The program "Snowflake" at the openning ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games [Xinhua/Li Ga]

The Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, which embodied both the Olympic spirit and traditional Chinese cultural elements, was not only an international sports event, but also a grand cultural event. The Olympics showcased China's cultural strength to the world.

Chinese Children's Beautiful Singing Honors Greece

The children of Malanhua Children's Choir [Xinhua/Xu Yanan]

Before athletes from around the world began competing in winter sports at the Beijing 2022 Games, 44 children from Malan (a mountainous village in Chengnanzhuang, a town in Fuping, a county in North China's Hebei Province) basked in their own Olympic glory. The children, members of the Malanhua Children's Choir, sang the Olympic Anthem, in Greek, during the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games. The opening ceremony was held in National Stadium (the "Bird's Nest") on February 4. The children, who wore tiger-head boots and Chinese-style blouses, with the patterns of paper-cut tigers' heads, amazed global spectators with their crystal-clear, unaccompanied singing.

Composed by Greek composer Spyros Samaras and written by Greek poet Kostis Palamas, the Olympic Anthem was first performed during the opening ceremony of the 1896 Olympic Games, the first modern Olympics, held in Athens. During the 54th Session of the IOC (the International Olympic Committee), held in Tokyo in 1958, the committee designated the anthem as the official Olympic Anthem. Since then, the anthem has been sung during both the opening and closing ceremonies of every Olympic Games.

During the past month, the choir's performance has become a hot topic among viewers from around the world. "My heart filled with tender feelings for the children, as I watched them sing affectionately in the stadium ... Indeed, the kids' singing was like the sound of heaven," says Zhou Yun, a white-collared employee with a foreign enterprise in Jinan, a city in East China's Shandong Province.

"Under the Party (Communist Party of China)'s leadership, China has scored remarkable accomplishments in poverty alleviation ... Fuping has taken on a new look, since the once-poverty-stricken county has been removed from China's national poverty list," Zhang Yimou, director of the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, has been quoted as saying. "It has been general practice for the host country of an Olympics to invite famous singers (in the country) to sing the Olympic Anthem. However, we have broken the 'routine' by offering an opportunity to the children from the remote mountainous village to sing on the Olympic stage. That has showcased our cultural confidence. The kids' pure, sweet voices might remind you of the fragrance of the earth." 

The choir's wonderful performance was well received by spectators from various countries, including Greece, the birthplace of the Olympic Games. Aggeliki Toubanaki, a vocal educator with the Philippos Nakas Conservatory (one of the best-known conservatories in Greece), complimented the children for their pure, angel-like voices. "Although they are amateur singers, the children sang in a voice that showed unity, emanating their emotion and power," says Toubanaki. She is also a singer and a music producer.

Evangelos Kokkoris, the conservatory's art director, showered praises on the choir members for their beautiful singing. "What has impressed me most is that the choir of young Chinese sang the Olympic Anthem in Greek with clear, stable voices. The children's beautiful singing has honored our home country, Greece," Kokkoris has been quoted as saying. He is a versatile artist — a flute player, a composer and a music theorist.    

"The children's dulcet voices plucked the string of my heart, as I watched their performance online with a keen interest," says Foteini Baxevani, a young woman who studies piano at the conservatory.  

"The children, with sweet voices and innocent, star-like eyes, are like pure angels," says Deng Xiaolan, founder of Malanhua Children's Choir. Deng was born in 1943 in Yijiazhuang, another village in Fuping.

Deng, who wanted to enrich rural children's lives, began teaching, free of charge, children in Malan to sing and play musical instruments a short time after she retired (in 2004) from Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau. Two years later, she established Malan Children's Band, in Fuping. In 2013, she founded the Malan Children's Music Festival, the first of its kind in the country. During the past 18 years, Deng has taken many rural children to perform in Beijing, Shanghai and other large cities in China.

In September 2021, members of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2022 Olympic Winter Games arrived in Fuping, to audition performers for the anthem. Eventually, 44 children, including eight members of Malan Children's Band, were chosen to sing the anthem. In October 2021, the children began receiving language training in a local primary school.

Once again, the Malanhua Children's Choir captivated spectators with their wonderful performance (singing the Olympic Anthem in Greek) during the closing ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, held in the National Stadium on February 20.

'This Is Our Pleasant Surprise for China'

"The organization of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics would help promote the world's understanding of Chinese culture," said Spyros Capralos, President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC) and member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Capralos made the remarks during a recent interview with Xinhua News Agency. "The world can learn a lot from China, and it is a privilege to have the opportunity to experience Chinese culture and learn different aspects of Chinese civilization during the Olympic Games."

The trays used to convey medals and/or souvenirs during the Olympics' award ceremonies are shaped like open pages, which symbolize the opening of a new chapter in both cultural exchanges and integration between China and other countries, and in the friendships among people from different nations and regions.

The ceremonial costumes (for presentation of awards) are decorated with various auspicious patterns, including snow and clouds. Integrated with traditional and modern cultural elements, the costumes display the unique charm of Chinese culture to the world.

Beijing Capital Gymnasium was filled with the sobbing Butterfly Lovers' Concerto during the evening of February 17, as Karen Chen (a Chinese-born American figure skater) "danced" gracefully on the ice. She won a silver medal with Team USA during the Olympics. Chen recently told media that her mother, Hsiu-Hui Tseng, created her costume for this year's free skate. The light purple dress was stunningly beautiful, with flowing bell sleeves and an illusion neckline, embellished with rhinestone flowers and butterflies. "China's dance and figure skating complement each other in displaying the beauty of art. That has inspired me to incorporate my own folk-dance experiences into my skating performances," she has been quoted as saying.

Famed as the "Butterfly on Ice" for her elegant and breathtaking movements on the ice, Chinese figure skater Chen Lu won the bronze medal during the 1998 Nagano (in Japan) Winter Olympics. Like Karen Chen did this year, Chen Lu performed to Butterfly Lovers' Concerto during the event. It was the first time Chinese music was played in the international figure skating arena. During the following two decades, an increasing number of contestants, from China or other Asian countries, have used Chinese music as accompaniment as they have competed during international sports events.

For the first time in its history, a Haitian delegation took part in the Winter Olympics. The delegation's members wore costumes decorated with various Chinese cultural elements, including dragons, pandas, tigers, pines and cypresses, ancient pagodas and the Great Wall. "This is our pleasant surprise for China," a member of the delegation recently told media.

What's unique for a nation is also precious for the world. Through the foreign contestants' love for the Chinese-style costumes, one may get a glimpse into the warm, sincere feelings and harmonious relationships among athletes from various countries.

(Women of China English Monthly March 2022 issue)