Guangzhou Shamian Street elderly band has performed for more than ten years, with a full posture and many fans
2022-07-29
"How many times, in the face of coldness and ridicule, I have never given up my ideal..." every Tuesday or Friday afternoon, the sound and rhyme band always plays music in the Shamian Park, attracting passersby to stop and watch, becoming a scene of the park. At 3:00 p.m., under the banyan tree in Shamian Park, the members of the sound and rhyme band were making final preparations before the performance - taking out their musical instruments and arranging their music scores. At most, they would pull a foam board and sit under it, loosen their wrists, and then put their posture aside. After the singer cleared his voice and walked slowly to the center, today's performance began on time. In the melodious music, the band members are very eye-catching. Looking around, they are all elderly people. Age is not the key point. In music, they go through the wind and frost, their faces become vivid and their spirit is still alive. The complacent expression and high-level performance soon attracted a large number of passers-by. It's not uncommon for the sound and rhyme band to watch such performances for more than ten years. I can't remember the specific day. They decided to officially start the show. Opinions vary, but there is a surprisingly consistent point: "at this age, it's only happy. You should be open-minded to play music, so you can be young in music." It has been more than ten years since its establishment, and the weekly fixed performance "(the establishment of the band) has twists and turns, but it is also smooth. It is mainly because everyone has that heart together that they can persist for more than ten years." Head yinxiaolan (a pseudonym) recalled that at the beginning, it was just a group of old friends who had the same interests and often met. I don't know which day, the idea of forming an orchestra came to the fore. Yin Xiaolan once talked about it, and the band members called her "sister Yin" respectfully. Sister Yin has also formed other bands over the years. After several meetings, she finally decided to build a phonological band with another leader, Huang Dongsheng. The name of the band comes from the "Sheng" and "Yin" in their names, and the Cantonese sound is the same as "phonology". Every Tuesday and Friday, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., she performs regularly in the Shamian park. Most of the repertoires are classical Cantonese songs, which she insists on for more than ten years in a flash. Over the past ten years, after several rounds of member turnover, the sound and rhyme band now has 18 members, including 6 musicians, who play guitar, bass, drums and other instruments, and the rest are mostly singers, who take turns to open their voices and sing songs. Most of the band members are over 60 years old, but they are unambiguous about the performance. Before each performance, we should confirm the tracks in detail. As one of the backbone of the band, Yin Xiaolan undertook this work, sorting out the songs reported by the members into song lists in advance, and carefully marking the score and lyrics. Several musicians have also cooperated for many years, and they have already tacitly understood each other. The musicians are full of posture, melodious songs, music to the extreme, the singer will also take dance steps, proudly jump on a section. Every opening, we can win the full applause, "in fact, our level is comparable to that of some elderly performance groups, which is enough to perform on the stage, but we don't like it. It's better to be in the park and be more comfortable." Sister Yin said. Although they don't value fame and fortune, the sound and rhyme band also has some reputation. A few years ago, passers-by photographed their performances and posted them on the Internet, praising them as "the band with the highest level on the streets of Guangzhou". Netizens praised one after another, and a message said, "I feel very warm in my heart, and the whole person slows down." "Not only the old people, but also many young people were watching. When everyone applauded them after each song, it really made me feel infected by the city of Guangzhou." Such a high standard makes many people wonder whether this is a group of professionals. In fact, the singers of the sound and rhyme band have basically never taken vocal music classes, and they just stick to their hobbies, while the musicians who are praised by everyone are mostly self-taught. Huang Dongsheng, an electric guitarist, said, "where have you ever had any serious classes? If you like it, just watch how others play it, remember their tricks, and then come back and explore for yourself." After the reform and opening up, he once performed in a dance hall for a period of time. At that time, he just learned musical instruments. "In fact, at that time, the level was not very good, a little deceptive, but it was also passable and accepted by others." Huang Dongsheng joked. In retrospect, most of the members were full of emotion. Although they loved music because of life difficulties in their youth, they had to put it aside and run for a living until they retired. When they got together, they remembered that they both had such a hobby. Even if they had never received formal training, they were full of passion and resumed vocal music. Their original intention was simply "to find their own time". During the performance, the band members talked about retirement and refused to ride the wind and waves in a flat song. Among the members, Huang Dongsheng was undoubtedly the most prominent one. Although he was thin, he was hale and hearty. His hair was unruly and gathered into a ponytail. A few strands of white hair were not dazzling, but even more natural and unrestrained. Holding an electric guitar, his left hand with green veins exposed, and his right hand with strings relaxed, he raised his head from time to time. Through thick reading glasses, he glanced at the flat panel on the music rack, which contained a hand-made scanned version of large-scale music scores, and his tufted beard shook with the rhythm. "What is born is an old rock man", the onlookers on the Internet couldn't help commenting, "This guitar grandfather's eyes may have been spent for a long time. Reading music scores is just subconscious. What he sees is actually the vicissitudes of the world." Huang Dongsheng, 64, is not old enough. Due to the long time he plays musical instruments and the good organization of bands, he is already a popular man in Shamian park. When people see him, they usually shout "brother Sheng". "I'm proud. I don't recognize my old age." Brother Sheng admitted that he was rebellious since childhood. His family didn't like him to play music, so he secretly saved money. "Students have no money. In the 1970s (20th century), two cents a bowl of porridge, four cents a piece of sausage powder, six cents a crisp leather bag, and an authentic red cotton guitar cost 36 yuan." Huang Dongsheng worried about this, and finally tried every means to raise money. At that time, he won the first guitar in his life at the transaction price of 20 yuan in a musical instrument store on Xiajiu Road, even if it was inferior. In 1975, Huang Dongsheng, who had just graduated from middle school, entered Baiyun farm and became a mechanical worker. In eight hours of work, he dealt with cold parts. Once he was off duty, he became very popular with music. He rode a small motorcycle to "walk around the four townships", wore a fashionable white bell bottomed trousers, and then put on a suit, accompanied in major dance halls. When discotheques sounded, he was drunk in music. In order to perform better, Huang Dongsheng, who earned only 24 yuan a month at that time, gritted his teeth and spent 175 yuan in a stationery store on Beijing Road to buy an electric guitar. So far, he can still remember the appearance of the guitar: "it's brown." The sound and rhyme band is not the first band Huang Dongsheng participated in. As a fan of the "private partnership bureau", he established the "70s band" with a group of like-minded friends as early as 2010. Members are all "enthusiasts" who have loved music since the 1970s. Liuhua Park was once their "main stage", and now it still performs in Shamian park every Wednesday. "My wife often teases me and asks me, have you had enough?" Huang Dongsheng waved his hand, "I don't know how to say enough to play. When I can't play, I don't play anymore. At our age, how to be happy and how to play." Most members of the sound and rhyme band feel the same way. They want to get back what they lost when they were young when they are old. Their biggest wish is to be happy and comfortable. "At this age, people really have nothing to ask for. Do what they like, be really happy, have a good attitude, and they will be young.". Bassist Luo Zhanwen has been in more than ten bands and was scolded by his family as a child for playing guitar. After retirement, he wandered in the band and enjoyed his music life happily. Singer tea sister liked singing and dancing since childhood. It was her great regret that she couldn't realize her military dream because of her height. Joining the band was also a remedy. "I just like the feeling of freshness. When I was young, other girls didn't dare to wear skirts. At most, they wore black and white, but I'm not afraid. I took to the streets in a big red dress." Tea sister recalled that when she was young, "I can't sit still. My heart itches when I hear music. Music makes people fresh and energetic. This is the secret of youth". With a lot of ideas, she suggested to sister Yin that the band members should set the rule of "forget the words and treat". Singer Chen zesong worked in the metallurgical system before retirement and joined the sound and rhyme band after retirement. In the past two years, whenever he performed, he had to walk half an hour to "meet friends with songs" near Yide road. After that, he hurried home to cook and take care of the elderly. Although he was a little busy, he enjoyed it. "Every time he sang, he would get rid of bad emotions. As soon as he relaxed, everything would be easier." Not all members are talkative. At the interview site, there are also taciturn old people, who have few words and shy to avoid. But as soon as they appear on the stage, they seem to be a different person. They are energetic, the typhoon is steady, the breath is moderate, the song is melodious, and from time to time, they also control the scene, and invite the onlookers to dance together. They are in high spirits, not like the scene of old age. Music connects friendship to build beautiful scenery. The performance of the band has long been a small scene in the Shamian park. Along the way, they also have their own exclusive fan group. Many fans will hold up their mobile phones to record the band's performances and share them with wechat fan group chat during the singing interval. Liu Xiaolin, 76, has been "Star chaser" for three years and rarely misses the band. In his opinion, the sound and rhyme band selected classic songs and sang with a rather emotional tone. It has a legacy of the times, and I can't help feeling it after listening to it. Recently, the hot weather continued, and the band members performed under the scorching sun. Liu Xiaolin sometimes invited everyone to eat watermelon to relieve fatigue, which was affectionately called "Uncle watermelon" by the band members. The band and the audience are more like friends. Occasionally, Liu Xiaolin will bring a hand bell and drum and join the band. Sister Yin once gave him a Hawaiian guitar. He couldn't put it down and said with a smile, "I'm an ally with them." Besides enjoying music, performance becomes a connection. Every time during the performance, Grandma Wang always urges her granddaughter to bring her to the scene in a wheelchair in order to listen to music and get together with old friends. "A group of their old sisters like to get together when the band is performing, listen to music together, and also talk about family life, so as not to be lonely in old age." Grandma Wang's granddaughter said, "the performance of the band's grandparents is well-known in our area. Everyone is willing to come and support it. It's like having a reason to meet each other." Perhaps at the same time of entertainment, the music of the sound and rhyme band has also become a comfort. In 2014, Lao Zhang wandered from his hometown Shunde to Guangzhou. At the age of 54, he now lives on scavenging. In 2015, Lao Zhang paid attention to the performance of the sound and rhyme band, and gradually moved closer from quietly enjoying it not far away. Now he has become a "ashes fan". He often leaned on Shengge's electric car, closed his eyes and sang while waving his hands, just like a professional music critic. Because of this fixed project every week, Lao Zhang broke the previous boring state of "doing nothing". He was unaccompanied and had no fixed place in Guangzhou, and found a shelter on the way of wandering in street music. The members of the sound and rhyme band saw all this. Therefore, every time they perform, they try their best and cherish this fate. "People should cherish fate", they said that it is not easy to become old friends after meeting. Sister Yin described the fate of band members as“
Edit：Chen Jie Responsible editor：Li Ling
Source：ycwb.com
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