Wang Kun (singer)
Wang Kun (王昆; pinyin: Wáng Kūn; born 1925) is a noted and influential Chinese singer, actress, musical director, and teacher specializing in revolutionary repertoire. She is most famous for her interpretations of songs such as "Nanniwan" (1943).
Wang is from Tang County, Hebei, China. In the 1940s, she joined the performing arts troupe of the People's Liberation Army. In 1945, she played the lead role in The White Haired Girl (modern China's first Western-style opera), produced by the Yan'an Lu Xun Institute of Arts (延安鲁艺戏剧音乐系), and also performed in other modern dramas.
Along with her contemporary Guo Lanying, Wang was a member of the first generation of Chinese performing artists to train overseas. Following the Chinese Revolution in 1949 she continued studying music in the USSR with Medvedev, as well as with the Chinese singer Lin Junqing (林俊卿). In 1954 she entered the Central Conservatory of Music, to further her education. She later directed the Oriental Song and Dance Company (东方歌舞团艺委), serving as regimental commander.
She was also a member of the committee of the fourth session of the Chinese Cultural Federation (中国文联第) and the Chinese Musicians' Association, and she participated in the second and third sessions as director of the executive committee for the fourth session of the All-China Women's Federation. She was the Chinese Communist Party's 11th representative for the first, second, and third National People's Congress, and was also a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference for the fifth and sixth National People's Congress. She performed in the large-scale music and dance drama and film The East Is Red in the 1960s.
Wang's singing style draws on Chinese folk traditions for its foundation, though her vocal production (featuring a bright timbre and consistent vibrato) also shows elements of borrowing from Western bel canto operatic style. Besides "Nanniwan," her famous recordings include the songs "Joy of Emancipation" (翻身道情), "Autumn Harvest" (秋收), and "Peasants' Association" (农友歌).
Wang's notable students include Cheng Fangyuan, Li Lingyu, and Ai Jing. In September 2005 she was hired by the China Art Academy (中国艺术研究院) as a special master's tutor. On August 9, 2009 she performed with her students in a concert commemorating her 70-year performing career, organized by the Chinese Ministry of Culture and the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles (中国文学艺术界联合会).[1] Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao sent a congratulatory letter to the show.
References
External links
- Baidu article (Chinese)
Video
- Wang Kun singing "Peasants' Association", 1964
- Wang Kun singing "Nanniwan", c. 2009
- Wang Kun singing "Cotton Weaving", c. 2009