Kína felől fúj a szél

„The wind is blowing from the Danube river” – this is a line from a popular Hungarian folk song. But this time the wind is blowing from China – this is the 中国风 / 中國風 (Zhōngguó fēng), the Chinese wind.

One of my professors always says when he teaches East history, that the Chinese culture is very strong and has a swallowing power: all of the neighbours of China were more or less sinicized in the past. However, due to the colonisation and mostly the Cultural Revolution and later the globalisation, the traditional Chinese culture weakened. Western lifestyle, Western clothes, Western theories and Western music.

It was Jay Chou, who reformed the Chinese music industry with his new style in 2000. He incorporated Western elements into traditional Chinese music, thus creating the Chinese wind. Traditional Chinese music instruments and patterns, Chinese cultural elements and sometimes even lyrics written in the form of ancient Chinese poetry – this is the so called Chou-style and the Chinese wind.

I met Chinese wind a long time ago – though my first „acquaintance” was not Jay Chou, but Wang Leehom, another young Chinese wind musician and his 火力全開 (Open Fire) with Lady Gaga, imperialism and Asian invasion. I was searching for something new and fresh – and actually, I succeeded. Honestly, I am bored with the Western music and even with the Korean pop, because after a while, they are just all the same. The first occasion when I listened Korean pop I thought that was something new. And yes, in a certain sense it indeed was – handsome boy bands, girl groups, sexy dance, the coolest concepts, twinkle-twinkle music videos and the exotic Korean language. But, after all, the music itself is still Western-style and the original Korean music is nowhere to find. I can listen Hungarian or American Western-style too, why would I go to Korea for it? I don’t say there are no Korean artists who perform traditional Korean music – I say that they’re not in the mainstream.

And that’s how I met Chinese wind. And that’s why I love AKB48, Koda Kumi and their traditional-streak tracks. Sometimes it’s pop, sometimes R&B, hip hop or even black metal – all of them can fit very well to traditional Chinese or Japanese music. And both Jay Chou, Lee Wanghom, Chtonic and both AKB48, Koda Kumi are in the mainstream.

Here is one track from my new favourite Taiwanese group, 太妃堂 (Toffee) – a beautiful example of alloyed traditional music and Western style.

by Alla

Links: article on Chinese wind