In the past few days, a video of an "uncle" wearing leather shoes, trousers, and a polo shirt and dancing the Mongolian dance "Pentium" with a group of young students has gone viral on the Internet.
Screenshot of the video of Jiang Tiehong leading students to dance "Pentium".
After that, the uncle was quickly recognized by sharp-eyed netizens as 56-year-old Jiang Tiehong, dean of the Dance School of Minzu University of China. Some netizens said, "This dean has been dancing in my circle of friends all day."
html On May 18, Saturday, Jiang Tiehong was busy all morning, and finally had a drink before accepting an exclusive interview with The Paper at 12:30. I drank some water and didn't have time to have lunch.Jiang Tiehong herself was also surprised when her dancing video was “out of the entertainment industry”. Speaking of the impact of being "out of the circle", when he walks on campus recently, he is always recognized by students and asks to take photos.
Other than that, Jiang Tiehong is still busy as usual. On the morning of May 18, he first went to perform "Pentium" at the Sixth Minzu University of China International Cultural Festival; then, in preparation for an upcoming dance party, he led the students to rehearse "Pentium" all morning 》.
As the dean of the college, Jiang Tiehong has a lot of daily administrative work, but he has been taking care of teaching work at the same time. "I now have six classes every day from Monday to Wednesday, and I often demonstrate dance moves to students during class." Jiang Tiehong said that dancing is a part of his work and life. If students need him to demonstrate moves, he is always available. A dance section will be demonstrated everywhere.
Jiang Tiehong has won the "Personal Cultural Award"; gold, silver and bronze awards; and the "Gardener Award" in the national-level "Peach and Plum Cup", "Peacock Cup" and "Lotus Cup" dance competitions. In 1996, he was awarded the title of "Chinese Contemporary Young Dancer" by the former Ministry of Culture.
But what many people don’t know is that Jiang Tiehong once injured his leg due to dancing and was unable to dance on stage for more than ten years. It was not until he was nearly 50 years old that he finally returned to the stage after overcoming many difficulties.
He said that he loves dancing and will always maintain a learning attitude that keeps pace with the times. He will always keep dancing and dance well like he did when he danced "Pentium" at the age of 29.
An old photo of Jiang Tiehong (middle) dancing to "Pentium". The following pictures are all provided by the interviewees
The following is a conversation between The Paper and Jiang Tiehong:
"Being out of the circle" was an accident. I am happy that the folk dance has received attention
Reporter: In the past few days, I have been concerned about you wearing leather shoes, trousers and A video of students dancing to "Rampant" became very popular online. When did you know you became popular? How did you feel after this video went viral?
Jiang Tiehong: On the evening of May 25, our college will hold a special evening party of outstanding dance works, including the Mongolian dance "Pentium".
html On the evening of May 13th, I went to review the rehearsal of the party program, mainly to see how the students danced. As a result, a teacher and a student asked me to demonstrate a dance. So, I jumped on the stage and danced for a while without changing my training clothes.After finishing my work that night, I went home to rest. Unexpectedly, the dancing scene was filmed by teachers and students present at the time and posted on social media. The next morning, I woke up and found that I had received a lot of message alerts related to my dancing on my phone, and I realized that this dancing video had gone viral.
This was completely beyond my expectation, because going on stage to demonstrate movements to students is the most common thing in my daily teaching. The school has certain requirements for the public words and deeds of administrative cadres. Seeing so many people pay attention to it makes me a little scared.
Reporter: When you walk on campus or on the street recently, are you recognized by many people?
Jiang Tiehong: is indeed like this these days. When walking on campus, students often recognize me and want to take photos with me. It is a good thing that people can pay attention to folk dance because of a dance video, so I usually cooperate with students. Reporter
: What impact does the explosion of have on you?
Jiang Tiehong: I am very happy that this dance video of has become popular on the Internet, allowing more people to pay attention to and like ethnic dance and Mongolian dance.This may also increase the attention and public visibility of our Dance School of Minzu University of China, including folk dance, to a certain extent.
The Dance School of Minzu University of China can be said to be the cradle of Chinese folk dancers, with many excellent folk dance teachers. We also welcome students who are interested in folk dance and are interested in studying at Minzu University of China to apply for relevant majors in the Dance School of Minzu University of China.
Jiang Tiehong.
Teaching three days a week, giving demonstrations to students is a common thing in teaching
Reporter: You just mentioned that as the dean, you have been teaching students now?
Jiang Tiehong: is correct. Practical teaching is one of my very important daily tasks. I now have six classes every day from Monday to Wednesday. Some are undergraduate courses, and some are master's and doctoral courses. Dance teaching attaches great importance to practice. In class or rehearsal, you cannot just talk about the essentials of movements. Movement demonstrations should be used to let students understand how to master movements and rhythms, including breath control, etc. So I will demonstrate some actions to the students over and over again in class.
reporter: In your daily life, are you often invited to participate in dance teaching? Will you support dance teaching every time?
Jiang Tiehong: As a teacher, as long as students have needs and ask me to demonstrate dance moves, I will basically demonstrate them anytime and anywhere. it is my responsibility.
Therefore, it was a very normal thing for me to demonstrate the movements to the students that night. The only difference from usual times was that I didn’t change into my training clothes that day and went on the court wearing leather shoes, trousers, and a polo shirt. Perhaps this contrast in clothing is one of the reasons why this video attracted attention.
reporter: Are you also very popular with students about ?
Jiang Tiehong: I have strict requirements on students in class. Sometimes the students' performance in class is not good enough, and I will let them feel my emotional changes through my dance. I like to incorporate some stories and emotions into dance. Maybe the same dance will feel different between what it dances today and what it danced yesterday.
In daily life, I have a relatively good relationship with my students. Sometimes I eat and chat with them. Many students who have graduated often come back to me to share their thoughts, future plans, etc. with me.
Dancing is a part of life and a way of expressing emotions
Reporter: Some netizens watched your dancing video and said, "I feel like you need to have a belly to dance this dance to feel it." "The tenderness of the Iron Mountain is on display. picture". Some netizens said, "It turns out that dancing has nothing to do with body shape" and "I realized that the most important thing in dancing is not the movement, but the feeling." What do you think of these comments from netizens?
Jiang Tiehong: I have always told students that whether they are handsome or tall, these do not have much impact on our love of dancing and our ability to dance well. I'm not very handsome myself, but that doesn't stop me from showing off the beauty of dance.
As for netizens who said, "You have to have a belly to dance this dance," this may be related to everyone's impression of the Mongolian people. In everyone’s impression, Mongolian men are tall and mighty, and my overall image may be more in line with the public’s impression.
said that "the most important thing in dancing is not the movement, but the feeling". This may also be the feeling of dance that we often talk about every day, or whether it can "set the standard". Dancers need to understand and feel the content, emotions, and spirit of a dance, and then display the connotation through movements, expressions, emotions, etc., and let the audience feel it. This may be the "feeling" everyone talks about.
When we dance, we will also find the feeling of dancing. I now go back to the Inner Mongolia prairie at least once a year to feel the blue sky and white clouds of the prairie, see the cattle and sheep there, and feel the smell of green grass and even cow dung in the air. When I dance, I bring the state and mood of being in the prairie into the dance, as if I am dancing on the prairie.
Reporter: You said you want to lose weight quickly, is it because you read the comments from netizens, or is it because you want to dance better in the future?
Jiang Tiehong: For dancers, it is indeed very important to manage their body well. Maintain a good body and make your body lighter so that you can better complete and demonstrate various dance moves.
Personally, I have been busy applying for a professional doctoral degree authorization point in our college for a long time since last year. It was a lot of desk work and I sat for so long every day that my stomach came out. I am exercising now and hope to reduce my belly fat.
Reporter: You sometimes post some daily dancing videos on your social media account. After work, when and where do you usually choose to dance?
Jiang Tiehong: For me, dancing is a part of daily life. When you are happy, you can dance to the music anytime and anywhere. Sometimes when creative inspiration comes, I will dance a section, ask someone to help me record it, and study and create new works. When you are stressed or in a bad mood, you will dance to release your emotions and relieve your stress.
I often tell students that when they are stressed, they can dance to adjust their emotional state and relax their body and mind.
Old photos of Jiang Tiehong dancing.
Dancing talent is important, practice and hard work are more important.
Reporter: You are of Korean ethnicity. Netizens commented that you danced "Pentium" with "the soul of a Mongolian man". Judging from your own experience of learning and teaching dance, how can you dance well? Is talent more important, or hard work and practice?
Jiang Tiehong: For dancing, talent may be important, but what is more important is to love dance from the heart and practice diligently. People who study dance and love dance must be able to endure hardships. At the same time, we should also pay attention to the learning of various related knowledge.
Reporter: You were born in a dance family. Were you influenced by your parents, have you loved dancing since you were a child?
Jiang Tiehong: My father is a dancer, and I have watched him dance since I was a child. But when I was young, I had many interests. I loved playing basketball, watching stars, astronomy, and archeology. I also thought about becoming a soldier. At first, I didn’t decide that I wanted to pursue dance.
It wasn’t until 1980, when I was 12 years old, that my father dragged me to take the dance major entrance examination of a technical secondary school and was admitted, and I finally embarked on the path of dance.
My father may think that I have a certain talent for dancing, and he also has some unfulfilled wishes in dancing, and hopes that I can complete them. As I continued to practice and work hard, I really fell in love with dancing, and I won many awards that my father had not received back then, which was like realizing his unfulfilled wish for him. I have also gained a lot along the way. I have studied and worked at Minzu University of China for more than 30 years, and I am very grateful to the school and teachers for their training in me.
"Pentium" is a classic play of the Dance School of Minzu University of China. It is a group dance of Mongolian men created by my teacher and famous dance educator Ma Yue in the early days of reform and opening up. It shows a scene of a horse flashing and prancing against the backdrop of the rising sun, and a group of vigorous young people riding horses to meet them. This work has won the first prize for creation in the first Beijing Dance Competition, the first prize for choreography and the first prize for performance in the second National Dance Competition, the Golden Statue Award for Chinese National 20th Century Dance Classic Works, and the North Korean "April Spring" "International Arts Festival Dance Gold Medal, etc.
Jiang Tiehong’s teacher, Ma Yue, a famous dance educator.
Chinese civilization is formed by the gathering and integration of the excellent cultures of various ethnic groups. The Dance School of Minzu University of China allows students of all ethnic groups to dance dance works of different ethnic groups, and allows students of all ethnic groups to inherit and innovate the excellent traditional Chinese culture through dance.
Teacher Ma Yue who created "Pentium" is from the Hui ethnic group, and I am from the Korean ethnic group. Many teachers and students of different ethnic groups in our school have performed this work. What we pursue is sharing the beauty and beauty, and integrating knowledge and action. We also always teach students to build a strong sense of community of the Chinese nation and inherit the excellent traditional Chinese culture. This inheritance is also reflected in our dance works.
He was unable to dance for more than ten years due to a leg injury, and he finally returned to the stage when he was nearly 50 years old.
Reporter: Your dance path was not always smooth. You were unable to dance on stage for more than ten years because of a leg injury, and you did not make a comeback until you were nearly 50 years old. ", stood on the stage again. Was it because of dancing that the leg was seriously injured? At what point did you decide to take the stage again? What difficulties have you overcome and what efforts have you made to get back on stage?
Jiang Tiehong: is a big pain point in my life.
It was 1999. When I was participating in a national performance, my leg accidentally fell and I felt as if my leg was broken. At that time, I endured the pain, "connected" my legs and continued to dance.
After the performance, I went to the hospital for a check-up and found out that not only was the meniscus in my knee shattered, but the posterior cruciate ligament was also torn. Later, the doctor helped me connect the ligament through surgery. But due to leg injuries and leg pain, it was difficult for me to dance on stage for a long time, and I was more engaged in dance teaching and creation.
When our college was preparing for the anniversary in 2016, the then dean suggested that I perform a dance as a teacher representative. At that time, I asked, can I just dance a section? The dean said, just dance a complete dance.
Dean asked me to dance "Life is Flickering", which I won the "Taoli Cup" gold medal in my youth. It lasted nearly 8 minutes and was quite difficult.
I thought this was a very important and meaningful task, so I agreed.
But I was nearly 50 years old and weighed 208 pounds, so the first thing I had to do was lose weight. At that time, there were only more than two months left before our college celebration. Time was tight. I walked for almost 6 hours and 20 kilometers every day. My legs were very painful and I was sweating profusely every day. By the time the performance was approaching, my weight had dropped to about 165 pounds. However, my legs were still very painful. In order to be able to complete the performance well, I went to get a blocking injection to relieve pain before the performance. Finally, I successfully completed the dance performance at the college celebration.
It was also from that time that I found the courage and confidence to return to the stage, and decided that as long as I could still dance, I would stick to the stage.
Although I will retire in a few years, I still insist on dancing and studying, hoping to keep pace with the times. My students nicknamed me "29". I also hope that I can always stay young physically and mentally and keep dancing.
hopes to cultivate more diversified dance talents
Reporter: Nowadays, many children are sent to learn to dance since childhood, and some children develop problems such as "lower back paralysis" because of dancing. What are your suggestions for young children learning to dance? How to reduce the risk of dance injuries?
Jiang Tiehong: When young children learn to dance, they should focus on cultivating their interests and hobbies, so the focus is on letting children experience the joy of dancing.
It is more suitable to enter the formal scientific dance training stage around the age of 10. Before this, the child's muscles and bones are not fully developed, and the child's body may be out of control when doing some movements. Therefore, when young children learn to dance, they should not place too much emphasis on dance techniques and skills.
What I want to say in particular is that parents who do not have professional knowledge of dance should not do leg press, lower back and other movements for their children after sending their children home to learn to dance, so as not to cause harm to their children's bodies. After your children come home from dancing, you can let them dance by themselves, experience the joy of dancing, and remember the feeling and rhythm of dancing.
If parents want to do something for their children, they can wipe their children's feet with hot water after they return from dance practice to promote blood circulation.
Reporter: Minzu University of China is about to hold a "High-Level Forum on Cultivation of Talents in Chinese Modern Dance Art". What do you think of the training of dance talents in colleges and universities?
Jiang Tiehong: At present, the industry is still working on the "Chinese-style" independent training method of high-level talents in dance art, the discipline construction and talent training at different stages of dance majors at bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels, and the training methods of diversified dance talents. Exploring.Our forum will open on May 25. The purpose is to invite experts and scholars in the industry to discuss these issues, to form a consensus through brainstorming, and to promote the construction of a discourse system, academic system and Chinese-style modern folk dance education, teaching and artistic practice. Discipline system.
I personally feel that we should not only cultivate performing talents who can dance, but also cultivate more dance educator talents who can teach. Our school is also working hard to improve the teaching model and cultivate more diverse dance talents and research talents.
Reporter: As a senior, what suggestions and reminders do you have for young students majoring in dance?
Jiang Tiehong: hopes that they can experience the happiness brought by dance, feel the charm of dance, and inherit and carry forward the excellent traditional culture of the Chinese nation.
Source: The Paper
