Bing Chen

We sat down with Bing Chen to discuss her career so far and thoughts around music and education.

To begin with, we’d like to know details about yourself and some background on your music journey.

How do you describe yourself?

Love music, Love children, Love life!

How did you get into music?

When I was very young my parents used to play pop music at home. My parents said I sang along with the music. When I entered kindergarten, some teachers from a musical organization came to promote their courses, and I started learning music.

Can you tell us about your first musical memories?

I took part in a musical performance when I was six or seven. It was an event with a large audience. My grandfather was thrilled and asked his friends to help take photographs of the event. I got to know about this before the performance, and it distracted me a lot, so I ended up playing very badly. It was a hard experience but since then, I was determined not to be distracted and to concentrate on my performance.

How did you get into the field of education?

All of my music teachers showed great professionalism. Mr. Gao Jiyong of Tianjin Conservatory of Music taught me for a really long time. My father used to say to me: “You should not only learn music under Mr. Gao, but also learn from him about how to be a better person.” My teacher possesses incredible passion about music. He also knows how to treat his students - we all truly respect and love him. He not only taught us how to play musical instruments but also systematic knowledge on harmony, ensemble music and even jam sessions.

I understood that learning music is not just for performance. I feel grateful to Mr. Gao because he enlightened me to be a teacher who could pass on a rich musical knowledge to my students.

And that was why I decided to join Yamaha Music School when they recruited music teachers in Beijing in 2006.

How do you describe your relationship with music?

What is your inspiration or driving force?

Anything I am interested in, like visiting exhibitions, watching movies, traveling, or even strolling, are potential sources of inspiration.

My teachers and my parents taught me “when you do things, do the best you can.” So, I “inherited” my teacher’s habit of pulling all-nighters when composing music. This “tradition” is now passed on to my students.

How do you create music? Is a connection with other women important to you?

There is a saying in China that “everything is hard in the beginning”. As for musical composition, I have no difference from children in Yamaha Music School because it IS difficult - I always feel uncertain between ideas – when considering the theme of composition. It becomes easier when the theme is decided. In most cases I will try to empty my mind at this stage.

Obviously, as an inveterate sufferer of “motivation-selection ailment”, the next question is always about choosing the appropriate idea. Once that is also decided, I will sit in front of the piano and try to write the composition in one go. I will not allow any interruption in my ideas due to delays or distraction.

One thing is clear: it is very important to maintain contact with other women. One can always learn something from others, considering that everyone has some skills that others lack. For example, I had a female colleague who is adept at jazz music. Whenever I had questions about jazz music, I would ask her, and she would share her views without any hesitation. I am extremely thankful to have her as a colleague.

What do you feel like when you are playing music?

I must be thankful to my parents. They have always supported my passion in music regardless of material success. I am also moved by the wonderful diversity in the musical world as well as the extraordinary ideas of composers and lyricists. One feels so blessed to have music as company.

What are the strengths you have found in playing music?

My strength is playing Electone. The Electone is capable of playing many different musical instruments and for this reason one needs to have an understanding of all such instruments. Given its advantages, one would need to learn about musical structure, harmony and accompaniments. Since the Electone is also an instrument for musical performance, it needs a performer who can play it well.

Therefore, when I am performing, I would combine theory with practice. Knowledge I learnt from Electone would also be useful when I play virtuoso or a keyboard solo.

Have you faced any gender equality related issues in your music activities? How did you overcome these elements?

I could see gender equality in today’s Chinese society. Women’s abilities are fully recognized from my view. Personally, I didn’t encounter any gender-related problem. Instead, I received many encouragements when I made progress.

How do you describe your relationship with education?

What is your sense of purpose or driving force?

I really expect more children to join Yamaha systematic courses.
Sheng Yuan, a well-known pianist in China once said...
“All education, especially art education, aim to enhance learners’ accomplishment. It is educating individuals through arts, and not simply educating them about arts. To a great educator, all disciplines on education are the pathway to a higher level and carriers of education of higher quality. Regardless of music theory, performance, or musical history, they teach you to learn love, beauty and warmth. One could understand how to study properly, interact with others, how to think and finally how to practice. Through music one could learn about emotions - this is the true meaning of education. From a certain perspective, the process of learning is more important than the results. Although knowledge and skills - things we can see and feel - are said to be the targets, they are the carriers. Warmth, something that one does not see or feel, is the actual objective.”
This, in essence, is the objective of Yamaha courses.

I hope that more children will benefit from them. This is far from the effort of one or several teachers. It needs the participation of a greater number of individuals with each doing their part. It is a concerted effort on all the parties involved. Our music education will be better if we are able to do things this way.

What drives me in my effort in education, is seeing how students obtain pleasure from music during discussions with them while learning and engaging in creative activity and having them ultimately playing to their personal satisfaction.

How do you describe your teaching style? What is something important to you in your music class?

I tend to be strict to students when teaching key aspects as I hoped that they would quickly understand the concepts. I also used some methods to help students remember certain important points.

Group class is a particularly effective way of learning and is therefore very important. Students can gain a lot by understanding the music of their classmates. Learning together allows students to subconsciously compare their work with others.
I pay a lot of attention to a student’s capacity for making harmony. The tonality of harmony will affect the music and because it is not exclusive, I will, if conditions allow, share some contents to enrich their experience with harmony.

What do you feel like when you’re teaching in your class or making music with your students?

Teaching and learning grow in tandem. As the students grow, I begin to ask them to try out composition on some historical events. The music that they write needs to be consistent with the events. Therefore, our main focus in recent months is to study how to unify their music with history such that they can achieve a pictorial feel. It is easy enough for events in Chinese history, however on topics that involve other fields requires a teacher to study in-depth on the history of musical instruments. It allows students to choose from a range of topics as well as give them direction.
That's one of the interesting things about this class, I feel like I have also improved myself in the last few years.

What are the strengths you have found in teaching music?

I feel that students like to have me around because I behave like the kids!
I treat them as friends, and my classes are akin to sharing ideas.
In my classes, I can make them quickly understand the key knowledge as I pick an appropriate way to teach.

Have you faced any gender equality related issues in your teaching experience? How did you overcome any issues?

Most teachers are women, and so I did not encounter any issue with regard to gender equality. In fact, my students and their parents really like me. Though most children are accompanied by their mothers, there are also many dads who attend classes with their children. In most cases, parents work very well with teachers, and give ample encouragement to their children.

What changes do you think need to be made to empower women in the field of music?

There are so many female performers, composers, and educators active in the music industry. I think women have no problem to achieve success through their own effort.

If it is possible, I think there should be more concerts or music events for girls, offering opportunities to show their ideas and techniques. I also expect musical works that express the historical and philosophy topics regarding women.

Please give your message to the next generation.

Filial piety(*) is the most important among all virtues. Please be filial to your parents. They only want the best for you and will continue support regardless of the time and circumstances.

Always keep your dream. Set your targets and overcome all difficulties with an optimistic attitude and diligence. Even if you stumble you should still have the courage to pick yourself up and strive ahead. What you acquire during the process will far outweigh the results.

• (*) An attitude of respect for parents, elders and ancestors in societies influenced by Confucian thought.