Michael Wong Gang Liang Fame Since Solo Career

MyStarHill > Celebrities, Chinese, Music > Michael Wong Gang Liang Fame Since Solo Career

Author: teropong | January 5, 2008 - 5:00 am

MICHAEL Wong Guang Liang is set to repeat his fairy tale success with his latest album and upcoming concert in Malaysia.

The Ipoh-born artiste, now based in Taiwan, released his fifth solo album, Never Apart (Bu Hui Fen Li) on Nov 6 last year.

Better known as Guang Liang among Chinese-speaking fans, the singer-songwriter will be staging his second concert at the Arena of Stars, Genting Highlands, on Jan 12.

The album retains his well-loved sentimental ballad style, but with a fresh sound. “For this album, I’d invited an arranger who’s not from the Chinese music industry.

He’s Japanese (Nakamura Taichi), so when he arranges my songs, he just listens to my demo without being influenced by my previous songs.

“He has no preconceptions about my image or style, so his inspiration begins from the music he hears in the demo. And he develops the track using his own fresh ideas while preserving the elements of my music.”

He enthused about his title track, Never Apart. “All my songs are arranged before we move on to lyric-writing. Hence, the inspiration comes from the music and arrangement itself. When I listened to this song, I felt it exuded a certain energy, with a hint of melancholy.”

As with his sensational hit Fairy Tale, Wong roped in many lyricists to pen the words.

“But somehow, the lyrics did not go well with the music. Eventually, it was suggested that I try doing it myself,” said Wong.

Wong is more of a music composer and hardly writes lyrics, but decided to try his hand at repeating the success of Fairy Tale.

“I spent a lot of time listening to the music and, to me, it harboured a hidden power. The more I listened to it, the more I liked it.

“I thought long and hard and finally decided to write about a sort of temporary separation, whereby people are apart yet come together again. I believe many have experienced such a situation.

“With the images in my mind, I came up with a short and simple today-and-tomorrow story of two people who are soon to part.”

In Never Apart, Wong writes about how a guy feels on the day before he leaves to fulfil his dream. “He’s packing for his trip overseas. One of the lines sound like this, When I called, you asked if I could pack your heart in my luggage and carry it with me.

“With the images playing in my mind, I suggested the storyline to the music video director. I had numerous ideas. Previously, the directors would be the ones coming up with most of the storylines.”

Wong revealed that Never Apart is his current favourite.

“I really love listening to the songs because the mixing sounds fresh to me. The guy doing it is Korean, Mr Im, and when it comes to technical skill, he’s really good. The sound is so transparent and astoundingly fresh. Even the mastering was done by another Korean engineer, Big Boom.

“The post-production for this album was done in South Korea. Their sound gels very well with my sentimental ballads.”

Wong is listed in the Malaysia Book of Records for having the Best-Selling Chinese Album (Fairy Tale) as well as being the Malaysian-Chinese composer with the highest number of awards – a grand total of 44, with 23 for his smash hit song of the same title.

His four previous albums are mega-hits in Chinese-speaking countries. They are Michael’s First Album (2001), Ray of Light (2002), Fairy Tale (2005) and Commitment (2006).

Wong also holds the distinction of being the first Malaysian to stage a solo concert, Michael’s First Fairy Tale Concert 2006, at the prestigious Hong Kong Coliseum on March 29 last year.

Performing at his most recent concert held at Shanghai Grand Stage on Sept 1, Wong delighted his fans by singing a Shanghainese version of Fairy Tale.

“The concert in Genting will be different from the one in Shanghai. I will be singing some new songs from my latest album. Since the stage in Genting is different, some of my performances will be modified to suit the venue,” he said.

Michael Wong Never Apart Live in Genting will be staged at the Arena of Stars on Jan 12 at 8pm. His guest artistes for the night are Maggie Chiang and boy band Boyz Frenz. Tickets to his concert are priced at RM80, RM110, RM160, RM220 and RM300.

For reservations and enquiries, call 03-2718 1118 or visit genting.com.my.

source : thestar

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