In order to commemorate the 65th Anniversary of Communication University of China, the “Young Poplars” theme concert was held at newly built Cultural Square of varsity last Sunday. President Liao, along with other school leaders attended the concert. The concert was divided into four parts; “Good Faith”, “Confidence”, “Inclusiveness” and “Competence”.
The symphony performance at the beginning (photo by Wu Linhong)
The concert was one of the most important events held in connection with the CUC’s 65th anniversary, which received wide public attention. Crowds gathered around the Culture Square to enjoy the show, including alumni who returned to CUC, students, teachers, and even interested audience of all ages in the neighborhood.
Moreover, the concert was broadcasted live on more than ten media platforms, like bilibili.com, cuctv.com, official Weibo account of CUC and CCTV news network, etc.
The Culture Square was full of people
Performers were students, teachers and alumni from 22 institutes and offices of CUC. They gave 27 brilliant performances, all of which were arranged and choreographed based on the school song There Is a Line of Young Poplars on the Campus.
There were many international students who stepped up on the stage and expressed their best wishes to CUC on this special occasion.
Praise of White Poplar
Brought by Institute of Communication Studies, Praise of White Poplar was a sweet song mixed with the beat of Djembe and melody of Ukulele, full of cheerful words and various cultural elements. International students from six different countries participated in the program, which became one of the highlights of the show. Eji Mimiko, who majors in global communication from Nigeria played the Ukulele in the performance. He also studied in Canada for a period of time. Talking on the occasion, he said, “During the rehearsal, I also learned more about Chinese. For instance, '音乐' and '乐队' means 'music' and 'band' in English. I brought this Ukulele from Canada and it's very easy to carry around. ”
Eji Mimiko is taking an interview after performing
Also, School of Humanity brought Ode to White Poplars to the audience. It was a performance consisting of recitation, calligraphy, and singing. It’s worth mentioning that along with the school song, they also performed an original piece Study Abroad at CUC.
Ode to White Poplars
This unique and moving song attracted everyone’s attention and drew waves of applauses. Among the audience, Da Wei, an international graduate student from Egypt was filled with emotions while saying, “It’s really touched to see the international students wearing the same costumes as Chinese students and teachers when they performed, just like a big family.” Alaka, a student from International Communication, excitedly said, “For me, it's the first time to know the school song. It's interesting and very nice. In this event, people come together, and they are sharing with each other. We not only appreciate ourselves, but appreciate each other as well. When people go together, we're not alone. That's why I like this show.”
Jordon(申一鸣) , the songwriter is performing with the students
The song Study Abroad at CUC was written by Jordon, a graduate who wrote it during his first week in CUC, 2014. Five years later, he stood on the stage with other international students from School of Humanity, presented the song’s revised version as a gift for CUC. “I’m really glad to perform my own song with these new students, my heart is full of excitement and I’m so happy. Today, I hand my song to them, and I hope it will pass on,” said Jordon, with big smile on his face. He also expressed his proud of being a CUC graduates, because the studying experience enabled him so many job opportunities in media and filming area. Now he has already found a job in Beijing and decided to stay.
“My happiness is super super big!”
Behind the scenes there are more stories to tell. Participants from School of Humanity have prepared for three weeks, spending more than 6 hours on rehearsals each week. When asked whether they met any difficulties, most of them thought that fun outweighed difficulties. “Everyone is cooperative in our team, ” said Ekwueme Stella, one of the performers. “Though there were some misunderstandings among us, it’s interesting to settle the problems and in the end they were solved successfully,” said Chioma, from Nigeria.
Chioma（赵馨兰）is sharing the stories behind
Besides, many international students expressed that they were willing to join more school activities and cooperate with Chinese students. “Sometimes it seems that we are busy with our own things,” Abdelrhman said, adding, “Today I’m really delighted to perform with the Chinese students.” Without doubt the concert can be a chance for international students to blend in CUC family and to understand.
Abdelrhman（高博毅）(R) and his classmate are smiling happily after performing
We always say that “CUC is our home”. This time, the “Young Poplars” theme concert fully illustrated this spirit. Many of the international student audience came to cheer for their classmates, schoolmates and teachers, truly became part of CUC family. Da Wei, mentioned particularly: “CUC expresses the idea of regarding school as home from time to time. It makes us international students feel warm and integrate into the school in a better way.”
The “Young Poplars” theme concert and other activities to celebrate CUC’s 65th anniversary gave students a strong sense of identity, making both international and Chinese students have a better understanding of school history and culture. Like Da Wei said, CUC is a place that can easily make people feel at home. And we do hope all the “young poplars” will draw sufficient nutrient on the land of Communication University of China and grow to become towering trees.
Da wei: “To be a young poplar that makes CUC proud”
Alaka is watching the concert attentively
Kassahun Ayalew from Ethiopia came along with his friends to support their classmates on the show
Photos: Wang Ying
Editor: Jiang Chuqin, Arshad Bhatti
