Toronto resident Ms. Nan Shan attended a performance of the Divine Performing Arts (DPA), and wrote in her review: “Hearing the voice of the young tenor, Hong Ming, I felt that the microphone was superfluous. The theater can hold an audience of 1,700 people, and it was simply too small. His voice was unbelievably rich and overwhelming, filling the house with soul-stirring power and charm.”
Mr. Hong Ming, a world-class vocal artist from China, has won awards in 33 professional vocal competitions and has given more than a dozen exclusive performances to entertain Chinese and foreign government officials and heads of state. He has also traveled to Switzerland and Japan on occasion for international vocal events.
In 2007, when he first appeared in Holiday Wonders, a Christmas-season production featuring DPA, his performance was judged to be a stunning success in the musical world. He then toured globally with DPA and in performance after performance deeply touched the hearts of audiences around the world.
Mr. Challis, vice president of the BES Company, affiliated with Berkeley College, New Jersey, said that Mr. Hong’s performance was wonderful, kind, delicate, direct, and gentle. Mr. Challis felt that the songs were pure and powerful and said that an artist with a pure and bright inner mind will bring pure and righteous artwork to the audience, just as Mr. Hong had done in the evening’s performance.
Sin Gyu-gon is a famous South Korean bass. He is the general director of the South Korean Vocalists Federation, and a representative of the Vocal Academy of South Korea. He commented on Mr. Hong’s performance in February 2008: “He has a broad vocal range. He was so much at ease transitioning between middle-low, middle, and high registers. And his ability to keep his voice steady was just remarkable. A good tenor is judged by the timbre of his voice, and the timbre of Mr. Hong’s voice is fabulous.”
Vrona Imdarfingh, who works in the jewelry industry, attended a DPA performance at Jubilee Auditorium in Alberta, Canada, and was amazed by it. “The singing by the tenor [Hong Ming] seemed to have come from out of this world. His voice was marvelous, simply marvelous!” she exclaimed.
Indeed, experiencing Mr. Hong’s singing feels like being lifted up on the wings of music, transported through the vastness of ancient times. A lofty mountain may suddenly appear in front of the audience member, but in due time Mr. Hong’s voice, clear and floating, will lift one above it, gliding over to the top of another mountain in the distance, creating a feeling of incredulous exhilaration that lingers on and on. Time seems suspended for the audience member hanging on every note of his performance.
In the spring of 2008, when DPA was in Taiwan, company members went to Nantou County for a sightseeing tour of the Sun and Moon Pond. Mr. Hong arrived via boat at the center of the lake. Drifting on the gently undulating water and moved by the picturesque natural beauty, he broke into song. His voice echoed through the sky, and the earth seemed to reverberate. With the spontaneity of a child, he seemed blissfully lost in his own world.
Mr. Hong is an especially introspective singer. “An artist not only has to have the necessary skill and artistic nurturing,” said Mr. Hong, “he also has to constantly elevate his spiritual understanding, as well. What the artist has experienced and what he intends to express are intertwined. If one has been contaminated by bad influences, even though these things are not in the blood, the songs one sings will be polluted.” His greatest wish is to bring positive, uplifting, and bright messages to his audience.
Mr. Hong says that every artist has a moral responsibility, and the arts should inspire a healthy attitude, benevolence, and joy. “Authentic art brings individuals blessings and also opens up an illuminated path that leads towards divinity.”
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of the 2009 Divine Performing Arts World tour. For more information and ticket information on the New York Metro area shows, please visit www.nysplendor.com .
