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Song title: Suddenly I look around
Song selected by: Jessica
Original poem:(Chinese-English reference)
東風夜放花千樹，更吹落、星如雨。
寶馬雕車香滿路。鳳簫聲動，玉壺光轉，一夜魚龍舞。
One night's east wind adorns a thousand trees with flowers
And blows down stars in showers.
Fine steeds and carved cabs spread fragrance en route;
Music vibrates from the flute;
The moon sheds its full light
While fish and dragon lanterns dance all night.
蛾兒雪柳黃金縷，笑語盈盈暗香去。
眾裡尋他千百度。 驀然回首，那人卻在，燈火闌珊處。
In gold-thread dress, with moth or willow ornaments,
Giggling, she melts into the throng with trails of scents
But in the crowd once and again
I look for her in vain.
When all at once I turn my head,
I find her there where lantern light is dimly shed.
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About the poet: Xin Qi-Ji
Xin Qi-Ji (May 28, 1140 – October 3, 1207),  courtesy name You An, art name Jia Xuan Upasaka, native of Li Cheng county, Ji Nan City, Shandong province (present day Li Cheng district, Ji Nan City, Shandong province). He was born in Jin Kingdom, but he fought against Jin Kingdom to join Song Dynasty. He had assumed government posts in Jiang Xi and Fu Jian provinces. He wrote ‘Jia Xuan Poem Collection.’
| Cited from Wikipedia / Picture : Wikipedia |
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About the poem:
This poem was named ‘Night before Lantern Festival’ so it must had been very busy on the street that night. In the crowd, Xin Qi-Ji looked for the girl he liked many times, but he still could not spot her. Just as he was about to give up, he suddenly looked around, and that girl was standing in the corner all by herself. From this poem, we learned that whatever we are looking for, it is usually found in the place where you are least expecting.
‘Suddenly I look around’ afterthoughts:
HanGuang Vocal Band started the song with a very lively manner, both the lead and harmony sang this way as well, until the very last stanza. In the last stanza, the tenor Jin-Ying switched to another style, resembling a ‘totally unexpected’ feeling. In the meantime, voice percussion got more vigorous, and the chord was also changed to different key. The feeling presented here was totally different from the beginning, which resembled the feeling in the poem. I like this song a lot because the band got to the essence of the poem in its music. The band did an excellent job performing together, and the song was very enjoyable.
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Text: the Beautiful Voices Compiled by Jessica │ Pictures: the Beautiful Voices 
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