The
Ambassador
and
his
wife
with
members
of
the
visiting
troupe
and
the
CBSE
|
Trinidad
and Tobago
- A little
piece of history was created on
the evening of Saturday January
30 at the residence of the
Ambassador of the People’s
Republic of China to Trinidad
and Tobago. The
occasion was a reception hosted
by His Excellency Yang Youming
and his wife, Geng Hailing, for
the visiting Tianjin Song and
Dance Troupe, which had just
completed a hectic five-day
engagement of concerts in
Trinidad and Tobago (T&T).
Following a lavish dinner
prepared by the resident Chinese
chef, the
Chinese Bicentennial
Steel Ensemble (CBSE) and
members of the visiting troupe
entertained the small but
appreciative group of guests
with the music of steel and
traditional Chinese instruments.
The CBSE started with a
locally-arranged rendition of
the popular Chinese song “I love
Beijing Tiananmen”, which was
enthusiastically received by the
attentive audience. Chinese and
local soca by the CBSE were
interleaved with solo and group
performances by members of the
Song and Dance Troupe.
CBSE with Chinese
artistes awaiting their
cue |
The magical moment of the
evening was created when, for
the first time in T&T, or
anywhere else in the world, a
group of professional Chinese
musicians combined their musical
skills with those of the
panists. Playing the dizi
(flute), erhu (two-stringed
violin), pipa (lute) and sheng
(wind instrument), the artistes
showed their professionalism by
joining the CBSE in their
performance of the Chinese pop
song “Tien Mi Mi”, made
well-known by Chinese songstress Deng Lijun.
Pipa,
Sheng
and
Erhu
playing
with
the
CBSE
|
To conclude the evening’s
proceedings, the CBSE brought
down the house with “Nah going
home”, when all the guests got
up from their seats and enjoyed
a lively jump up around the
pool. The troupe left the
following morning for Venezuela,
before embarking on a long trip
back home to China.
|