All about the basso

"The book is very interesting and easy to read. For music students in particular, it offers many valuable experiences about a young singer growing and evolving," says renowned composer and professor at the Central Conservatory of Music, Guo Wenjing. In 2007, the two worked together on Guo's opera, Poet Li Bai, in which Tian played the titular role.

As well as singing, Tian has been dedicated to the iSing! International Young Artists Festival, a global opera training program he launched in 2011.Based in the city of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, the program brings together top singers, coaches and conductors from around the world to train young artists to perform opera in Mandarin.

"The festival, like many international events, has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, we still try to keep it running," says Tian. In November 2020, 11 singers from seven countries performed in Mandarin accompanied by the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Maestro Lin Daye. The songs were based on renowned Tang Dynasty (618-907) poems, which were created as part of a competition that commissioned worldwide composers to create works based on Tang Dynasty poetry.

Tian is currently working with his team to launch another competition, this time to create works based on poems from the Song Dynasty (960-1279).