HUILING ZHANG. THE ERA OF SINGING MOVIE STARS IN THE POP AND JAZZ ART OF CHINA IN THE 40-50 S OF THE 20 TH CENTURY : REPRESENTATIVES OF THE OLDER GENERATION OF THE «GOLDEN SEVEN» GROUP – GONG QIUXIA, ZHOU XUAN, BAI HONG

Abstract

The article is devoted to the examination of the figures of the first galaxy of female singers during the period of the rise and flourishing of female pop and jazz performance in China in the 40 s (before the Cultural Revolution). Based on the traditions of their predecessors Li Min Hui, Wang Ren Mei, Li Lilly – the founders of Chinese female pop and jazz performance, whose work dates back to the 20 s and 30 s of the 20 th century, a new powerful the generation of female vocalists of this direction – the «Golden Seven», which dominated the Chinese pop music industry in the Shidaiqu style. It was founded by singers who began their singing careers in the 1930 s: Zhou Xuan, Gong Qixia, Bai Hong. Revealing the creative priorities and performance and stylistic orientations of each of the singing film actresses made it possible to present a diverse and colorful panorama of the development of pop-jazz music in China during this period. Zhou Xuan (Golden Throat) – movie star and radio singer was noted for high coloratura combined with Chinese elements of singing and folk Chinese instruments in pop-jazz compositions and film music. Gong Qiusia (Beautiful Jade, Golden Voice, Hit Star) personified the type of amphibious artist, organically combining dance and singing, staged pop and jazz numbers, signed the first contract with EMI, recorded a large number of records. Bai Hong (The Aircraft Carrier of the Singing World of China, White Rainbow) owns the first solo programs, distribution of records in Asian countries and other continents, recordings in Hollywood of jazz dance and vocal numbers, participation in the first blockbusters in the Chinese film industry, a combination of the classical bel canto technique, pop-jazz and elements of Chinese opera with the simultaneous use of voice and playing various instruments: piano, pipi, cello, harmonica, etc. give Bai Hong exclusivity. The typological features of female pop-jazz performance are defined: demonstration of a specific binomial of artistic activity, which is outlined by the term «singing movie star»; expansion of boundaries and style vectors in cooperation with world trends of European or American jazz; entering the world arena; forced emigration and the tragic fate of victims of the repressions of the cultural revolution.