A thirty-minute countdown to the start of the show. It's hustle and bustle backstage, with melodies overflowing from each nook and cranny of the two wings. Even the collossal space of the Great Hall of the People feels crammed, as thousands of singers from all corners of the world converge for one of the biggest choral festivals in the country.
Nigerian group "The Capital Voices of Abuja" catches my attention as they rehearse a revolutionary Chinese song.
And even if you can't smell "The Jasmine," you won't miss it when you hear the artists of iSING warm up with this popular Chinese folk song, shortly before taking to the stage to lead almost two hundred singers for the opening song.
This year, the biennial event has drawn nearly 10,000 participants from around the world for a series of competitions, concerts, conferences and workshops. Started 4 years ago by Chinese-American opera singer Tian Haojiang, iSINGhas selected 40 outstanding young singers from 8 countries for this year's festival. He hopes the group will cultivate young singers with more a comprehensive understanding of both eastern and western culture.
"We just love to sing, we're learning to sing in Chinese and having a wonderful time," Singer iSING said.
"I was performing in a small city in Italy ten years ago. There were other artists that came from eight different countries. And they started to ask us questions about China and I realized that most people knew very little about China. So that prompted me to bring these artists to China and introduce them to what Chinese language, food and culture are really like," said Tian Haojiang, singer & founder of iSING.
Indeed, the evening is nothing but fun and reverie. The critically acclaimed USC Thornton Chamber singers give their dream-like rendition of an original song from the movie "Charlie and the Chocolate factory." Last year, the group performed with Barry Manilow at the Christmas Tree lighting concert and on the "50 and Counting Tour" with the Rolling Stones. They are just but one of the A-list ensembles at this year's festival.
Beijing locals get ready for some live music in unusual places, as choruses are slated to perform in the streets of the financial district, in shopping centers and in major parks in the capital.
And the festival is also kid-friendly. In fact, many youth choirs from home and abroad are participating this year. Dagilelis is an award-winning boy's choir from Lithuania. They not only shower the audience with their angelic voices, but also recreate sounds of the jungle. Their presence is a big boost for many other youth choirs such as the Shanghai Blind Children's Choir.
The 12th China International Chrous Festival will run through August 4th in Beijing.
