Beautiful songs/music of TV series

[Don Yu]

We often don't give enough credit to the BEAUTIFUL music that these Chinese TV series has. Because a lot of effort and talents goes into writing and produce these songs to be very pleasant to ears for us viewers!

Looking at American TV shows, what a contrast, they don't have anything like vocal songs anymore! Nor good themes even, for majority of shows.

A pity, and these beautiful Chinese music for TV (or movies) should really be more mainstream for people all over the world to listen, IMO. I think they are really missing out on good music!


Shows like Legend of Chusen


https://youtu.be/csWZSeXqkYc
https://youtu.be/bjGnRnnqkrk

And, Classics of Mountains and Seas

https://youtu.be/f1qGypRLszY

And Romance of Condor Heroes

https://youtu.be/O-S3RSl-OQE
https://youtu.be/Qs7R_RQa58g
https://youtu.be/QvV7dMZQDyY

<3

What are some of YOUR favorites?

Would like to see this streak continue with Legend Of Condor Heroes!

[yanfeng]

I love the music from the late 70's through 80's wuxia and other dramas from HK, although these two are stand-outs for me

1) Love theme from HSDS '86
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE1jCroassI
2) Theme from Chu Liu Xiang '79
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4OVq1mxZtQ

[Don Yu]

I love the music from the late 70's through 80's wuxia and other dramas from HK, although these two are stand-outs for me

1) Love theme from HSDS '86
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OE1jCroassI
2) Theme from Chu Liu Xiang '79
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4OVq1mxZtQ

That's cool, anyone have any other recent favorites?

[xiaodan4869]

80' http://www.bilibili.com/video/av4153214/
90'-94 http://www.bilibili.com/video/av4412920/
95-99 http://www.bilibili.com/video/av4606191/
00-02 http://www.bilibili.com/video/av5029189/
03-06 http://www.bilibili.com/video/av5479370/
07-15 http://www.bilibili.com/video/av6012070/

[Sarafina]

Are you counting covers for beautiful tv series music? I love this er hu cover of Aging of a Beauty from Nirvana in Fire. There is also a Xiao+piano duet cover of the same song that I lost the link to but really touched me.

[krabs]

But these costume drama theme and ending songs are rarely popular in China among young people/amateurs singing at home, they prefer songs from mainstream singers.

[Don Yu]

That's a SHAME!

The music from Legend of Chusen for example should be mainstream (Good music thruout), AFAIAC it is GREAT MUSIC! Mainstream singers in China may not be better at all. There is way too much copying of 2010s American music, which is NO where as good as 80s and 90s music. Maybe except for G.E.M, Faye Wong and Jane Zhang, etc still can be good.


For example, I would NOT call this a good song at all - https://youtu.be/rZ6ciWIe7p8

Way too much copying American music like from Justin Bieber - https://youtu.be/TufxqFDyD_o

They are NOT beautiful!

Are you counting covers for beautiful tv series music? I love this er hu cover of Aging of a Beauty from Nirvana in Fire. There is also a Xiao+piano duet cover of the same song that I lost the link to but really touched me.

Ummm, not really. Let's please keep it to the original singers UNLESS the cover is also done by another FAMOUS artist.

[Verdiani]

Yeah Yanfeng! Glad somebody is old-hearted like me. I didn't like the Legend of Chusen music as much, it's still too modern. Journey of Flower music wasn't too bad. But they still cannot beat the late 80s through 2005 or 06. Classic all the way!

[lenje]

My preference also lies on the TV dramas score back from the 80s-90s, but there are some from the recent years that I quite like, most notably from WuXin The Monster Killer. Both the opening and ending themes have very soothing and melancholic feels . They're not typically Chinese, but since the drama is set in the Republican era, they're still appropriate

I'll edit the this post when I can get the video of only the songs!

[luna_lucid]

Besides the 80s versions of Condor Trilogy theme songs, these are the ones that I like :


1. LOCH 2003 opening => actually, I like this one as a whole (with the MV). It really felt heroic, with the touch of traditional instrumental music. Really suitable for LOCH theme. In the MV, you can see the setting changed from Mongolian dessert to ancient China.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_2zt8XG9EQ


2. LOCH 2003 ending
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0bA7-bZSDQ


3. ROCH ending theme 2005 => Like no 1, I like it as a theme song of a wuxia, although I don't feel like wanting to listen to the music as a standalone. Feels like a very suitable song to wander the martial world. If only they didn't put too many commercials on the video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEOGR6BE24I


4. Sparrow theme song => re-post from Sparrow thread, my current favorite.
I love this one, especially love the touch of piano, violin, and harmonica(accordion?)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mi3i5GZazkc


No 1-3 make me feel like,"This is how a wuxia songs should be", while no 4 makes me feel like,"This is how a Republican spy song should be".They all fit the theme and the setting of drama, as well as increase the dramatic feels.


Other than those :
5. Butterfly Lovers(Peter Ho) - Opening Song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nH_95bp0DRE


6. Butterfly Lovers(Peter Ho) - Ending song => lovely
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3f4FE_Luhc


And yeah, I also like Wuxin theme songs.

[Don Yu]

Is there any list of the LATEST TV series music that's been considered very good and that's either topping the charts, won awards or just trended in China?

[hirobo2]

Dropped ROCH 2014 after a few episodes. But this one is still good:

[yanfeng]

Hey Sarafina, I'm with you the Aging of a Beauty theme is something I've heard over and over!
Although I like several of the piano-only and fan-sung (including a male-male duet, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZgiUJhRmLg) versions better.

But yes, the TVB themes from the 1970's-80's are very, very difficult to beat. Not least because they're deeply embedded in pop-Asian culture. (Think of how rare for there to be an English-language speaker who has never heard a single Beatles tune?)

Take this one- Flying daggers Li. The music, the majesty... the dignity, heroism of the lyrics as Roman Tam sings "Why me?" in the original cantonese. Just listening to it gives me goosebumps! (Although I argue that, for me, the first two I posted at the start of this thread are still the pinnacle of TV drama music.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JB0dEjAMqjo

Ok here's a test: I'm curious, who amongst us cannot recognize this song below? Please flag if so, because I thought that this is so mainstream in Asia it's hard to NOT know it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3y9WOLQGfM

(For those who know it... tell me I'm not the only one who thinks the rush of nostalgia is dope!)

[Don Yu]

OMG loving this Zhang Bichen!! She is AMAZING!!!!

Probably my favorite theme song singer today, that used to be Jane Zhang.

[Don Yu]

This series is getting a lot of good famous singers, how much wanna bet it's ratings will be HIGH?

[jadebunny9]

Ok here's a test: I'm curious, who amongst us cannot recognize this song below? Please flag if so, because I thought that this is so mainstream in Asia it's hard to NOT know it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E3y9WOLQGfM

(For those who know it... tell me I'm not the only one who thinks the rush of nostalgia is dope!)

I think it's quite hard to find a Chinese person who does not recognize this song, considering that Frances Yip also sang the same song in Huang Xiaoming's version. I don't deny that Huang Xiaoming is good-looking, but Chow Yun Fat is hands down the most handsome man ever in his version. To this day I don't think there's been anyone as handsome as him when he was younger. Ah, be still my heart.

80s-90s are my favorite songs. The one exception would be LOCH 2003 opening. That song was badass.

[Sarafina]

Hey Sarafina, I'm with you the Aging of a Beauty theme is something I've heard over and over!
Although I like several of the piano-only and fan-sung (including a male-male duet, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZgiUJhRmLg) versions better.

Agreed. Aging of a Beauty tugs at the heartstrings. The male-male duet was unexpectedly great. I like it! Do you have a favorite cover artist? My favorite would be 水玥兒 Shui Yue Er. She did both a Xiao and a Dizi version of Aging of a Beauty. Both are awesome! I especially love her bamboo flute cover of the 1981 LoCH theme. Love the powerful beginning.



Both the other themes you listed are classics and I think most people will recognize them. TVB 80s are the best, so many memorable themesongs. However, I feel that their late 80s and 90s stuff aren't as good.

Some other themes that were memorable to me. Silver Tycoon.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VC05Y7HkjeE

A Life of Fighting is but a Dream. I still hear this one performed at drama award shows. It's an oldie but a crowd pleaser. Honestly, all of HSDS94's songs have a timeless quality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij0-jMzeZ2U

Taiwan's Justice Bao theme by Huang An. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zuw5Z0l0Rjc

State of Divinity 1996. Love the RYY and LHC in this version!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wt7zNbTSBco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alIcwKsgEO8


2000's
The entire Chinese Paladin 3 OST was great. I swear I emptied a box of Kleenex finishing this series.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQ2Ytc3g1Pw

The Myth of Stars and Moon. Another crowd pleaser at shows.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SP3coaiI10

Seconding the LoCH 2003 ending theme. Beautiful, powerful song. Tbh, I've liked all LoCH themesongs through the years, some more than others. Did not see the 70's version though. The only version I truly hated on was Idy Chen's version. Even the themesong was horrible.

The Legend of Miyue also has a great ost.

[suetkei]

Honestly TVB had some of my favourites theme song from the 80's-early 00's and I still miss the old background music they play! (Wakin chau and hacken lee sang a lot of them too and there was even a tribute to a few songs during the spring gala!)
But loch 2008 have some of my favourites songs plus background music! Also th young yang warriors with huge and lss!

[hirobo2]

IMO, the Wong Fei Hung theme is the best song HK cinema has ever produced, re-enacted here:



(From the animation Nanocore found here: http://www.spcnet.tv/forums/showthre...ese-animation). Miss Blaster Girl Tangxin decides she wants to be Wong Fei Hung for a change...)

[hirobo2]

My bad, this thread is about TV songs... Well, here is the best TV song I heard in 2017 (I doubt anything released this Nov or Dec could be better):



2nd best song of 2017 would have to be Princess Agents or Ode to Gallantry theme...