Pioneer musician: Michael Tien Ming Ern

Michael Tien Ming Ern (1918–1994) was born in Hankou, Hubei, with ancestry in Hebei, China. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, a group of patriotic youths formed the Wuhan Chorus consisting of nearly 30 members. Tien was its assistant conductor at the young age of 19, while he was still a student of vocal studies under renowned voice teacher Zhao Meibo (1905–1999) at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Led by its director Xia Zhiqiu (1912–1993), the choir toured various places in Southeast Asia in 1938 to raise funds for China’s anti-Japanese war efforts.

When World War II ended, Tien returned to China to complete his studies. After graduating in 1943, he took up a teaching position in the Qingmuguan National Conservatory of Music (now Central Conservatory of Music) in Chongqing before he was appointed to head the College of Music of Private Wuchang College of the Arts (now Hubei Institute of Fine Arts) and later the Guangxi Arts Institute (now Guangxi Arts University).

In 1949, Tien relocated to Hong Kong, where he taught at the China Christian Sacred Music School (now Hong Kong Music Institute) founded by composer Shao Guang (1919–1983). Tien appeared on stage playing the leading male role in the opera La Traviata singing entirely in Italian and caused a stir in November 1951.

Teacher to the stars

In the 1950s, Hong Kong’s Yung Hwa Motion Picture Industries Ltd engaged Tien to manage its musical matters¹. Leading actors and actresses such as Li Li-hua (1924–2017), Julie Yeh Feng, Lin Dai (1934–1964) and Yen Chun (1917–1980) studied singing under him.

Around the 1960s, Tien translated many Italian folk songs and persuaded the Hong Kong branch of Pathé Record Company to record a series of foreign-language songs. These records met with very good response, the most popular song being the Chinese version of the Spanish song La Spagnola.

Music educator in Singapore

In 1955, Tien was invited to join Chung Cheng High School in Singapore to teach music. He then went on to study in Italy, France, England, the United States and Austria from 1959. He returned to Hong Kong to teach at the music department of Hong Kong Tsing Hua College in 1963. In 1967, he came back to Singapore and was appointed inspector of music in the Ministry of Education and conductor of the People’s Association Choir, before becoming a lecturer in the Teachers’ Training College. The book Zhongxue geji (Songbook for Secondary Schools), edited by Tien in 1968, was widely used in secondary schools in the 1970s. He also published educational books such as Shengyue qianshuo (A Brief Introduction to Music) and Shengyue yuanli (Music Theory), among others.

Tien and his wife, vocalist Joy Chen Yu Shen, also trained a good number of musical talents in Singapore, such as Zhu Linmei, Tan Ngiang Kaw, Chen Shunzhong, Wu Mingsheng, Ng Choy Luan, Huang Huifang, Cai Fenghua, Long Yumin, Han Zheyuan, Chee Woon Yang, and Jin Heng Tung.

Though fundamentally a vocal performer and an educator in vocal music, Tien also arranged, adapted, and sang a number of Chinese and foreign songs such as Suwu muyang (Su Wu Shepherding), Midu shange (Song of Mount Midu), Machefu zhilian (Romance of the Horse Carriage Driver), Alamuhan (Beautiful Girl Alamuhan), Biandan ge (Shoulder Pole Song), Ye meigui (Wild Rose), O Sole Mio, La Spagnola, A Serenata d’en Rose, La Paloma, Triumphal March from Aida, and Santa Lucia. He also wrote original vocal works such as solo piece Nongjia le (Farmer’s Song), and choral works Chusheng de zhaoyang (New Morning Sun; lyrics by Chen Qi), and Xinjiapo, niduo nianqing (Singapore, How Young You Are; lyrics by Chew Kok Chang).

La Spagnola