On Saturday, the first competition day of the Beijing Olympic Games, composer Tan Dun was waiting anxiously in front of his TV. Seated in his temporary home in the suburb of Changping district, the composer was eagerly anticipating the broadcast of the first ceremony for awarding Olympic medals.
Like millions of other spectators, he was interested to know who would win the first gold medal, but he also had another reason for being excited. As the official composer of the award music for the Beijing Games, Tan was looking forward to hearing his musical handiwork in the background.
That morning, Tan was wearing a traditional red linen shirt paired with casual black Croc sandals. On a small table beside his sofa sits a jade percussion instrument of his own design, which he calls "Gold Rings, Jade Echoes". As he waited, the composer hit the jade pieces with his fingers to demonstrate how the instrument's unique sound is made.
Tan, an avid swimmer and sports fan, told China Daily that he found it to be a great challenge to compose music for a major athletic event. Yet in the end he enjoyed the journey. Though he struggled for nearly a year to find a suitable format, he finally found the process to be rewarding, even Zen-like.
"In the beginning you are a sports lover and a music lover. Then you put them together, and finally I have found it's quite interesting to see both as one. It's great fun," says the composer, who swims daily and plays golf once a week.
He explains that he took musical cues from history. "In Chinese culture, gold and jade are considered a perfect pair, symbolizing harmony, balance and a kind of bond between each other."
In December 2006, when Tan and director Zhang Yimou were collaborating on a production of the opera The First Emperor, Tan was approached by members of the Beijing Olympic committee about composing music for the Games.
At first he wasn't sure whether he would accept the offer. "Award music is quite different from commissions from concert halls or opera houses. It is functional, for a sport ceremony." In the end, he decided to take on the challenge. "I hope this piece that I created showcases my aspiration for heroes," says the Oscar and Grammy Award winner.
"And at the same time, it should be a key which lets people open the door to China," he notes. "China has such a rich and diverse musical heritage I wondered what I should include in a 25-second-long composition to let people know it is Chinese as soon as it plays."
Email to Friends
Print
Save