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TORONTO—Local Toronto recording artist and live entertainer Adrien Breda attended Shen Yun Performing Arts at Sony Centre on Sunday afternoon and was happy to discover bel canto operatic singing in Chinese.
“I enjoyed it,” said Mr. Breda at intermission, calling Shen Yun a “great show.”
Mr. Breda has performed at major concert events as well as corporate, private, and charity functions. One of his most memorable highlights was being part of the Vocation Concert in Toronto in honour of Pope John Paul II on the occasion of World Youth Day 2002. There, he performed for an audience of over 800,000 people.
But the use of Western bel canto vocal technique while singing lyrics in the Chinese language was new to him.
“I’m always used to hearing either Italian or French or German, but no, I enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to the second [half of the performance],” he said.
New York-based Shen Yun is dedicated to the mission of reviving the traditional Chinese culture through classical Chinese dance and music that embody the spiritual essence of the ancient heritage with its devotion to the virtues and reverence for the divine.
Virtuoso soloists in the great soprano, tenor, and baritone traditions take the stage in between dances to perform original compositions, impressing the audience with their grasp of the highly difficult requirements of bel canto singing while retaining proper diction and articulation in the Chinese language.
Shen Yun also features a unique orchestra that combines Western and Eastern classical musical instruments to accompany each dance.
“It’s all around the Chinese culture, so I’m learning a lot about the music, the art form, the dance … it’s very interesting,” Mr. Breda said.Reporting by Dongyu Teng and Kristina Skorbach
Shen Yun Performing Arts International Company will continue on to Mississauga for five shows at the Living Arts Centre Jan. 19-22.
For more information, visit ShenYunPerformingArts.org.
The Epoch Times is a proud sponsor of Shen Yun Performing Arts.
