A Farewell Song
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A Farewell Song is a 2006 documentary film about a group of retired Chinese musicians who reunite to perform a series of concerts outside of the state-backed music system. It was directed by Arthur Jones and Luther Jones, and supported by the British Documentary Film Foundation (BritDoc).
Synopsis
The film is centred around the lives of traditional Chinese musicians, dizi player Luo Shoucheng, pipa player Tu Weigang, sheng player Weng Zhenfa and Chen Dawei, all based in Shanghai. Following their retirement from local state-backed orchestras, the musicians - all friends - decide to reband and record new material over which they will have complete control. After the first recording sessions, the film follows the men's personal stories: Luo Shoucheng returns to the neighbourhood he lived in as a child; Tu Weigang reminisces about their lives during the Cultural Revolution; Chen Dawei enjoys time with his young son; and Weng Zhenfa continues his reinvention of his instrument (the sheng) with master craftsmen at a local workshop.
Composer Chen Dawei's sudden death takes them all by surprise and the second half of the film follows the remaining musicians' attempts to organize a tribute concert in his name.
The film was shot over three years in Shanghai, and backed by the Channel 4 BritDoc Foundation. It won the Special Jury Prize for documentaries at the 2006 Syracuse International Film Festival. It has also played at BritDoc Film Festival, Globians Film Festival, Santa Cruz International Film Festival, Cologne Chinese Film Festival, Pyongyang Film Festival, Chongqing Independent Film and Video Festival, and Action On Film International Film Festival.[1][2]
See also
References
- ^ "Farewell Song". Britdoc.org. Retrieved 2010-06-09.
- ^ "重庆民间映画交流展CIFVF". Cifvf.org. Retrieved 2010-06-09.
External links
- A Farewell Song
- A Farewell Song at the Internet Movie Database