1979: My fiancée is a goddess

Chapter 62 Who will sing Xiaofang?
"Hello, Professor Tong, thank you for coming here in such heavy rain."

Upon seeing this, Editor-in-Chief Yang immediately pulled out a box of Huanghelou from his pocket, took out two cigarettes and handed them over.

"Yes, Professor Tong, I am really sorry to bother you. I think that in the whole Jiangcheng, only your Hubei University of Arts has the ability to do this. It is precisely because of this that we have to find you."

Cheng Kaiyan also quickly said a few nice words to ease the atmosphere.

After all, Professor Tong came over in the rain, and his face did not look very good.

"It's okay, it's okay. We are all brother companies. I have also been subscribing to the previous issue of Jiangcheng Literature and Art published by your magazine, Chief Editor Yang."

Professor Tong's expression lightened up a little.

He took the two cigarettes, put one on his ear, lit the other and put it in his mouth.

It's the end of January now, the Chinese New Year is approaching, and the students have already had their holidays.

Tong Zhongliang, a professor in the composition department, was originally resting at home.

However, he did not expect that today his superiors assigned him a task, asking him to help produce a song, and to complete it in the shortest time possible.

This made him complain bitterly. Song production was not such a simple matter. Just composing the music and writing the lyrics was a lot of work...

"First of all, let me be clear: I can help you with this, but I can't guarantee the final result.

After all, there is no music or lyrics, and it involves recording, mixing, and mastering, which are not things that can be done in a day or two. You should be mentally prepared, and we will try our best to get it done before the Chinese New Year. "

Professor Tong Zhongliang reminded in a deep voice that one should not try to get away with something that the leader has personally arranged.

Editor-in-Chief Yang nodded to show his understanding. He and Professor Tong had similar ideas and also felt that recording a song was not that simple.

"Well, Professor Tong, you don't have to worry about these. I have prepared the lyrics and music. The next steps are up to you."

Cheng Kaiyan spoke at this time, although he didn't know what the difficulty was, he had already finished the lyrics and music in the capital.

School gate.

Three people stood in the rain with umbrellas.

There is smoke inside the umbrella and drizzle outside the umbrella.

Upon hearing this, Professor Tong was stunned and looked at Cheng Kaiyan in surprise.

He was silent for a while, and finally said: "Why didn't you say so earlier!"

Lyrics, composition and singing are the most difficult parts of song production.

Once these three points are solved, song production will not be a difficult task.

As for other processes, mixing, recording, and mastering, the entire process doesn’t take long.

"You didn't even ask."

"That's right... Let's talk while we walk. Let's not stand here in the rain. Let's go to the recording studio and look at the lyrics and music first."

Professor Tong nodded awkwardly.

After knowing that the lyrics and music were ready, his tone became much more enthusiastic, and he quickly pulled the two of them to the recording studio in the school office building.

As someone in the industry, Professor Tong chatted with the two about things in the industry.

“With the reform and opening up, the record industry, which has been dormant in recent years, is gradually reviving.

Guangdong, which borders Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, has an advantageous geographical location and has become the forefront for the emergence of various new things, new cultures and new ideas.

In January last year, the Guangdong Radio and Television Bureau invested 30 yuan to establish Pacific Audio and Video Company, which became the first company in China with modern music recording equipment and engaged in song recording and distribution.

In the same year, Pacific Company produced its first stereo cassette, "Roses Are Blooming Everywhere", by relying on "song-copying tapes". It became a huge success soon after its release, with sales reaching millions.

Some of the equipment in our school’s recording studio was shipped from Guangdong. Although some of it is obsolete, it is still no problem to record a song.”

Roses in Bloom Everywhere is a song sung by Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng in the 1950s.

"The long-term lack of culture has made all cultural products hot-selling items, not just songs, novels, TV series, and movies. Which one is not popular in China?"

After hearing this, Cheng Kaiyan said with a smile.

Along with economic openness, cultural openness also came along.

The 1980s was an era of cultural import, and it can be said that the idea of ​​worshipping foreign things and fawning on foreigners took root there.

“That’s quite true, it’s quite rare for people like you to write your own songs and compose your own music.

In Guangdong, whether it is the famous Pacific Recording Company or the state-owned China Record Corporation, they all rely on ripping popular songs from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan and then finding singers with similar voices to sing them.

There are not many people in China who can create pop songs." Professor Tong said this with a hint of irony in his tone.

After a while, everyone came to a room with a sign saying "Recording Studio".

The room is very big, and there are various musical instruments inside, such as guitar, piano, drum set, erhu, trumpet...

Professor Tong led the two of them to sit on a sofa, and brought a few cups of hot water. Everyone drank tea to warm themselves up.

"Please sit down first. Let's take a look at the lyrics and music."

Professor Tong spoke, looking at Cheng Kaiyan expectantly.

He also didn't expect that this young man could write songs and even compose the lyrics.

Cheng Kaiyan took out a piece of white paper from his pocket and handed it over. This was a song he had composed when he was still in the capital, but it used piano notation and he had played it once on the piano at that time.

The original song was not played on piano, so there are some differences.

Professor Tong couldn't wait to read it. On the white paper, blue ink outlined the five-line staff and notes, and below it were the lyrics:
There is a girl named Xiaofang in the village, she is good-looking and kind...

"Well written, Comrade Xiao Cheng! The lyrics are simple and full of emotion."

After reading it through, Professor Tong looked at Cheng Kaiyan in surprise and praised her.

Editor-in-Chief Yang heaved a sigh of relief when he heard this. It’s good, it’s good.

Cheng Kaiyan on the side was much calmer, which was more than good.

This song "Xiao Fang" was very popular all over the country in the year it was released. It was popular for a whole year. That year was also called the Year of Xiao Fang and the Year of Li Chunbo.

Professor Tong then tried to sing with the tunes on the score: "There is a girl in the village named Xiaofang... I can't sing it. It feels a bit awkward to use the piano accompaniment. Xiaocheng, can you sing it? Come and try it."

Then Cheng Kaiyan sang: "There is a girl in the village named Xiaofang... Thank you for your love..."

Professor Tong made revisions on the paper and commented: "This time it sounds good, the lyrics are catchy and full of storytelling.

Piano is not quite suitable, I think the prelude can be made with guitar and dense drum beats.

Overall, I think there is no need to stack too many instruments, and the melody and emotion of the song can be highlighted through the performance of the electric guitar.

This arrangement will make the song more focused on the expression of the lyrics and the singer's interpretation, allowing the audience to focus more on the story and emotions conveyed by the song."

Cheng Kaiyan and Editor-in-Chief Yang nodded. He was indeed a talented person. He spoke differently the moment he opened his mouth.

"Then let's do as you say! What shall we do next?"

"Let's record the accompaniment first. It should be finished this afternoon. I can play the guitar."

At Professor Tong's command, the three began to work in the recording studio. Cheng Kaiyan was responsible for beating the drums, while Professor Tong assisted them.

Time flies and an afternoon has passed.

With the click of this professional 24-track recorder, a box of accompaniment tape was recorded.

Cheng Kaiyan took a pen and wrote three big words "Accompaniment One" on the surface of the tape, which marked the laying of a solid foundation for the recording of the song.

After putting it back and playing it two or three times, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief after making sure there were no problems.

"Finally done!"

"Then who should we find to sing this song "Xiao Fang" next?"

Professor Tong asked in a deep voice.

"We still have to look for it. According to the lyrics about Xiaofang, it should be sung by a man. There are many literary and artistic units in Jiangcheng..."

"I'll find someone to sing, it doesn't matter if it's a man or a woman. The most important thing now is to record the song well."

Cheng Kaiyan stopped him without hesitation. Are you kidding me and asking others to sing?
Then he would suffer a huge loss!
In fact, you can't make any money from singing these days. After a singer finishes singing, no matter how many tapes or records are sold, it has nothing to do with you. At most you only get a little service fee.

Domestic record companies have had no copyright awareness since their inception. For the production of each record, the company basically settles the bills with the arrangers, producers, and singers in the form of labor fees or wages, and will not pay copyright fees to original creators in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, or even overseas.

For example, Cheng Fangyuan sold millions of covers but could only get a few hundred yuan in labor fees.

It would be better to let our own sister Xiaoli sing, at least it can make her happy.

"Okay, I originally wanted to ask the leader for instructions, but whether it's this song or the novel, you wrote it yourself, so we won't interfere too much. Just make the decision yourself."

Editor-in-Chief Yang nodded in agreement.

(End of this chapter)