performance.

"It mostly works," Inglis says, smiling again.

In 2010, Inglis attended a nationwide singing competition of Chinese Red songs and was judged China's fifth-best singer.

His use of exaggerated gestures and facial expressions during performances has won him many fans. "I'm not making fun of those respectable songs. It's just my way to popularize them," Inglis says.

In the six years he has been living in China, he has tried his hand at a range of things, including management consultancy, teaching English and hotel management.

The 29-year-old now lives in Sanya, Hainan province, with his wife, Yanling, whom he met eight years ago on a flight from Shanghai to Hokkaido.

He decided to move to Sanya in 2007, and as a result of his excellent language abilities - Chinese, Russian and German - soon was selected as the honorary consular warden for the British Consulate General Guangzhou.

Since the recent initiation of Hainan's international tourism policy, he has seen, and is pursuing, more business opportunities in Sanya.

Inglis has settled into Chinese culture and fallen in love with China over the years, having lived in many cities, such as Shanghai, Beijing, Kunming and Xiamen.

However, the contest experience triggered a wave of invitations to sing Red songs. In 2010, he quit his job as a hotel manager.

"I'm now a professional Red songs' singer," he says.

"It helps me understand China, it allows me to get a spot on State-run television and enables me to make big money. So why not croon the lovely Red tunes?"

This experience not only gave him two-months of media exposure on national television, but also enabled him better to understand Chinese history and to express the friendship between British and Chinese people.

"China is my second home. Although I miss my home at times, China is where my heart is!"

Inglis is joined on stage by two other young expats with exceptional singing voices.

Keson Bernard Tinker is a postgraduate student of business management at Shanghai's Donghua University and a member of the Red song team.

A fascination with Chinese culture and civilization brought Tinker from the Bahamas in 2005 to study the language and he found that listening to, and singing, Chinese songs helped the process.

The 28-year-old was surprised that he enjoyed China's Red songs.

"I thought they were quite different from the other types of music I knew and I was amazed by the passion for the country expressed in the lyrics," he says.

Tinker's soulful renditions of Red songs have won him plaudits and awards.

"I know a black man singing Red songs is a rarity in China. People love to see it," he says. "But I really feel the love expressed in the song. I want to pump my energy and feelings into the song and express my love."

It was love that brought 35-year-old American Haley Yang to China, three years ago.

In 2002, she married Yang Jingying in the United States, and accompanied him to his hometown, Linfen city, Shanxi province.

Currently an English teacher at Shanxi Normal University, Haley says she came to know about Red songs from her husband but later developed her own understanding of them.

"In a broad sense, Red songs could refer to old songs that make you feel good about your country. They are not only associated with revolution themes," Haley says.

In 2008, she participated in a program on Shanxi TV Station that put the spotlight on expatriates, and sang her first Red song, The Beautiful Scenery of Shanxi.

"When I sang Red songs my husband grew up listening to, I could see his eyes twinkling with delight, which also made me very happy," she says.

Haley admits she initially found it hard to understand the song because of the language barrier.

Fortunately, her husband often came to her rescue, teaching her songs word by word. She would also familiarize herself with the new words by using them in her daily life. The song she sang on Show Me First is Azalea, from the film Sparkling Red Star.

"It's the most touching lullaby I've ever heard," she says.

Her favorite Red song, however, is I Love You, China.

"It was the first Chinese Red song that I could easily understand," Haley says. "Because I love my husband ... the song simply speaks out my feelings."