CITYLIFE / Weekend & Holiday |
Songs of Serenity(Shanghai Daily)
Updated: 2008-04-22 16:07 The stage design will feature traditional Chinese elements to showcase the philosophies expressed in ancient Chinese poems. Secret Garden made history by winning the Eurovision Song Contest in 1995 with "Nocturne," more an instrumental than a song. It was the first time an instrumental piece won top prize in the 40-year-old prestigious, pan-European television extravaganza. Their success at Eurovision spearheaded the success of their first album "Songs from a Secret Garden." It sold a million copies worldwide, going platinum in Norway and South Korea, gold in Ireland and New Zealand. The album spent two years (101 weeks) on the Billboard New Age charts in 1996 and 1997. In their most recent album "Inside I'm Singing," they collabortaed with some of the world's best vocalists. "Many artists have recorded Secret Garden's music and even turned their instrumental melodies into vocal songs," Sherry explains. "We wanted to reverse the process: take some of our own favorite melodies, have lyrics written to them, arrange them in our own style and invite some of the greatest singers to give their voice and performance to our music." The performers on the new album include Barbra Streisand, Elaine Paige, Brian Kennedy, Niamh Kavanagh, Peter Corry and Espen Grjotheim. It will be released internationally during the second half of the year. "Personally I love the album and I hope it will be released in China some time soon," Sherry says. "For years we have been keeping a positive brand image in front of the audience. Unlike others, the music of Secret Garden can be enjoyed all the time - now or in 100 years." According to Sherry, the band has drawn a lot of inspiration from Oriental countries such as China and India. Meanwhile, they look forward to traveling around China, explore more facets of Chinese folk music. Date: May 1, 7:30pm Venue: Shanghai Grand Stage, 1111 Caoxi Rd Tickets: 100-1,280 yuan Tel: 962-288 |
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