AUGUST 03, 2008

Rehearsing for the Light of Life Charity Function

This afternoon I rehearsed for the Light of Life Charity Function at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. I sang We Are Ready with a choir group from Mainland China and we were accompanied by the China Philharmonic Orchestra. I’m used to hearing the music for the normal version of We Are Ready, so singing this song usually isn’t a problem for me. This time I found it very difficult because I had to sing an orchestral version of We Are Ready. I have to practice the song really well and remember the different musical arrangements.

Every event I attend at the moment has something to do with the Beijing Olympic Games. After the rehearsal, I took some photos with the choir group and members of the philharmonic orchestra. Looking at all these gifted and talented people, I had a feeling of admiration and happiness for them.

As I was about to leave the Great Hall of the People, I had an opportunity to take some photos of the National Performing Arts Centre that was across from the Great Hall. Everyone calls this arts center  The Egg. Do you think it looks like one?

China Story

Afterwards, I rushed to attend the China Story launching ceremony. I took part in this event as the China Story Image Ambassador and I’m also the only artist officially registered as a volunteer for the ceremony. China Story is a very meaningful endeavor. It’s made up of over thirty small houses called China Story Xiangyun Huts and is located within the Olympic Village. Each of the houses vividly exhibits the local customs, traditions, and cultural heritage from over thirty different provinces and cities around China. The houses will officially open to the public two days after the Olympic Games opening ceremony.

The theme song for China Story is called Zhongguo Kanjian (China Saw It), and I sang this duet with Tan Jing. Here is a translation of the lyrics:

As a volunteer for the event, I was extremely happy to receive my very own official Beijing Olympics ID card from Zhao Dongming, the director of the Beijing Olympic Committee Cultural Activities Department. I felt very excited and when I gave my speech on the stage, I told everyone that I was so pleased to become a member of this big family, and that I’d be willing to offer my services and do anything to help with China Story.

I was one of the volunteers that previously visited the Xiangyun houses, and I plan to turn these temporary Xiangyun houses into a permanent central tourist attraction after the Olympic Games. I think that the China Story exhibition presents the essence of China’s national culture and a true picture of the diversity in China. I hope to unite a group of thirty wealthy people, adopt a method of bearing the responsibilities for the future costs and expenses of maintaining these cultural houses, turn them into a permanent feature and allow even more people to understand the real diversity of Chinese culture.

Text and photos ©2008 The JC Group. All Rights Reserved.

August 3 (星期日)

为生命之光慈善晚会彩排：

          今天下午，我到北京人民大会堂为‘生命之光慈善晚会’进行彩排。我跟国内的合唱团合唱‘We Are Ready’并得到中国管弦乐团为我们伴奏。我听惯了平常的音乐版‘We Are Ready’，所以唱这首歌是没有问题的，可是这一次是唱管弦乐团版的‘We Are Ready’真的很困难，我必须要好好的彩排，牢记不同的音乐编排。

          总之，现在我出席的每一个活动，都跟北京奥运有关的。彩排完毕，我跟合唱团和管弦乐团成员拍合照，看到这些天才横溢的人，打从心里又羡慕又替他们高兴。

          我离开人民大会堂时，我趁机拿起照相机从人民大会堂拍对面的国家剧院，大家都叫它做‘巨蛋’，你们觉得它像不像呢？

中国故事：

          然后，我赶去出席‘中国故事’出征仪式。这一次我是以‘中国故事’的形象大使身份出席，而且，我也是唯一一个艺人是注册志愿者。‘中国故事’是一件非常有意义的事情，是在奥运村内建了三十多间小屋子，叫‘中国故事祥云小屋’，它们浓缩展示了我国三十余个省市的风土人情及文化遗产，将于奥运会开幕第二天面向公众正式开放。

          中国故事的主题歌叫《中国看见》，是由我和谭晶合唱的，歌词如下：

《中国看见》

作曲：何沐阳  作词：王平久  演唱：成龙 谭晶

谭晶：数不清的目光中 我看见了你 那天种下自己

成龙：把今天刻在明天 被记忆 世界惊叹不已

谭晶：漫天的云彩是我每天在读你 美丽经久不息

成龙：风情万种是故事的屹立 塑造经典自己

成龙：看见自己 世界在你心里

谭晶：看见自己 你在世界眼里

成龙：海是山水的回忆

梦是大地的勇气

合唱：你是我爱的写意

谭晶：手把手传递让我生命中有你 传奇云涌风起

成龙：那爱的空间是你 剪去沉寂 岁月流淌自己

合唱：看见自己 世界在你心里

看见自己 你在世界眼里

海是山水的回忆

梦是大地的勇气

你是我爱的写意

合唱：看见自己 世界在你心里

看见自己 你在世界眼里

不同语言的唤起

心灵凝集

流传在世界心里

中国看见 自己

          作为活动的志愿者，我非常高兴的从北京奥组委文化活动部部长赵东鸣手中接过了自己的北京奥运会正式注册证件。我真的很兴奋，还在台上致词时告诉大家，我非常高兴能够成为这个大家庭中普通的一员，我愿意竭尽所能为中国故事服务。

          我作为曾经参观过祥云小屋的一位志愿者，我将这些原计划作为奥运会期间临时措施的祥云小屋变成中心区永久景点而积极奔走。我认为中国故事向世人呈现了中国民族文化的精髓和一个真实、多样化的中国，我希望联合30位富豪，采取认领的方式，承担今后小屋运行的全部费用，使之成为永久项目，以便让更多的人了解真实、多样的中国文化。