After Zhou Yan finished playing the piano, he heard a burst of applause from the door. He turned around and saw Kudo Shizuka and the others standing at the door.
“It’s so powerful.”
Kudo Shizuka praised Zhou Yan and walked in his direction with a smile.
Zhou Yan raised his eyebrows in surprise. Kudo Shizuka said this sentence in Chinese. It seems that she has indeed been learning Chinese recently, and her pronunciation sounds pretty good.
Seeing Shizuka Kudo walking straight towards him, Zhou Yan stepped back, leaving a piano bench between the two of them. He still remembered the surprise hug he received from Shizuka Kudo at the concert last time.
But this time Kudo Shizuka didn't hug Zhou Yan, she stopped when she got there, "Zhou Yan, goodbye Nagoya, long time no see, how are you lately?"
This time Zhou Yan's eyebrows were raised even more. , because Shizuka Kudo actually said this paragraph in Chinese, and it was equally standard.
Is Kudo Shizuka actually a language genius? Can you practice a language to this level in such a short time? Or does Shizuka Kudo have a foundation before?
"Well, it's been a long time indeed. Welcome to China, Miss Kudo."
Kudo Shizuka didn't fully understand Zhou Yan's words, but she understood the welcome and her name. , you can probably guess the meaning.
"I'm very happy to come to China...uh, uh..."
She memorized the sentence just now. After saying it, it was time for the real exchange, It started to get stuck.
Zhou Yan rolled his eyes, feeling that this girl could do just that.
Nangong Songzi, the assistant next to her, said at this moment, "Mr. Zhou Yan, I'm glad to meet you. Shizuka is still learning Chinese and has made rapid progress recently, but it still takes a little time."
The translator they brought translated Nangong’s words. Zhou Yan nodded, “Let’s talk in my office.”
Then Zhou Yan took them to his office. On the way, Shizuka Kudo was very lively and asked questions about everything she saw, and she also asked in Chinese.
Kudo Shizuka has a very cheerful personality. She and Zhou Yan are of the same age, but standing in front of Zhou Yan, it feels like they are different generations. Zhou Yan is like a veteran cadre, while she is like a middle school student.
The main thing is that she is dressed very girlishly, with small brown leather shoes paired with high-waisted shorts, a short knitted sweater on her upper body, and a bun. The overall style is very playful.
Zhou Yan responded casually to her curiosity. When he arrived at the office, Zhou Yan asked his secretary Xiao Li to make a few cups of tea, and then asked, "When is Miss Kudo's performance?"< br>
"Five days later." Shizuka Kudo held out five fingers.
Zhou Yan nodded, "I wish you a successful performance."
Nangong Songzi said, "Mr. Zhou Yan, Jingxiang sang three of your songs before, and the response in Neon was very good, so this time, the company also came Let me express my gratitude to you."
Zhou Yan waved his hand, "No need to thank me specifically, this is normal cooperation, you also paid."
Nangong Songzi twitched the corner of his mouth. , Zhou Yan is obviously an artist, but he speaks very straightforwardly and always puts his money where his mouth is.
Just when Nangong Songzi was about to say a few words and get down to business, Shizuka Kudo said directly in Chinese, "Zhou Yanjun, can you help me write a few more songs?"
Zhou Yan's expression was stagnant. Didn't he say a song, good guy, now it's super exciting to meet?
Moreover, Shizuka Kudo’s words were very standard, and she had obviously practiced them in advance.
The translator translated Kudo Shizuka’s words to Nangong. Nangong was also stunned for a moment, fearing that something might happen. Kudo Shizuka suddenly interrupted the rhythm of her conversation.
Zhou Yan looked at Kudo Shizuka up and down. To be honest, Kudo Shizuka's Chinese level did not meet his requirements, but it could be seen that she did pay attention and was not perfunctory.
Language is something that if you don’t have some talent, it’s impossible to learn it well in a short time.
After pondering for a moment, Zhou Yan said, "I can write a song for you, but you have to memorize the lyrics clearly before you can sing."
When Kudo Shizuka heard the three words "I can" at the beginning, she almost Jumping up, when Zhou Yan finished speaking, she immediately asked the translator for confirmation, "Did he say it was okay?"
The translator nodded, "Mr. Zhou Yan said that he can write a song for you, but you must I have to memorize the lyrics."
Kudo Shizuka patted her chest and said confidently in Chinese, "I can do it."
Nangong Songzi looked at Zhou Yan and then at Shizuka. , was also a little confused. Things were simpler than she thought. It seemed that Zhou Yan's requirements were not very high.
Or maybe Zhou Yan actually wanted to write a song for Shizuka, but he just said it deliberately to appear to have an attitude?
Seeing that Shizuka Kudo was very confident, Zhou Yan reminded, "If the pronunciation does not meet the standards I require, this song will not be given to you."
Nangong Songzi spoke this time Said, "Mr. Zhou Yan, don't worry, Jingxiang will definitely practice well."
In Nangong Songzi's view, there is no disadvantage at all if he agrees to this matter. Even if Zhou Yan is serious about it, in the end, Jingxiang's pronunciation does not reach his level. If you ask, just pretend that you haven't invited Song, and the situation will not get worse.
Zhou Yan nodded, "Okay, you go back and rest first, then come back tomorrow morning. I will give you the song then."
"Tomorrow?" Nangong Songzi looked surprised.
"Is there any problem?"
Nangong waved his hands repeatedly, "No problem, we will come over tomorrow morning."
After saying that, Nangong got up first, Kudo Shizuka But he remained motionless, "Songzi, we just arrived."
Nangong pulled Shizuka Kudo, "Let's go first, don't disturb Mr. Zhou Yan's creation, we will come back tomorrow morning."
"Okay." Shizuka Kudo stood up reluctantly, and then said to Zhou Yan, "Then I'll come back tomorrow."
Zhou Yan nodded, "See you tomorrow."
After Kudo Shizuka and the others left, Zhou Yan returned to the large recording studio and sat down in front of the piano again.
Actually, he could give the song to Shizuka Kudo today, but he doesn’t have time right now, because when he just wrote the soundtrack for "The Spring of the Cowherd Class", he had some ideas, so he was anxious to finish it These inspirations are "realized".
There is a song in the original version of "Spring in the Cowherd Class" called "Summer Sunlight". The tune is light and bright. Zhou Yan added a short section to the original song to cushion the darkness before the morning light at the beginning of the song. .
After writing the instrumental music, Zhou Yan started writing the vocals. Because vocals are not what Zhou Yan is good at, he basically refers to the original music.
By the time Zhou Yan finished the adapted version of "Summer Light" except for the lyrics, it was already dark.
He sat on the piano bench, stretched his arms, and then got up to pack the music and prepare to go back.
While packing, he suddenly heard a voice coming from the door, "Boss, are you going to have dinner here or go to the cafeteria?"
Zhou Yan turned his head and saw Kong Chao, the little chef in the cafeteria, stood at the door.
He looked at his watch. It was already half past seven.
"Xiao Kong, you haven't left yet?"
Kong Chao touched his head and said with a naive smile, "I see that you have been busy and haven't eaten, so I just want to wait for you to be busy. Finished. I left some food for you. I'll make some for you now."
Hearing what he said, Zhou Yan nodded and said, "I'll go to the cafeteria to eat. Okay, let’s go.”
When Zhou Yan arrived at the cafeteria, Kong Chao had already heated the food and put it on the table.
Although Zhou Yan was the only one eating, Kong Chao left a lot of dishes. He probably knew that Zhou Yan loved braised pork, so he deliberately left half a plate.
After the food was put on the table, Kong Chao sat in the kitchen and did not come out.
Halfway through the meal, Zhou Yan asked in the direction of the kitchen, "Xiao Kong, your hometown is Nanyang, right?"
Hearing Zhou Yan's voice, Kong Chao walked out, " Yes, boss, my family is from Nanzhao, Nanyang."
Zhou Yan nodded and asked, "How old are you this year?"
"Nineteen."
Zhou Yan counted the days, "Nineteen years old, I am a rabbit."
"I am nineteen years old, and I am a dragon."
"How many years have you been out?"
"Five years." Kong Chao replied with a smile.
Zhou Yan paused with his chopsticks. Kong Chao was eighteen years old, but he had been out for five years, which meant he had been out when he was thirteen.
Thirteen years old means that they have just finished elementary school. Children in remote and backward areas study late. There is a high probability that they have not even finished elementary school at the age of thirteen.
As a teacher, I always feel a little uncomfortable when I see this situation.
But he also knows that Kong Chao’s situation is actually not an exception. There should be many children like this in rural areas. Let alone those who have graduated from elementary school, many students in some areas may not even know what books look like. Don't even know.
Although the country began to implement nine-year compulsory education in 1986, in fact, backward areas cannot implement it at all. Nowadays, child labor is everywhere in the city.
The documentary "The Tilted World of Child Labor" published by Sun Hailang last year described the use of child labor in informal enterprises in coastal areas, mainly private individuals.
All sectors of society are now gradually paying attention to this matter, but they still pay attention to it, and there is still a long way to go to solve it.
This issue was also discussed in Zhang Yimou's later film "No One Less".
"You don't have to wait for me in this situation in the future. It ends relatively early tonight. Sometimes I may be busy until late. If you keep waiting like this, it will waste your time."
< br>Kong Chao smiled and shook his head, "It's okay, boss. Anyway, I don't have anything else to do after work. I can still listen to music here, which I think is pretty good."
Zhou Yan nodded, said nothing more, and began to eat seriously so that Kong Chao could go back early.
After eating, Zhou Yan thought of one more thing, "I will cook for three more people tomorrow. Can you make noodles?"
"Yes, boss, I was still frying them before." I helped with the cooking.”
“Let’s make some fried noodles tomorrow.”
......
The next morning, Zhou Yan arrived at the studio very early.
The song he promised to write for Kudo Shizuka yesterday has not been started yet. He also got up early today and was ready to come over and write the song out.
In fact, it doesn’t take long. The tunes of popular songs are simple and easy to write. Moreover, Zhou Yan didn’t write it himself, he just borrowed it this time.
Borrowing things is always quick.
It only took less than half an hour for Zhou Yan to write out the melody and lyrics, and then another half hour to roughly write down the arrangement.
After doing this, he began to write the soundtrack of "Spring of the Cowherd Class".
At about half past ten, Kudo Shizuka and the others came.
Today's Kudo Shizuka has a very different style from yesterday. She wears black high heels and a black tube top skirt. The hem of the skirt just reaches her knees. There are several large flowers embroidered on her waist and left chest. purple lily flower.
A pair of black gemstone earrings are also carefully matched according to this outfit.
If Kudo Shizuka didn't speak, she would still look very elegant, but when she spoke, her temperament would be broken, and she would still have the same girly feeling.
“Zhou Yanjun, let’s meet again.”
Zhou Yan smiled and without wasting time, asked directly, “Can you read music?”
He The reason why I ask this is because many pop singers can’t even read music scores. This is not a shameful thing. There are many singers who can sing very well even though they can’t read music scores.
“Of course, don’t underestimate me, I am also the producer of my own records.”
Zhou Yan handed her the written score, "Since you can read it, let's read the score first."
Although Kudo Shizuka can read the score, her sight-singing ability is average and she cannot be very smooth. While watching and singing, I also stumbled over the notes one by one.
And it’s not like you can sing correctly right away.
Zhou Yan was at the side, and whenever he heard her voice being inaccurate, he would remind her.
“Low.”
"It's higher."
"It's half a note lower."
This is actually quite difficult for Kudo Shizuka, because the songs she usually gets are pre-recorded demos, as long as Just sing along with the demo, there is no need for her to follow the score. After a long time, Shizuka Kudo finished the first paragraph.
Zhou Yan said, "Hum the first six sentences again."
Shizuka Kudo nodded and began to hum the first six lines.
When Shizuka Kudo started humming, both Nangong Songzi and the translator’s eyes lit up.
When Kudo Shizuka was humming the notes one by one, they didn’t actually feel that there was anything special about this song, but when Kudo Shizuka hummed the notes together, they immediately felt it The charm of this song.
This is a very high-spirited song, and the first six lines make people feel a special kind of courage.
On the way here, Nangong Songzi was still thinking that Zhou Yan spent less than a day writing a song, whether he was perfunctory with them, but now it seems that there is no such thing at all, this song The song is definitely a masterpiece.
And Nangong Songzi knows that this kind of songs will definitely be popular in Neon. Now that Neon's economy is not good and social pressure is high, people hope to gain motivation and courage from film and television works or music works.
After Zhou Yan finished listening to Shizuka Kudo humming the first six lines, he nodded and started to lead her to continue speaking the rest.
After humming the entire song, Zhou Yan was quite satisfied. Kudo Shizuka’s performance was better than he expected.
She speaks quietly, but her singing voice is very powerful.
After he finished humming, Zhou Yan began to teach her the lyrics again.
"I'll walk you through the lyrics, and you'll have to memorize them yourself later."
Kudo Shizuka nodded repeatedly, "Okay."
Nangong Songzi was quite confused. She didn't expect that Zhou Yan not only I just wrote the song and even wrote the lyrics. Isn’t this a bit too efficient?
Before, they all said that Zhou Yan was very capable of improvisation, but now it seems that it is not false at all.
Zhou Yan didn't care what they thought, now he just wanted to take Kudo Shizuka through the lyrics quickly, and then leave the song to them to work on themselves.
"Let's start, cough."
"The first sentence, if pride is not coldly photographed by the sea of reality"
"How can we know how to work harder"
"You can only go far"
……
That's right, the song Zhou Yan wrote for Kudo Shizuka is "First Dream". The original version is a neon song, "Riding on the Back of the Silver Dragon" composed by Miyuki Nakajima.
The Chinese lyrics of this song were written by Yao Ruolong, but the Chinese version of the lyrics is not as majestic as the neon version.
But the Chinese version of the lyrics is not without its advantages, that is, it is more direct and easy for ordinary listeners to remember.
When the audience hears "Silver Dragon", they may not understand what it means, but when they hear "The First Dream", they know what it means.
There is beauty in subtlety, and there is beauty in directness.
Whether it is the Chinese version of the lyrics or the neon version, they are all positive and uplifting, but the style is slightly different.
After going through the lyrics with Kudo Shizuka, he stood up and said, "There is no one in this recording studio recently, so you can practice here. If you don't understand the lyrics, you can also ask me. "
Nangong Songzi said quickly, "Thank you very much, Mr. Zhou Yan, for writing such a good song for Jingxiang."
Zhou Yan waved his hand and said, "This song is not yet available. Miss Kudo, I made it clear yesterday that her pronunciation must meet my requirements before this song can be given to her."
After saying that, he looked at Kudo Shizuka again, "I hope that in the future. Before you leave China, your pronunciation can satisfy me.”
Nangong Songzi wanted to say something else, Zhou Yan smiled and nodded, and then left.
After Zhou Yan left, Nangong Songzi touched her forehead, and things went beyond her expectations.
When Zhou Yan mentioned pronunciation yesterday, she was still thinking that she could give it a try. Even if Shizuka’s final pronunciation was not up to standard, it would be treated as if she had not been invited to sing, and there would be no loss.
But now after hearing this song, she simply couldn't accept Shizuka losing this song.
If Shizuka cannot sing this song, it will be a great loss.
"Shizuka, you have to work hard this time and memorize the lyrics well." After instructing Shizuoka, Nangong said to the translator, "Watanabe-kun, you will have to work hard during this period."
Although Kudo Shizuka will stay in Yanjing for more than a week, she actually doesn't have much time to practice songs because she has a lot of work in Yanjing.
Not to mention the performance, you need to prepare at least one or two days in advance, and you also have to accept interviews from three media.
Based on this, it only takes two or three days at most to memorize the lyrics for Kudo Shizuka.
Nangong wouldn’t worry at all if she just memorized the lyrics, but it would be much more difficult to pronunciation meet the standard. The key is that she didn’t know what Zhou Yan’s standards were.
To what level do you need to practice to pass?
Kudo Shizuka was very optimistic, "It's okay. The worst I can do is postpone my return to Neon for a while. Didn't he say that as long as I can meet the requirements before returning to Neon?"
< br>"The key is that you also have a lot of work in Neon..."
Nangong sighed slightly. If it really needs to be postponed, there is nothing you can do. For this song, it is completely worth it.
“Hurry up and practice.”
...
Zhou Yan left the recording studio to Shizuka Kudo, and went to a practice room to continue writing the soundtrack for "The Spring of the Cowherd Class".
For the next two days, Shizuka Kudo came over early in the morning and practiced "First Dream" in the recording studio, and did not leave until dark at night.
On the third day, Shizuka Kudo went back to her work, and Zhou Yan ignored her.
Anyway, he only cares about the results. As for the process in between, he doesn’t care.
Another four days later, Shizuka Kudo came to the studio again.
Zhou Yan counted the time, Shizuka Kudo should be able to learn neon lights, and she would probably have to ask him to hand in her homework today.
But what Zhou Yan didn’t expect was that Shizuka Kudo didn’t come to him. She just came to the studio early in the morning and started practicing as before, and then practiced until night.
Although he was curious, Zhou Yan didn't pay attention to her. The door of the recording studio was closed, and Zhou Yan didn't know how she was practicing.
Just like that, another three days passed.
That night, Zhou Yan was busy until about eight o'clock in the evening. When he left, he found that the lights in the recording studio were still on.
He walked to the door of the large recording studio, gently opened the door, and then heard Kudo Shizuka's singing.
"If the dream never fell off the cliff
A critical moment
How would you know a persistent person
Possessing invisible wings
...”
Hearing the singing, Zhou Yan was very surprised, because Shizuka Kudo’s pronunciation was already very good. Although the neon accent could be heard, every lyric She sang very clearly and could definitely understand what she was singing.
And what surprised Zhou Yan was that Shizuka Kudo was the only one there, and her manager and translator were not present.
Zhou Yan did not interrupt, but leaned against the door and listened quietly
It wasn't until Shizuka Kudo finished singing that Zhou Yan said, "Very good."
The sudden voice startled Shizuka Kudo.
She clutched her chest and turned around. When she saw it was Zhou Yan, she smiled again, "Zhou Yanjun, you are here."
Although during this period, Shizuka Kudo came every day, But the two of them had never met each other or exchanged a few words. It was the first time that Zhou Yan took the initiative to come to her like today.
"It's so late, why are you still here? Where are your agent and translator?" Zhou Yan asked.
Kudo Shizuka looked at Zhou Yan in confusion because she didn't understand what Zhou Yan meant.
Zhou Yan was also stunned, because after listening to Kudo Shizuka's pronunciation when singing, he didn't realize that Kudo Shizuka's Chinese level was actually very poor.
He started to gesture with his hands and spoke at a fast pace, "It's already very late. Where are your agent, Miss Nangong and the others?"
Kudo Shizuka understood the time, Nangong Waiting for the key words, I also understood what Zhou Yan meant.
She also gestured with her hands, "They will come to me soon."
Although it is a bit difficult, it is not to the point where communication is impossible.
Zhou Yan nodded and asked again, "Have you eaten?"
Shizuka Kudo understood this, she covered her stomach and said pitifully, "No."
Zhou Yan smiled, gestured and said, "I'll take you to dinner."
Kudo Shizuka showed a troubled expression, "I still want to practice."
"Eat first, follow me."
After saying that, Zhou Yan waved to her, and then went out first, and Kudo Shizuka followed obediently.
Kong Chao hadn't left yet. When he saw Zhou Yan and the others coming, he immediately stood up and said, "Boss, your work is over. I'll heat up some food for you."
Zhou Yan nodded, " Thank you for your hard work. Please make another bowl of noodles for Miss Kudo."
"Okay, boss, please wait a moment."
When Kong Chao went to the kitchen, Kudo Shizuka looked at Zhou Yan expectantly, "Zhou Yanjun, did I pass?"
Zhou Yan nodded, "I passed."
Look When Zhou Yan nodded, Kudo Shizuka clenched her fists excitedly, "Yeah, this song is mine."
"When your agent comes, I will let her discuss the song with my agent After the authorization matter is settled, you can sing this song."
After saying that, seeing the confusion on Kudo Shizuka's face, it was obvious that she did not understand what he said, and he smiled again. He smiled and said, "Just try your best."
Kudo Shizuka understood this sentence, and she clenched her fist again, "Work hard, come on!"
Later, Kudo Shizuka kept looking for topics in Chinese. She wanted to communicate more with Zhou Yan and practice herself more. Chinese proficiency.
During her time in Yanjing, her Chinese proficiency has improved, and she can understand many simple things.
Otherwise, even Zhou Yan’s gestures will be useless.
Zhou Yan was not in a hurry and chatted with her slowly.
While Kudo Shizuka was eating a bowl of noodles, Nangong Songzi and the translator hurried over.
When they went to the recording studio, they found that there was no trace of Shizuka Kudo inside, but they were startled and ran over to take a look when they saw the lights in the canteen were on.
As soon as she saw Nangong Songzi, Shizuka Kudo said excitedly, "Songzi, Zhou Yan has promised to sing the song for me."
Nangong Songzi was also very surprised: "Really? "
Zhou Yan nodded, "It's true. You can contact my manager Zhang Youan tomorrow and discuss the song licensing with him. "
"No problem, I will contact Mr. Zhang Youan tomorrow morning."
......
The next day, Zhang Youan finalized the song matter with Omu Production and negotiated Not only the song "First Dream" was discussed, but also the Chinese versions of the three songs "Stay with Me" were also discussed.
Shizuka Kudo’s first Chinese album has a total of ten songs planned. Except for the four songs written by Zhou Yan, the other six are Shizuka Kudo’s original songs, with the neon lyrics directly changed into Chinese. Just the lyrics.
Omu Production also proposed that these ten songs should be recorded in the recording studio of Zhou Yan's studio, which can be regarded as a business for Zhou Yan's studio.
The happiest thing about this incident was Kudo Shizuka, because it meant that she could come to Yanjing again to meet Zhou Yan in a while.
After Kudo Shizuka left, it was already the end of August. The Piano Youth Orchestra returned from the tour, and the studio slowly became lively. Zhou Yan also put down the work on hand for a while and went back to school to prepare for the start of school. (End of this chapter)