CHICAGO, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- An "Ocean, my Hometown" concert featuring songs composed by renowned Chinese composer Wang Liping in different times was staged in a suburban theater of Chicago Sunday night, arousing homesickness of many Chinese Americans present.
Local art troupe performers presented to the audience Wang's songs, including "Camel Bell", "Flying Pigeons", "Diving Girls", "On the Island Sun", and "Joyful Song Flying off from Spray", which are familiar tunes for the audience.
"The Dream of the Red Chamber" suite, a string of music and songs Wang composed in the the late 1980s for the TV series of the same name, reminded many Chinese Americans of their juvenile time when they were at middle or high schools, being attracted to the TV series on Summer holidays and getting their first taste of this Chinese classic literature work.
"The Shepherd Song" and "Shaolin, Shaolin" Wang composed for "Shaolin Temple" in the early 1980s caused a stir and drew continuous applauses. The soft female voice accompanied by masculine male chorus and martial arts performance brought people back to the time when they watched the film numerous times.
Sitting among the audience during the performance, Wang could not help but join the final chorus of "Ocean, my Hometown", leading all people in the theater hall to sing along.
Before the concert, Wang told Xinhua in an interview that when composing "Ocean, my Hometown", the theme he wanted to convey is love, consisting of nostalgia, affection and friendship.
Qiao Wanjun, a well-known Chinese American conductor as well as the organizer of the concert, told Xinhua that by organizing the world tour of the "Ocean, my Hometown" concert, he wants to present some of China's best musical products to the world.
Qiao plans to stage 79 concerts worldwide in less than three years before having the 80th in Beijing to salute Wang on his 80th birthday.
Chicago is the fourth leg of the world tour of the concert that kicked off on Sept. 29 in Boston, Massachusetts. Enditem
