Stage | The Guardian: It has soared during an airport sit-in, united street protests and drowned out the Chinese national anthem at a school assembly. Do You Hear the People Sing?, the defiant chorus from the musical Les Misérables, has become a song of protest in Hong Kong and, more recently, mainland China. Explicit references to Li Wenliang, the Wuhan doctor censured for his warnings about the coronavirus outbreak, and to Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, are stamped upon – but lines from the song slip through the net on China’s social networks Weibo and WeChat, fostering a community of covert opposition.
7 comments:
It’s crazy to think that a song from a musical can be inspiring and also be used as a device of protest. For Do You Hear the People Sing, it really does make sense because of the song and musical's context. The French Revolution was a fight against the French monarchists and the systems of oppression that the royal family imposed on the lower classes. The people of Hong Kong are fighting for the same freedom and liberty. While my political beliefs do not entirely align with the protests, I am amazed at how a song can capture the entire essence of the protestors’ strife against the government. On the other hand, I find it even more shocking that this song has circulated in China’s social networks, forming a covert opposition against the central government. I guess I’m just not used to hearing about dissent against the Chinese government because of the extreme censorship. Again, this song has powerfully captured people’s anger and frustration against authorities, in the light of the coronavirus disease.
This is one of my favorite songs from Les Mis and from any musical in general. The orchestration and lyrics brilliantly capture the fighting spirit of those oppressed in the musical, and is one of the most powerful parts of the musical. I am not surprised that this amazing song is being used half way across the world in China for another group of people that also feel oppressed by their ruling government. What I find incredible is the fact that the Chinese citizens were able to use this song and bypass the extensive online security that surrounds China's mainland. This song just fits with their struggle even more, as their oppression isn't just in physical form, but in an online form as well, something that wasn't in Victor Hugo's book or in the musical. Every movement of some kind needs a rallying cry, a chant or song that the people can get behind. Something that symbolizes the movement and their struggles. This song is perfect for them and it will be interesting to see how the end of their story comes to be.
Protest music has been around about as long as protest and music. The benefit of using songs from a musical is that they are well known. Not only by the protesters but by the people who are watching it go by. The song is successful as protest music because it answers some questions about protesting. 1) who are you and 2) why are you protesting. For the people in Les-Mis, they are angry [people] and they are singing because they do not want to be slaves to the government. This song reminds me of a protest song by Holly Near that answers the same questions the lyrics are “we are gentle angry people and we are singing for our lives' '. This song has similar answers to Les-Mis. Other less popular protest songs usually focus around a singular issue and are less general. In the case of these two songs, they can be adapted to fit many protest’s needs, even if we don't agree with those needs.
I have always been amazed by how effectively various art forms (including pieces of theatre) transcend culture and language. For me, “Do You Hear the People Sing” is perhaps the most powerful (certainly the most outrightly strong) song in Les Misérables. The repurposing of this song is extraordinarily well placed; I can not think of a better time to utilise the contents of the song than in a time of social and political revolution, especially one being led (from my understanding of the situation) entirely by the common person. That the protesters in Hong Kong used the song to sort of “secretly” - or at least discreetly - convey their message and did so to such an extent as to get the song in any iteration banned from China’s social media platforms is impressive. I think that the protesters were right on the nose in that they bothered the Chinese government so close to its core that it felt the need to eliminate the song from its roots.
I got chills while reading this. I don't really need to go into detail as to why Les Mis is so powerful, and how much it means to me personally, because I feel like we all share the same awe for it as an entire composition. Whether you are watching it, or you are in it, there is a call to action that the show provokes. It seems to always be socially relevant. In countries where censorship reigns, hearing that the melody of “Do You Hear the People Sing?” is being used as a form of protest is extremely telling. Regardless of the lyrics that the protesters place within that melody, a call for freedom is still heard. I hope that those people know that even if people in powerful positions do not hear them, the rest of the world does. This specific form of protest is a perfect display of humanity—of the personalities that accompany the oppressed—and I hope that change will come.
Do You Hear the People Sing is such a powerful song and while I was a little surprised that it was being used in the real world as a revolutionary anthem, I definitely think it’s fitting. The song is meant to invoke the idea of the people standing together in the face of tyranny and it is incredibly fitting with the protests that have been occurring for years already. The Hong Kong protest movement in particular has used the internet in amazingly creative ways, capitalizing on the Chinese government’s tendency to ban information from the internet that could be meant as revolutionary. A few months ago, Mei, a video game character, was turned into a symbol of the protest movement to get Blizzard banned from China to strike back at the company’s anti-Hong Kong stance, in an effort to force them to either change their stance or lose China as a market. I think the protests in China and Hong Kong have been so creative in the strategies they’ve chosen, and the use of this song is another step in that same direction.
According to Jill Suttie ‘How Music Bonds Us Together’ (2016) singing together can “directly impact neuro-chemicals in the brain, many of which play a role in closeness and connection.” It is amazing how one song from a musical can help people to get united. In fact, I think the case in Hong Kong is also a great example of sonifizing, as in visualizing, the people’s voice. The world-renowned song, “Do you hear the people sing?” is helping the assertions of the people to be presented clearly through such a mess. On the other hand, although Les Misérables is considered as a piece of entertainment, surely part of the reason why people still produce this show is to remind people to learn from the history, so that they would not be condemned to repeat it. The fact that the song is used in the real-life situation in the 21 century is heavy with sarcasm and I find it very depressing.
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