A Chinese singer stirs outrage in Ukraine
NewsA tweeted video of the Chinese singer Wang Fang performing ‘Katyusha’ on the ruins of Mariupol Theatre is having global ramifications.
The Second World War Russian song is unashamedly nationalist.
#Chinese opera singer Wang Fang came to occupied #Mariupol and sang the Russian song "Katyusha" there. The #Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reacted to this cynical video:
"Ukraine expects from the Chinese side explanations of the purpose of stay of Chinese citizens in Mariupol, as… pic.twitter.com/qlnSneiySK
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) September 8, 2023
The Ukrainians have denounced Wang Fang for making propaganda on a site where children were killed by Russian rockets.
Among other collateral damage, the Chinese opera soprano, Ying Fang says she has receive3d death threats from people who confused her with Wang Fang. Her agency, IMG Artists, has issued a statement: ‘Today an article was published noting that a Chinese opera singer sang a Russian song in the ruins of a theatre in Mariupol. The person’s name, photos and background information is accurately included in the published piece. However, numerous individuals and accounts have chosen to ignore the facts that were published and instead have inundated an altogether innocent soprano, Ying Fang, with a torrent of despicable, violent, and hideously racist messages. Attempts to correct their errors – in that they were attacking an innocent bystander who has a different name – were met with even more vicious, hateful words based solely on the fact that Ying shares her ethnicity with the person reported in the article.’
The act of Chinese singer is absolutely disgraceful. But how is that song “unashamedly nationalist”? That song is loved by many nations which were part of USSR, including Ukrainians. It is often performed in Ukrainian language with almost no changes in lyrics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZmn7_vm1Do
Here’s a Google translation of the song:
Apple and pear trees bloomed,
Fogs floated over the river.
Katyusha came ashore,
On a high bank.
She went and started a song
About the steppe gray eagle,
About the one she loved
About the one whose letters she was saving.
Oh song, a girl’s song,
Fly after the clear sun:
And to the fighter on the far border
Say hello from Katyusha.
Make him remember a simple girl,
Make him hear her sing
Help him protect his native land,
while Katyusha will save love.
Apple and pear trees bloomed,
Fogs floated over the river.
Katyusha came ashore,
On a high bank on a steep one.
If this is “unashamedly nationalist”, then any WWII song of any nation is “unashamedly nationalist”.
You are right. The song is fine from the perspective of the lyrics alone. “Katyusha” is widely known as an anti-invasion song during the Soviet-German War. However, soviet soldiers sang this song as they embarked on a journey to invade Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, and Finland.
“many nations which were part of USSR”
Occupied. Occupied is the word you were looking for.
Absolutely atrocious what Ying Fang has endured off the back of this.
Just to rectify the name of the culprit is WANG Fang, not Ying Fang. Actually, WANG is the last name of the singer. The Chinese naming convention arrangement usually puts the last name first.
That’s my point…
Horrid woman. Now this is someone who deserves to be canceled.
Mark my words, Future Historians! Like the killing of Archduke Ferdinand in WW1, THIS is how WW3 started!!!
Grow a pair everybody. It’s just music.
And anyhow, she has a lovely voice and it’s a belter of a good tune!
She has an atrocious voice. Observing, you might consider changing your moniker to Tonedeaf.
I think she probably sings a bit better than you though. Also, you spelt ‘sorry’ wrong.
“It’s just music.”
No, it’s just propaganda. Fun fact: You fell for it.
Hi Brettermeier! Here to spew some more xenophobic vitriol?
It’s just music. And I like the tune. The more hateful you are, the more I will like this music.
What a disgrace. She should not be welcome anywhere in the west.
But the east would be OK?! Hilarious “western” person comment.
“Katyusha” is also the name of the famous Soviet artillery rocket launchers, intentionally named after the song.
That is what makes singing the song more than just a folk-culture display. The two are forever linked.
And why is someone from China choosing to sing a Soviet war song in Ukraine?
Katyusha became widely sung in China during the Sino-Soviet honeymoon period(1949-1960) after the Communist Party came to power. As the country that supported the Communist Party in winning the Chinese civil war and then helped China achieve industrialization, the Soviet Union and later Russia had many supporters in China. Whether it was popular support or official propaganda, Chinese people generally had a good impression of Russians. They referred to Russia as the “brother.”
At the same time, Katyusha was played in China as a Communist Party ideological and revolutionary song in music education or ideological propaganda in primary and secondary schools. It can be said that Chinese people generally regard Katyusha as a representation of Russia and a nostalgic sentiment for the Soviet Union and communism.
Here’s a url to a jpg showing Strauss shaking hands with Joseph Goebbels while wearing a Nazi armband. Happy viewing:
https://media.wnyc.org/i/600/722/l/80/1/strauss_goebbels.jpg
Absolutely despicable! And her singing is atrocious.