A large song performance will be held on September 10 at the Great Hall of the People, to help people retrace the Chinese Red Army's arduous Long March 70 years ago.
40 years ago, four Chinese composers produced a suit of songs based on poems written by a veteran revolutionary Xiao Hua, who experienced the whole course of the Long March.
The songs borrowed many elements of local folk songs in places along the route of the Long March. Ever since it was published, the suit of songs have won the favor of generations of Chinese. It has been performed more than 1,000 times so far, and listed as "Chinese classic songs in the 20th century".
The Red Army's Long March, claimed "unbelievable" by most scholars, crossed 14 Chinese provinces from 1934 to 1936. It was also a big sacrifice, as approximately 90,000 men and women gave their lives during the course.
(Xinhua News Agency August 17, 2005)
