In response to the Taiwan Overseas Community Affairs Council’s “Traditional Chinese Characters Culture Festival” and to promote Chinese language education, the Northern California Chinese Schools Association held the inaugural KTV Singing Competition on March 2nd (last Sunday) at the South Bay Overseas Chinese Education Center. The event attracted 41 groups and over 60 contestants, creating a lively and warm atmosphere. Deputy Commissioner Ruan Zhaoxiong of the Overseas Community Affairs Council attended the event to witness this fun-filled celebration.
The KTV Singing Competition started at 10:30 a.m. and lasted until 4 p.m. on the same day, with a large number of participants in the duet and elementary school categories. Contestants gave their all, belting out songs to interpret friendship among teachers and students and convey a cheerful atmosphere. After each song ended, the audience erupted in applause, and the association president and several principals even served as dance partners, adding joy and energy to the competition. After nearly four hours of intense competition, the top 3 in each category along with honorable mentions were selected.
Li Naya, president of the Northern California Chinese Schools Association, told the media that this was the first physical KTV Singing Competition organized by the association, with a much higher registration turnout than expected, leading to an overflowing number of contestants. Originally scheduled for the afternoon, the competition had to start in the morning due to the large number of participants.
She emphasized that singing is one of the most effective ways to learn Chinese. By memorizing lyrics through melodies, not only can it help in learning vocabulary, phrases, and sentence structures, but it also allows both adults and children to easily grasp the language. The duet category encourages cross-generational pairs, where contestants can team up with family members, friends, or teachers, enhancing teacher-student relationships and further stimulating interest in learning Chinese.
Participant Ha Dasha from the TCML category, who won the championship in the 2024 Overseas Community Affairs Council Global Overseas Chinese Student Singing Competition TCML category, is currently in 12th grade and has been learning Chinese for a year and a half. She told the media that she started learning Chinese because she has many Chinese friends around her and she hopes to communicate smoothly with them. She chose to sing “The Moon Represents My Heart” with Principal Shan Ling because the principal has had a profound influence on her, and she wanted to express their friendship and appreciation through this song.
In the high school category, Ethan Weng partnered with Will Tseng, providing piano accompaniment and singing “Love Without End.” Ethan expressed to the media his enjoyment of participating in association activities, seizing the opportunity to showcase his talents. He enjoys listening to Chinese songs and finds them pleasant, having memorized many lyrics and eager to perform for everyone on such occasions.
The competition not only attracted students but also engaged parents. Young contestant Mon Coronel and his mother Alex Olivares performed “When We Are Together” together. Alex mentioned that her son has been learning Chinese since he was 4 years old. They speak Spanish at home, English outside, and study Chinese in school. To accompany her son, she also started learning Chinese last year. Mon Coronel shyly told reporters that he enjoyed the competition.
Mother Joyce Wang and her family of five gathered at the competition venue, with all but the father participating as contestants. Joyce and her daughter Wang Jiaqi sang “There Are So Many People in This World” together. She expressed to the media that her children are of mixed heritage, and she appreciates the association for organizing such activities, providing a platform for homeschooling children to showcase their talents. Such competitions not only foster a deeper love for the Chinese language in children but also strengthen their identification with Taiwan. Her children visited Taiwan for 30 days last year for the first time and returned saying, “We love Taiwan so much and want to go back again!”
Wang Jiaqi shared with the media her love for singing, participating in competitions, and the prize money. Additionally, she particularly enjoys Taiwanese cuisine, with the most memorable experiences being grass sliding in Taiwan and swimming with turtles at the beach.
Mother Emily and her husband, mother-in-law, and their three children participated in the event together. Elder sister Sarah Gordon and elder brother Caleb Gordon teamed up to sing “Crystalline.” Emily believes that the association’s Chinese singing competition is very meaningful and greatly aids children in learning Chinese. She mentioned to the media that nowadays, even family members are rarely able to gather due to everyone’s busy schedules. Especially since many children have little interest in Chinese songs, through such competitions, they not only get closer to Chinese music but also provide an interesting way to learn, greatly assisting in language acquisition.
The competition was divided into individual and duet categories, with no age restrictions in the duet category and groupings according to grade level in the individual category, including elementary, middle, high school, and TCML categories.
The judging panel for the competition was robust, consisting of special guests such as the North California National Taiwan University Alumni Choir leader Huang Jinren, North California Taiwan Chamber of Commerce President Huang Junzhao (former lead singer of the choir), and technology company executive Helen Sa serving as judges. Performances were evaluated based on voice and pitch (70%), Chinese pronunciation (20%), and stage presence (10%).
Judge Helen Sa expressed to the media that the competition was filled with love and emotions, stating that it was not a competition but an exchange of feelings. She mentioned that children’s voices were pure and touching, nearly bringing her to tears. Seeing mothers singing with their children, even if not technically perfect, the emotional expression was flawless, with each participant singing with sincerity.
She praised the competition as a great success. In today’s world, communication between parents and children is decreasing, but this competition provided a valuable opportunity for siblings, friends, and mothers and children to convey emotions through music, adding more warmth and connections to families.
During the event, Vice Commissioner Ruan Zhaoxiong and Director Zhuang Yashu delivered speeches, and overseas affairs commissioners Wei Dezhen, Lin Zhengyuan, Zhang Zhengbang, Liu Lingxia, as well as overseas affairs advisory commissioners Li Hanwen, Li Wenxiong, Lin GuiXiang, and other overseas community leaders attended the event.
After the competition, the award ceremony for the 2024 Overseas Community Affairs Council Global Overseas Chinese Student Singing Competition TCML category global champion was held, followed by the announcement of the results of the KTV Singing Competition and the award presentation. The event concluded with lively dancing to the tune of “Taiwan Hero,” marking a perfect ending. ◇