On May 8, singing star Teresa Teng, popular across the Chinese world, came to the end of her short 43-year life. Music lovers at home and abroad were shocked and saddened.
In recent days many programs have been broadcast of performances from various stages of her career, and many people have videotaped these as keepsakes, in order to retain these precious images forever.
In Japan, a TV program also mourned her passing. The show documented her more than two decades as a popular singer in that country, and her winning the "Cable TV Awards" prize for best singer three years running, a rare honor, and especially remarkable for a non-Japanese. This was the first chance people in Taiwan had to see every aspect of Teng's road of struggle and success in Japan. It was very moving for Chinese to see her made so happy by the affirmation she won in a foreign land, but it also made it that much more saddening to think that she is really gone.
The funeral ceremony was held on May 28. By four in the morning, fans of all ages--some in wheelchairs--had already begun to gather for a parting glance. Besides her fans, the funeral hall was also packed wit h media from numerous Asian countries, friends and family, artists and entertainers, and political figures. Inside the hall there was a large plaque commemorating her achievement from President Lee Teng-hui and posthumous medals awarded to Ms. Teng by the military, the Kuomintang, and the Overseas Chinese Affairs Commission in recognition of all she had done for the armed forces, society, and the nation.
Her coffin, draped in the national and Kuomintang flags, was carried by military officers and family members. Fans not only flocked to the funeral home, they followed the funeral procession to Chinshan, a town on Taiwan's northeast coast, to attend the burial. Conservative estimates say that five or six thousand people followed the procession all the way. Some fans even brought traditional offerings like fruit and incense and knelt down before her grave as a sign of respect.
Teresa Teng was probably the only artist whose death could have brought such a response among Chinese. Her music transcended time and space, and even brought the two sides of the Taiwan Strait closer together. Mainland Chinese author Zhong Ah-cheng said that Teng's songs were an inspiration for the revival of popular culture in the mainland. "This kind of voice penetrated right to people's hearts and moved them."
Chang Wu-chang, a Hong Kong economist, adds that Teng had a positive impact on liberating thinking in mainland China, while Asiaweek magazine lauded the way her music overcame a political ban imposed by mainland authorities and hastened the depoliticization of daily life in the PRC. Her songs were more than pleasant pop tunes; they were the products of--and messengers for--a particular value system, attitude toward life, and form of emotional expression.
Leaving aside for the moment the political labels that have been attached to her, we can say that she was the most well-known and influential singer among contemporary Chinese. She was a dedicated, professional, tireless artist. However you look at her, she was always a "Chinese in the spotlight."
In this month's cover story, Sinorama explores Ms. Teng's position in pop music and in the Chinese world. We assess her popularity from the perspectives of both admirers and professionals in her field. The on e thing we cannot fit into our report is the profound sense of loss all her fans feel.
Teresa Teng, may the road you are on now be an easy one!