It is strange but true that most Chinese people know the Vienna Boys Choir, but could not name a Chinese chorus or a Chinese conductor.

It does not mean that China has no high-calibre choir, skilful chorus conductor or excellent chorale works. In the 1950s and 60s, Chinese choirs enjoyed a more prestigious global reputation than Chinese symphony orchestras. But the current situation is that Chinese orchestras have developed rapidly while the popularity of the chorus is declining.

In a move to change the situation, the China Chorale Society and the China National Symphony Orchestra Choir have organized four concerts and a lecture at the National Library Concert Hall from today until Sunday to sing some popular older tunes as well as showcasing the outstanding performances of China's first generation of choir conductors including Yan Liangkun, Qiu Li, Hu Defeng, Tang Jiang and Nie Zhongming.

On the professional level, chorus as a vocal art has been neglected since the 1980s in this country, although it remains popular among amateur singers who perform in the neighbourhood or community in their spare time.

"It's a pity that the chorus has been a routine to open or close a variety show or a concert. It is called the wrapping of the dumpling, not the delicious stuffing," said China Chorale Society Secretary-General Sun Zhifen.

Influenced by a certain concept that there should be no professional choir, many local symphonies have dismissed their choirs and the State-run ensembles have produced smaller and smaller choirs. According to Li Peizhi, conductor of the China National Symphony Orchestra Choir, his chorus membership has declined to less than 30, and it is the same case with the China Broadcasting Chorus.

Since the government does not attach enough importance to the choirs of State-run orchestras and grants very little funding in that area, the choirs have difficulty giving regular performances, and many chorus singers, especially the younger ones, have left the stage because of the low pay. Li said the average age of his choir is over 40 years old.

However, what makes Sun, Li and their colleagues who have devoted most of their lives to the chorus feel gratified and predicting a bright future is that "the mass chorus has been booming in recent years."

"What we should do is arrange more chances for them to sing," said Feng Wanzhen, deputy secretary general of the China Chorale Society.

"For example, we have tried every effort to continue the annual 'Voice of Beijing' chorus event for 10 years, although we are bogged down with financial problems and could not find sponsors."

In the 10th "Voice of Beijing" which ended on September 22, more than 15 Beijing-based amateur choirs gave eight concerts.

And since October 12, the China Chorale Society has continued giving regular lectures on chorale matters at the Beijing Golden Sailing Concert Hall.

Feng also pointed out that the biggest problem, however, is not a lack of funds, but the lack of young talented and skillful conductors to continue their careers.

"That's the very first reason we organize the concerts. All the five conductors are around 80 years old. We are afraid that people would not have an opportunity to enjoy their performances, and the young conductor could not learn from them any longer. We should not lose any time," said Sun.

"They are the pioneers of chorale work in China and have devoted their whole lives to the choir. We hope through these concerts, more young conductors or chorale music-lovers from across the country could learn skills and experience from them," said Feng.

In his 80s, Yan Liangkun is the oldest among the five. His trademark work is "The Yellow River Cantata," which he has conducted since 1940. From 1954 to 1958, Yan went to learn chorale conducting in the former Soviet Union and had worked as the chief conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra Choir since he returned to China until 1993. In 1961, Yan initiated and organized the first all-chorus concert in the country. Even in his 80s, he has not stopped conducting and passing his knowledge and skills on to the next generation.

Qiu Li conducted the famous Chinese opera "Baimaonu (The White-haired Girl)" and the song and dance epic "Dongfanghong (The East Is Red)" in the 1960s. In recent years, he has popularized chorus at the grass roots level in communities and factories.

Hu Defeng and Tang Jiang are conductors from the army. Both are noted for conducting revolutionary works such as folk songs popular during wartime and the songs arranged from the late Chairman Mao's poetry.

The 73-year-old Nie Zhongming is the youngest one among the five. A graduate from the China Central Conservatory of Music in 1953, he works as chief conductor of the China Broadcasting Choir. Now he is director of China's Children Choir Committee and mainly works on the children's chorus.

(China Daily November 12, 2003)