Profile: American professor composes music inspired by experiences in China

Source: Xinhua| 2021-12-10 15:07:19|Editor: huaxia

Mark Levine shows one of the songs written by himself at his sitting room in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 22, 2021. This is the 16th year that the 73-year-old American sociologist has been in China. In that time, he has translated his understanding of the country into 75 songs. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

BEIJING, Dec. 10 (Xinhua) -- Basking in the sunshine streaming into his sitting room, Mark Levine often plays the guitar and sings self-composed songs about his experiences in China.

This is the 16th year that the 73-year-old American sociologist has been in China. In that time, he has translated his understanding of the country into 75 songs.

"The songs are all revolving around what's going on in the city and the country. The musical stories from my Chinese journey are also written in articles about various aspects of life in China," said Levine, who now works as a professor at the Minzu University of China in Beijing.

"When theory and practice unify, so much can be achieved. And progress can be realized that is so hard to believe," read the lyrics of his song titled "The Future's Very Bright Ahead Led by the Communist Party of China (CPC)."

Reminiscing on his 16 years in China, he said he was struck deeply by the significant changes that have taken place in the country.

"Dramatic changes have been made in China. My first domestic trip was from Huai'an City, east China's Jiangsu Province, to Beijing in 2007, and I took a 13-hour overnight train. But now, it takes only about four hours to Beijing by high-speed train, and Huai'an also has an airport that wasn't there when I lived there."

Years ago, as he traveled to many parts of China, he saw many old farm houses in the countryside, but when he revisited the places in recent years, he saw a whole new picture with new houses everywhere.

"What impressed me the most is that China makes plans, carries out the plans, and also evaluates the plans," Levine said. This is how China deals with poverty, housing, food safety, environmental issues, technological development, and many other aspects of social life for the people.

Levine said that China's significant development has never come easy, as he has witnessed the country moving forward and overcoming difficulties one after another.

Some of his songs were written during the country's hard times such as the earthquake in Sichuan Province in 2008, and heavy rain and floods in recent years. "I saw how things happened and the way that Chinese people responded. China put solving problems for people in the first place rather than blaming others, and people were joining together," he said.

As the Chinese capital is gearing up to invite athletes from around the world to the upcoming Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, Levine is also on the list of invitees to view the opening ceremony from the audience.

In 2019, he was invited to help improve the language on some English signs in Beijing's public spaces amid the city's efforts to provide precise and clear translated signs in the 2022 Winter Olympic Village, as well as user-friendly restrooms and restaurants for foreigners.

"About 25 people gathered, only concentrating on this little topic, which was really impressive," Levine said. "There was a slogan at that time -- 'English must be perfect.'"

As a teacher in a Chinese university, the American man has found the youth nowadays tend to show growing confidence on their homeland. He said that many of his students chose to talk about the issues such as the development of advanced technologies and poverty alleviation in their final speeches. They represent a bright future for China, Levine said. Enditem

Mark Levine shows a book written by himself at his sitting room in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 22, 2021. This is the 16th year that the 73-year-old American sociologist has been in China. In that time, he has translated his understanding of the country into 75 songs. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

Mark Levine sings his song at his sitting room in Beijing, capital of China, Nov. 22, 2021. This is the 16th year that the 73-year-old American sociologist has been in China. In that time, he has translated his understanding of the country into 75 songs. (Xinhua/Ren Chao)

KEY WORDS: China,Beijing,Olympics
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