Tan Jing: Lark of the Army in Angel’s Voice

Chinese artists put up a show on the evening of November 16， 2009 in Hokkaido， Japan. The “Ode to Mulan”， an opera， was a key show in an ongoing cultural exchange program between China and Japan. Tan Jing， a singer from the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Political Department of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA)， wowed the audience by her stunning beauty and by her amazing singing.

Tan Jing is famed for her singing. She is known to many as “Lark of the Army”. Her fame is both national and international. The latest testimony of her successful singing career: Tan Jing was awarded the honorary certificate for collection at the American Folklife Center on January 29， 2009 in Washington DC. From that day on， the center would record and collect， preserve Tan Jin’s career and exhibit her performances to the world. The project named “Recording Today for the Future” is an honor worthy of the pride of artists and the national cultures they present. Peng Liyuan， the director of the PLA troupe says， “Tan Jing is a diligent artist. She cares for the general public and loves people. She is one of the best PLA artists in recent years.”

Born in 1977 into a family of artists in Houma City， Shanxi Province in northern China， Tan Jing has parents who were singers at the local troupe. Her mother has a very exquisite soprano voice. The daughter grew up in the beautiful singing of her mother. Under the cultivation of her parents， she grew up to be a very nice singer. She passed all the examinations at 16 when she was in the second year of senior high school and got enrolled as a music student in the music department of Shanxi University. She was the youngest student in the university. Her mother thought the provincial university was not good enough for her daughter， a singer with such talent and potentiality. Tan Jing left the university. The mother thought her daughter should go to the best music school in China. Some relatives worried: what if she failed to get herself enrolled into the China Conservatory? The mother was confident of her daughter’s talent.

In 1994， the 17-year-old Tan Jing emerged as one of the best singers in the examinations taken by hundreds of good singers from all over the country. For various reasons， however， she was not recruited as a student at the government expenses. She was enrolled as a student who needed to pay her own intuitions through college. She felt hurt and wept three days after receiving the notification. The annual tuition of 5，900 yuan was more than a heavy financial burden for her parents. It meant that she was not one of the best singers.

She went through her college education as one of the best singers. Upon her graduation， she joined the PLA troupe. Shortly after her graduation， she participated in a national singing competition for young singers. Before the finals， however， she was chosen by the Ministry of Culture to take part in an international singing competition held in Kazakhstan. She competed against singers from 17 Asian countries and won the silver. It was an honor of the country. She got a medal from the Army.

Over years， she rose to national fame.

Music critic Hong Shui comments that Tan Jing has a versatile voice. She is able to show her colorful dimensions in various styles. Opera arias are easy for her. Pop songs and folk songs in traditional style are easy too. Her interpretations of army songs and pop songs are amazing. Experts say that a young singer like Tan Jing with such a full gamut of singing skills and talents is a rare phenomenon.

That is exactly why she was chosen to sing there as the first Chinese pop singer in the Golden Hall of Vienna. Like many singers， she had dreamed of proving herself there. She was invited to hold a solo concert as part of events of China Year in Austria in 2006， the 35th anniversary of the founding of diplomatic ties between China and Austria. After receiving the invitation， she was overjoyed and swept in happiness. She said it was more than her pride as a pop singer. It was also the pride of China’s pop music.

She had reasons to be proud. Song Zuying was 37 when she made her glorious debut at the Golden Hall in 2003. Tan Jing was a 29-year-old pop singer. Her solo concert became a top priority for China’s cultural authorities. A-list experts were engaged to make sure that her concert was a success on all counts. Her six costumes were designed and made by Ma Yanhua， a Chinese fashion designer with international renown. One costume was even adorned with nearly 30，000 Swarovski crystal diamonds. And she was a huge success at the hall on the evening of September 12， 2006. In the spotlight， she stood shining in an oriental elegance and her angel-like singing of Chinese pop songs captured the hearts of the audience. Among the audience were UN officials， high-ranking officials and military generals and cultural celebrities of various European countries. Tan Jing’s singing conquered them all.

After the concert， she attended a party at the Chinese consulate in Vienna in celebration of the concert. To her huge surprise， it was a birthday party for her， one day after her birthday on September 11. She wept happily after leaning that her fellow Chinese at the consulate were proud of her and her successful concert at the hall.

Commitment to Public Welfare Projects

If art is Tan Jing’s career， public welfare projects are her commitment. Over years， she has dedicated herself to public welfare projects. Her eagerness to help the needy came from her experience in childhood years. In the village where her maternal grandmother lived， she saw girls of her age were unable to go to school because their families did not have money. Even as a teenage girl， she promised herself to help after she grew up and became capable of giving.

After learning in 2004 that Xinjiang County in her home province was raising money to build primary schools in rural areas， Tan Jing appointed herself to organize a charity show. She canvassed extensively and finally had All-China Women’s Federation and other organizations host the show. A CCTV director who coordinated the shooting of a documentary on the show said that everyone cried when a 14-year-old girl came onto stage and told the audience how her mother committed suicide in the morning after spending a night worrying in despair about the tuition of 25 yuan she was not able to pay for her daughter. The next day， Tan Jing brought 200，000 yuan in cash the village of Xixing and attended a groundbreaking ceremony for a new school there. After the ceremony she chatted with the school children and found that none of them had ever had a music class. She gave them a class on the spot.

Over the past few years， Tan Jing has participated in projects helping the fight against narcotics and enhancing the public awareness of the needs of AIDS patients. She donated 200，000 yuan and founded a health foundation in her name for youngsters in May， 2006.

Her enthusiastic participation in public welfare projects caught the attention of various government departments and non-government organizations. She was elected a deputy of the 10th National People’s Congress. On February 16， 2006， she was voted one of China’s top 10 Outstanding Youths.

Now Tan Jing is studying for a PhD degree in comparative literature at Beijing Foreign Studies University. She says she wants to be a singer making contribution to China’s national art and China’s music going international. And she wants to serve as an envoy for promoting cultural exchanges between China and the rest of the world.