Cheng Kam-Cheong
1. First Chinese Poem of the Day:
李商隱 (813 - circa 858)
<< 嫦娥 >>
雲母屏風燭影深，長河漸落曉星沈。
嫦娥應悔偷靈藥，碧海青天夜夜心。
2. Second Chinese Poem of the Day:
張若虛 (circa 660 - 720)
<< 春江花月夜 >>
春江潮水連海平，海上明月共潮生。
灩灩隨波千萬里，何處春江無月明。
江流宛轉繞芳甸，月照花林皆似霰。
空裡流霜不覺飛，汀上白沙看不見。
江天一色無纖塵，皎皎空中孤月輪。
江畔何人初見月？ 江月何年初照人？
人生代代無窮已，江月年年只相似。
不知江月待何人，但見長江送流水。
白雲一片去悠悠，青楓浦上不勝愁。
誰家今夜扁舟子，何處相思明月樓。
可憐樓上月徘徊，應照離人妝鏡台。
玉戶簾中卷不去，擣衣砧上拂還來。
此時相望不相聞，願逐月華流照君。
鴻雁長飛光不度，魚龍潛躍水成文。
昨夜閒潭夢落花，可憐春半不還家。
江水流春去欲盡，江潭落月復西斜。
斜月沉沉藏海霧，碣石瀟湘無限路。
不知乘月幾人歸，落月搖情滿江樹。
3. Long Nights like the Blue-Green Sky and Ocean ("碧海青天夜夜深") by Cheng Kam-Cheong is one of my favorite songs from childhood.
Looking back, I am mystified why as a child I would like this song -- the lyrics are way beyond the comprehension of the I of that time; maybe it was because of the melody.
The name and melody of this song have a rather complicated pedigree.
Per Wikipedia ("春江花月夜"), the original is an ancient Chinese melody called Flute and Drum at Sunset ("夕陽簫鼓") and is for the string instrument pipa.
At the early years of Nationalist China (circa 1910s and 1920s?), someone rearranged the song into a duet for the instruments pipa and guzheng and the song title was changed to Moonlit Blossoms by the Spring River ("春江花月夜").
Moonlit Blossoms by the Spring River ("春江花月夜") itself is the name of a very famous Tang Dynasty's poem.
In the early 1950s, the composer Peng Xiu-wen (1931-1996) further rearranged the melody into orchestral music and it became popular in communist China.
Two Cantonese versions of this song came out in the late 1960s and early 1970s:
(a) Long Nights like the Blue-Green Sky and Ocean ("碧海青天夜夜深") by Cheng Kam-Cheong.
(b) Moonlit Night by Lover's River ("鴛鴦江月夜") by Liza Wang.
Furthermore, the song title "碧海青天夜夜深" is itself parasitic on a phrase of the late Tang Dynasty poem "嫦娥" ("Chang'e") -- "碧海青天夜夜心".
Chang'e ("嫦娥") is the Chinese goddess of the Moon.
("Chang'e", Wikipedia):
"In 2007, China launched its first lunar probe, a robotic spacecraft named Chang'e 1 in the goddess' honour. A second unmanned probe, named Chang'e 2, was launched in 2010. A third Chang'e spacecraft, a robotic lunar rover dubbed Chang'e 3, landed on the moon on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2013 at about 9:12 p.m., Beijing time, making China only the third country in the world to achieve such a moon feat after the former Soviet Union and the United States. The lander also delivered the robotic rover Yutu ("Jade Rabbit") to the lunar surface to begin its months-long driving mission. It has performed the first lunar soft landing since the Russian Luna 24 mission in 1976."
4. Long Nights like the Blue-Green Sky and Ocean ("碧海青天夜夜深") by Cheng Kam-Cheong:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=enyT78A51YI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-cka4PhmI0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVIVz3o_6fI
5. The music Flute and Drum at Sunset ("夕陽簫鼓"):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UbYA_K9QoWc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoXXyiPa4Rg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5nSiJ9TljI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2S26P5VA5A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1Ie2n_icgc
6. The music Moonlit Blossoms by the Spring River ("春江花月夜"):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lykgg5phVJE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjGcMBi5zJY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-arl_sbZfDg
by the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8WWGyyfXrs
with singing by Tong Li:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwX4Kl2Ngpo
with singing by Peng Liyuan (= Mrs. Xi Jinping):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVn_vT6VE2c
7. Moonlit Night by Lover's River ("鴛鴦江月夜"):
by Liza Wang:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDzo2g7FNqQ
by Liu Jun-er (female):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twwdzjNqQwY
by Stephanie Gee:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjekW5-9wFk
by Yun Cai-hong (female):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hC4P8mpsdY
by Jin Chuan (male):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpiEoCNJYMk
8. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:
碧海青天夜夜深 -- 鄭錦昌
夜月照江前 倍覺波影動
願能渡過萬里山 泛輕舟涉水重重
鴛鴦生死也共 願她記取往日情
當初盡情共眷戀 今朝各分西與東
晚晚相思瘦 歎息分飛
怕看江邊柳 朝思晚想 暗把流長流
以往不堪記 人去後 春已逝
哪天再聚頭 夢中更情投 驚醒已經深秋
別恨更添愁 遠隔關山後
何年複見舊燕歸 慰癡心倆相愛情投
碧海青天依舊 夜間晚風送寒流
孤單寂寥恨句她 不知哪天歸我家
9. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:
碧海青天夜夜深 -- 郑锦昌
夜月照江前 倍觉波影动
愿能渡过万里山 泛轻舟涉水重重
鸳鸯生死也共 愿她记取往日情
当初尽情共眷恋 今朝各分西与东
晚晚相思瘦 叹息分飞
怕看江边柳 朝思晚想 暗把流长流
以往不堪记 人去后 春已逝
哪天再聚头 梦中更情投 惊醒已经深秋
别恨更添愁 远隔关山后
何年复见旧燕归 慰痴心俩相爱情投
碧海青天依旧 夜间晚风送寒流
孤单寂寥恨句她 不知哪天归我家
10. Names, Words and Phrases:
Chang'e (Traditional Chinese: 嫦娥; Simplified Chinese: 嫦娥).
Cheng Kam-Cheong (Traditional: 鄭錦昌; Simplified: 郑锦昌).
Guzheng (Traditional: 古箏; Simplified: 古筝).
Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra (Traditional: 香港中樂團; Simplified: 香港中乐团).
Jade Rabbit (Traditional: 玉兔; Simplified: 玉兔).
Jin Chuan (Traditional: 金川; Simplified: 金川).
Liu Jun-er (Traditional: 劉珺兒; Simplified: 刘珺儿).
Liza Wang (Traditional: 汪明荃; Simplified: 汪明荃).
Peng Liyuan (Traditional: 彭麗媛; Simplified: 彭丽媛).
Peng Xiu-wen (Traditional: 彭修文; Simplified: 彭修文).
Pipa (Traditional: 琵琶; Simplified: 琵琶).
Stephanie Gee (Traditional: 佩儀; Simplified: 佩仪).
Tong Li (Traditional: 童麗; Simplified: 童丽).
Yun Cai-hong (Traditional: 雲彩虹; Simplified: 云彩虹)
References:
"Chang'e", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang'e
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"李商隱", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%9D%8E%E5%95%86%E9%9A%90
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"張若虛", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E5%BC%A0%E8%8B%A5%E8%99%9A
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"春江花月夜", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E6%98%A5%E6%B1%9F%E8%8A%B1%E6%9C%88%E5%A4%9C
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"彭修文", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E5%BD%AD%E4%BF%AE%E6%96%87
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"鄭錦昌", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%84%AD%E9%8C%A6%E6%98%8C
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"香港中樂團", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E9%A6%99%E6%B8%AF%E4%B8%AD%E6%A8%82%E5%9C%98
(accessed 2016-04-15).
"童麗", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hk/%E7%AB%A5%E4%B8%BD
(accessed 2016-04-15).
End.
CHENG Kam Cheong
1. I am writing this blog post to exorcise a psychological ghost from my past.
When I was in my teens and experienced my first puppy love, there were two songs that were soothing to my soul:
(a) The Western song How Can I Tell Her by Lobo, and
(b) The Cantonese song (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("新禪院鐘聲") by CHENG Kam Cheong.
2. When someday someone writes a history of Cantonese music, I think the (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple will be mentioned.
This song was very popular in Hong Kong in the early 1970s.
The decade and a half after the Second World War, most people in Hong Kong were listening either to Cantonese operas or music imported from the mainland; western music was an oddities.
In the mid-1960s to 1970s, however, three musical waves hit Hong Kong nearly simultaneously:
(a) Western music,
(b) Japanese music, and
(c) Taiwanese music.
But before the three waves hit, Hong Kong musicians were already trying to modernize traditional Cantonese operas into more modern Cantonese music.
(New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple by CHENG Kam Cheong was one of those attempts and a successful one at that.
3. CHENG Kam Cheong was borne in Malaysia.
He caught his break in the mid-1960s and his first album came out in 1966.
CHENG Kam Cheong was so popular that he was known as "The Prince of Cantonese Songs".
Since Hong Kong's economy started to take off at about the same time, CHENG Kam Cheong moved his base to Hong Kong in the late 1960s.
Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("禪院鐘聲"), originally sang by CHENG Kam Cheong, came in two versions:
(a) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("禪院鐘聲"), and
(b) (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("新禪院鐘聲").
Nearly all uploaders to YouTube did not discriminate between these two versions.
So whether the label in YouTube is:
(a) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple, or
(b) (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple
they are almost always (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple.
Although the sound of the two versions is very similar, the lyrics and music of the two are actually different.
I also noticed from YouTube that many singers sang the lyrics slightly differently from the original and each other - it seems as if the lyrics have not been standardized.
(New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple came out in 1971 and became a hit immediately.
4. The "original" Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple by CHENG Kam Cheong recorded in 2002:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKKAX3IL8Vo
The person dressed as a Monk in the video is CHENG Kam Cheong.
5. The (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple by CHENG Kam Cheong recorded in 1997:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7WoOUBCk7E
CHENG Kam Cheong has to shave his head for the video.
6. A cover by Hong Kong singer Dicky Cheung:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0Md5yemVj0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1c0_JUWgK2c
The music arrangement has been modernized for this version; so is the music video.
Very good.
7. A cover by Hong Kong singers Danny Chan and Jacky Cheung in a function:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbTJfyF5Fhw
This was a rare occasion when they performed together.
8. A cover by Hong Kong singer, TV and stage actress Amy Hu (the first of the two songs):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTJAeVaeIS4
I have always enjoyed Amy Hu's acting.
9. The Pearl Sisters of Singapore:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_KXkXuszb0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp1804wTOoI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5ZbdlyQDVo
and another performance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuLgALapqVk
They were having fun with this song.
After 40 years, the Pearl Sisters retired from performance in 2010.
10. Three different performances by Lily Chu, the younger of the Pearl Sisters:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcR1WrYI7CE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gX-t5OJ_-g
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylG2YEYh0zY
The Pearl Sisters have this song down pat.
I think Lily Chu was speaking in Fukienese during her performance.
11. CHEN Rujia of Guangzhou in a concert in Guangzhou in 1989:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J0rs8rLUIA
12. A very unusual but brilliant alternating of two songs:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaQ3XXjZsNs
Wang Zhaojun is a Beijing Opera style song sang in Mandarin by Rosanne Lui.
(New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple is a Cantonese Opera style song sang in Cantonese by Big Al.
13. A cover by CHEN Lijuan:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Samrw_CCalM
Competently sung.
But her dress was far too sexy for this song.
The way she was dressed was incongruent with the music and lyrics.
But they were having fun with this song too.
14. The music in the Chinese instrument "Guzheng":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUk7QY6Vv3Y
I agree with the uploader: "This guzheng has a bitter-sweet voice with rich tone."
15. Guzheng by Wu Yang (female) and flute by Wang Hua (male):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw_J60pV4wE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgjVHrcVZGM
16. A Guzheng performance in London, UK:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQxujqXn4_M
17. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:
新禪院鐘聲 -- 鄭錦昌
雲寒雨冷，寂寥夜半景色淒清，
荒山悄靜，依稀隱約傳來了夜半鐘，
鐘聲驚破夢更難成。
是誰令我愁難馨非莫馨，
情緣泡影，鴛鴦夢，三生約，
何堪追認，舊愛一朝斷，
傷心哀我負愛抱恨決心逃情。
禪院宵宵歎孤影，
仿似杜宇哀聲泣血夜半鳴，
隱居澗絕嶺，
菩提伴我苦敲經，
凡塵世俗那堪複聽，
情似煙輕，我禪心修佛性，
夢幻已今朝醒，
情根愛根，恨根怨根，
春花怕賦詠。
唉，情絲愛絲，
愁絲怨絲，
秋月怕留情，
情心早化灰，
禪心都經潔靜。
* 為愛為情恨似病，
對花對月懷前程，
徒追憶，花月證，
情人負我，
變心負約太不應，
相思當初枉心傾，
怨句妹妹太薄幸，
禪院鐘聲，深宵冷靜，
夜半有恨人已淚盈盈。
Repeat *, *
18. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:
新禅院钟声 -- 郑锦昌
云寒雨冷，寂寥夜半景色凄清，
荒山悄静，依稀隐约传来了夜半钟，
钟声惊破梦更难成。
是谁令我愁难馨非莫馨，
情缘泡影，鸳鸯梦，三生约，
何堪追认，旧爱一朝断，
伤心哀我负爱抱恨决心逃情。
禅院宵宵叹孤影，
仿似杜宇哀声泣血夜半鸣，
隐居涧绝岭，
菩提伴我苦敲经，
凡尘世俗那堪复听，
情似烟轻，我禅心修佛性，
梦幻已今朝醒，
情根爱根，恨根怨根，
春花怕赋咏。
唉，情丝爱丝，
愁丝怨丝，
秋月怕留情，
情心早化灰，
禅心都经洁静。
* 为爱为情恨似病，
对花对月怀前程，
徒追忆，花月证，
情人负我，
变心负约太不应，
相思当初枉心倾，
怨句妹妹太薄幸，
禅院钟声，深宵冷静，
夜半有恨人已泪盈盈。
Repeat *, *
19. Names, Words and Phrases:
Cheng Kam Cheong (Traditional Chinese: 鄭錦昌; Simplified Chinese: 郑锦昌).
Amy Hu (Traditional: 胡美儀; Simplified: 胡美仪).
Chen Lijuan (Traditional: 陳俐娟; Simplified: 陈俐娟).
Chen Rujia (Traditional: 陳汝佳; Simplified: 陈汝佳).
Danny Chan (Traditional: 陳百強; Simplified: 陈百强).
Dicky Cheung (Traditional: 張衛健; Simplified: 张卫健).
Flute (Traditional: 簫; Simplified: 箫).
Guangzhou (Traditional: 廣州; Simplified: 广州).
Guzheng (Traditional: 古箏; Simplified: 古筝).
Jacky Cheung (Traditional: 張學友; Simplified: 张学友).
Lily Chu (Traditional: 朱莉莉; Simplified: 朱莉莉).
Prince of Cantonese Songs (Traditional: 粵曲王子; Simplified: 粤曲王子).
Rosanne Lui (Traditional: 呂珊; Simplified: 吕珊).
The Pearl Sisters (Traditional: 明珠姐妹; Simplified: 明珠姐妹).
Wang Hua (Traditional: 王華; Simplified: 王华).
Wang Zhaojun (Traditional: 王昭君; Simplified: 王昭君).
Wu Yang (Traditional: 伍洋; Simplified: 伍洋).
References:
"粵語流行音樂", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hant/%E7%B2%B5%E8%AA%9E%E6%B5%81%E8%A1%8C%E9%9F%B3%E6%A8%82
(accessed 2012-08-26).
"粵語流行曲史", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B2%B5%E8%AA%9E%E6%B5%81%E8%A1%8C%E6%9B%B2%E5%8F%B2
(accessed 2012-08-26).
End.
