In the context of the commemoration of the 35th Anniversary of Sino-Mauritian Relations with the collaboration of Chinese Cultural Centre, in a cultural exchange, the University of Mauritius has hosted a lecture on ?the Appreciation of Chinese Folk Songs? by Yan Bozheng, Head of the China Central Ethnic Orchestra Choir on Friday last on 11 o?oclock at Burrenchobay Hall.

In her welcoming speech, Mrs Amreeta Nivault, the representative of the University of Mauritius expressed her joy to have such a prominent musicologist in our midst and showed her enthusiasm to be able to discover the millennium Chinese Culture through the folk songs. Mr. Bai, the Director of the Chinese Cultural Centre of Bell Village, retraced the fruitful musical career of Yan Bozheng and enumerated to us his impressive C.V?s.

Yan Bozheng expressed his immense joy to be in such a lovely country like Mauritius. He made us explore the different facets of Chinese folk music. He said that the folk songs are the soul of China. The Middle Kingdom consists of 56 ethnic minorities, each differs from the other in their folk songs. The Hans are the largest among them. The Miao, for example, express their difficulties in their livelihood in their songs. The different ethnic groups express their joys, their expectations and their sorrows of their daily life. The main themes which are mirrored in their folk songs are love, marriage, courtship, friendship and dating. Through the folk songs, we learn much of the traditions and customs existing in their ethnic groups. It was a voyage to profound China through folk songs and Yan Bozheng transported us to the different corners of the Middle Kingdom with the aid of power-point display. To the joy of the audience he, with his assistant, even sang extracts of a few melodious folk songs. He was warmly applauded. During question-time, one member of the audience wanted to know more about ?Sang Kor?, the song of the Hakkas (most of the Sino-Mauritians hailed from Meixian where ?Sang Kor? is very popular), but unfortunately he could not sing as he was not conversant in Hakka. He could give nevertheless its rhythm. The lecture was conducted in Mandarin and Mrs Pang of the Chinese Cultural Centre acted as interpreter throughout the lecture.

<B>Philip LI CHING HUM</B>