Bridge Builders:
Shaun Gibson

The musician who followed his dream to China

By Catherine Newman

Discovering a whole new world

Meet Shaun Gibson, the British singer, songwriter and musician living in China, known best for bringing Chinese sounds into Western pop.

Shaun Gibson embodies the term "bridge builder" through his fusion of Western and Chinese music. He is also resilient and inspiring.

The British musician, who currently lives in Beijing, learned at a young age that he had an eye condition that would eventually blind him. Slightly later on in life, during his time at Liverpool University, he became friends with a group of Chinese students from Suzhou. Through this social circle, Gibson discovered a whole new world of Chinese media and entertainment, including music, film and TV shows.

"I was just really curious to know where they were from, why they chose Liverpool and just generally, wanted to make friends with them. Eventually, I became friends with some Chinese people and they took me to KTV to sing songs and introduced me to some TV shows and TV dramas like Journey to the West and Empresses in the Palace."

It ignited his love for Chinese culture, and more specifically Chinese music. A world that felt like it was becoming increasingly dim was suddenly illuminated.

Following graduation from university, Gibson decided to take his love for China a step further. He embarked on a visit to the country, discovering the country's inspiring scenery and ancient sounds for himself.

"About eight years ago now, I took my first trip to China and I went to Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Chongqing, Chengdu, Xi'an and then back to Beijing.

"It was while I was in Chengdu, I saw a pipa player for the first time. This made me really fascinated because I had heard pipa before in the UK, but it was always presented to me as an expression of history or just an ancient instrument but seeing that there in the shopping center, with a whole crowd of people around, I realized it's not only still part of modern Chinese culture but it's still very popular."

From that moment, Gibson knew that he wanted to combine Chinese and Western musical elements. There was one main goal: to popularize a sound that would bridge two cultures together and connect people all over the world.

Shaun Gibson discovered his love for Chinese culture during his time at Liverpool University. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson decided to travel around China to immerse himself in the music and culture. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson's motivation is to popularize the fusion of Chinese and Western musical elements. /Shaun Gibson

Shaun Gibson talks to CGTN as part of the Bridge Builder series. /CGTN

Shaun's story

Making his dream a reality

Shaun explored China for himself to gain a deeper understanding of the country's musical history. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson's YouTube channel has amassed over 11 million views. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson's video range from music covers to travel vlogs to discussion videos. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson's videos act as a window into China for many, particularly during the ongoing pandemic. /Shaun Gibson

Since opening his YouTube channel in 2012, Gibson has amassed over 30,000 subscribers. He also has a loyal legion of followers in China, with 755,000 fans on the popular video sharing site Bilibili, a number which is growing every day.

His most popular video on YouTube, Xiao Ping Guo [My Little Apple], has amassed over 8.8 million views since it was posted in 2014. The Chinese karaoke classic was originally written by the Chopstick Brothers in 2014. Released just two months before Shaun's cover, it is popular with people around the world thanks to its addictive beat and repetitive but simple lyrics. One top comment with over 60 likes says: "Been listening to Xiao Ping Guo for years now and I just found this?? Bruh I'm angry. This was a masterpiece." Another viewer praised the video, writing: "I've already watched this three times... This may very well be one of those cultural phenomenons that transcends language. The English lyrics were a brilliant touch though. Thumbs up dudes!"

Gibson has gone on to amass more than 11 million views on his YouTube channel with its broad and wide-ranging content. On his page, the creative posts covers of famous Chinese songs, including Empty World by household name Karen Mok, Mohe Ballroom by Liu Shuang and Light Up in the Dark by Zhou Shen. It's no surprise that his music videos rack up views, as they often showcase famous Chinese landmarks, including the Forbidden City and Tian Tan (known in English as the Temple of Heaven).

Gibson also shares personal accounts of his own stories and experiences. One video with the frank title "I am going blind" is an honest and touching account of his journey with sight loss. In other videos, such as "Bad foreigners and racism in China", Gibson talks candidly to the camera about social issues in the country.

He also vlogs and shares experiences in China. In one popular video called "My first Chinese Bathhouse experience" he shows what it's like to go to a zaotang zi. He also draws comparisons between his home country and China, with videos such as "China vs. UK Virus Control approach." In this way, Gibson's YouTube is a window into a different world, acting as a port of entry into China, a place which may seem out of reach for his viewers particularly during the recent travel restrictions and isolation requirements of the pandemic.

This is particularly prevalent in his series called Music Voyage. In the videos, the pioneering musician travels around China, showcasing to his viewers the diversity of music and cultures in the Red Dragon, as China is often known. Gibson explores the country's rich heritage of music, explaining what different Chinese music sounds like from various regions and even producing experimental music from ancient Chinese factory sounds. In one video diary, Gibson shows the creative process as to how he went about writing and producing Pass It On in collaboration with Chow Tai Fook Inherit, a company which specializes in golden jewelry and ornaments. Using the sounds made by traditional methods used in handcrafting jewelry, a completely unique sound was created, one that has become signature to Shaun Gibson's music.

The lyrics to Pass It On encourage people to keep their traditional cultures alive and hand them over to other generations. The message is that all cultures should be shared, no matter what they are or where they originate from, an idea that Gibson's listeners can connect to across the globe.

Pass it on through the ages 就沿流淌的岁月传承下去 Pass it on from mums to sons 从母亲传承到孩子那里 Pass it into the future 将文化传递到未来中去
The lyrics to Pass It On by Shaun Gibson

"I make music and I make videos because it enriches my life," says Gibson.

"I hope that I can make other people happy as well, and I hope that I can share Chinese culture with my Western friends."

For the creative, the most inspiring thing about Chinese music is just how different it is to Western music. While Western music is normally rhythm based and more electronic than ever before, to the musician, it can often feel as though it has lost its heart. This is the main difference for him and ultimately, what drew him to a culture and its music completely different from his own. However, this yin and yang difference, when put together, creates musical magic.

"I think these two contrasts, when put together, are really fascinating, it creates something really fresh."

A true bridge builder, Gibson sings in both English and Chinese to connect with listeners across the world. As the majority of his audience is currently in China, he focuses mainly on Chinese lyrics, as a way of also connecting to the culture. However, hoping that one day more of his western friends will connect with his music, Gibson writes a lot of his bops in English, which he says many of his Chinese followers also like to listen to as a way of learning English.

He is heavily inspired by Zhongguo feng, popular Chinese music which is considered to adopt a more traditional style in its instrumentation than other popular music. That is to say, it is the music of China's history with a modern twist. Lyrics, tunes and arrangements are the most important elements that determine whether a song is considered to be in this style. Zhongguo feng songs typically make allusions to aspects of traditional Chinese culture, such as tales, superstitions, legends, word games, paintings and even children's songs. Pioneers in this genre include Jay Chou and Vincent Fang, who uses a poetic style called suyan yunjiaoshi in his lyrics to evoke vivid imageries of traditional Chinese culture.

Drawing upon this as an influence, both Gibson's lyrics and music videos merge east and west, traditional and modern and the known with the unknown.

Chinese musical history

A crash course explaining its styles and instruments

Female musicians perform classical Chinese music. The instruments include a zither (yaqin) and a plucked lute (sanxian). /Wikimedia Commons

Chinese music is one of the oldest and most highly developed of all known musical systems.

According to ancient Chinese writings, in 2697 BCE the emperor Huangdi sent Ling Lun (who is considered the founder of music in ancient China) to the western mountain area to cut bamboo pipes that could emit sounds matching the call of the fenghuang, an immortal bird whose rare appearance signaled harmony in the reign of a new emperor.

Chinese musical instruments are traditionally grouped into eight material categories known as bā yīn, one of the first musical taxonomies ever devised. The eight categories are silk, bamboo, wood, stone, metal, clay, gourd and skin. Archaeological digs have only unearthed instruments made of the most sturdy materials, including vessel flutes, stone chimes and bronze bells.

Instruments are normally played solo, in large orchestras (such as in the former imperial court) or in smaller ensembles (in teahouses or public gatherings). Unlike Western music, there was not normally a conductor in traditional Chinese music in former times, nor the use of musical scores and tablature. Instead, the method of learning was via sound and memory.

There were more than 70 types of musical instruments used in ancient China, and many of these instruments have more than 3,000 years of history. Here is a brief outline of some of the main instruments which are core to China's sound.

The pipa: Shaun Gibson was led on a path of discovery when he heard the pipa being played. Descended from West and Central Asia prototypes, the four-string plucked lute first appeared in China during the Northern Wei dynasty. This instrument was revolutionary because it traveled over ancient trade routes and brought with it a new sound.

The guzheng: Today, the guzheng is heralded as the most popular traditional Chinese music instrument, and is considered the equivalent of the piano in Western music. The plucked zither commonly has 21, 25 or 26 strings, is 64 inches long and is tuned in a major pentatonic scale – a five-note system which is also very popular in Western music.

The erhu: The erhu is another instrument core to the signature sound of the country's traditional music. Sometimes known in the Western world as the Chinese violin or Chinese two-stringed, it can be traced back to the time of the Tang dynasty in the seventh to tenth centuries AD.

The dizi: A transverse flute, it is sometimes known as the di or hengdi, and has varieties which include the Qudi, Bangdi and Xindi. It is widely used in many genres of Chinese folk music, Chinese opera and in modern Chinese orchestra.

The guqin: The qugin is a very quiet instrument, with a range of about four octaves. Being played since the ancient times, its open strings are tuned in the bass register and has typically been favored by scholars and literati over the centuries.

The sheng: The sheng is another popular instrument. It's the oldest wind instrument in the world, dating back thousands of years – the accordion and the church organ are based on it – and Shaun Gibson's fellow Bridge Builder Guo Yi is considered a world class expert on the instrument. The mouth-blown free reed instrument consists of vertical pipes and it is a polyphonic instrument, meaning that it consists of many voices or sounds, helping its popularity as a solo instrument.

The hulusi: Also known as the cucurbit flute and the gourd flute, this free-reed wind instrument originates from China, Vietnam, the Shan State and the indigenous people of Assam.

The suona: Also called the dida, laba or haidi, this musical masterpiece is fitted with a double-reed horn. The suona's basic design is rooted in Iran, where it was then as the surna, before first appearing in China around the 3rd century.

As China has many ethnic groups, music varies dramatically across the nation and has changed over the centuries. In 2020, China's music industry revenue amounted to more than $53 billion.

The pipa first appeared in China during the Northern Wei dynasty. /Tang Ming Tung/Getty Creative

The Guzheng is considered the most popular Chinese instrument today. /CFP

The erhu dates back to between the seventh and tenth centuries. /View Stock/VSI via CFP

The dizi is normally found in Chinese folk music, Chinese opera and in modern Chinese orchestra. /David290 on Wikipedia.

The guqin is typically quiet and was favored by scholars and literati. /CFP

The sheng dates back thousands of years, providing inspiration for instruments such as the accordion and the church organ. /Wikimedia Commons

The hulusi is type of flute that has origins across several countries. /Visual China via CFP

The Suona has origins in Iran before it first appeared in China around the 3rd century. /Visual China via CFP

Living in China

Shaun Gibson immerses himself in the culture he loves

When Gibson arrived in China, he realized that Chinese instruments are more prevalent in modern society than he though before. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson says that from living in China he learnt that people are all doing the same things across the world, just in different ways. /Shaun Gibson

Gibson admits that despite his love for the culture, when he first went to China, he had a culture shock. However, he also says that it wasn't a culture shock in the way that you would expect.

"I expected China to be totally different to the UK... Actually, when I arrived, I just felt familiar. It just felt like people are living their lives just normally. I go to the park and I would see people exercising but it’s just different types of exercises. It made me realize that people are just people... I have come half way around the world but people are just doing the same things!"

"People are just people"
Shaun Gibson

China is full of so many different cultures and ethnic groups that in the words of Gibson, it's almost like "56 different countries." Gibson hopes to make this more known through his various social media platforms and online presence.

Another thing that he noticed is that traditional Chinese instruments are not just a relic of the past but are very much integrated into modern society. When he'd heard the pipa in the UK, it was presented to him almost like a historical artefact, but this could not be further from the reality of its prominence in modern China.

"I'd heard it before in the UK but it was presented to me as part of a historical and cultural performance which made me think that it was just part of the ancient past because it was talking about the instruments and the clothes and everything as being thousands of years old" – a "museum piece" with no relevance in modern culture. Traveling around China made him realize that all these historic instruments are still very much part of China's culture in the 21st century.

When asked what he misses most about the UK, he says "being able to relax" as there are "always so many adventures in China. I'm always busy, moving around everywhere."

Building bridges

Shaun Gibson's goal as a bridge builder

Shaun Gibson believes that we need to focus on our similarities rather than our differences. /Shaun Gibson

Reflecting on his role as a bridge builder, Gibson is honest and sincere, encouraging cultures across the world to merge and have more understanding with one another.

"We can share and realize that the human race is just that – it's the human race. We really need to start building bridges instead of walls and to focus a lot more on our similarities than our differences."

With regards to his work that draws upon Chinese culture and instruments, employing Western sounds and words, he says that he is "exploring, experimenting and trying something new in the hopes to build a bridge."

"I think we definitely need more people doing that, a lot more people doing, on both sides" Gibson reflects.

"We really need to start building bridges instead of walls"
Shaun Gibson

The UK and China have already had 50 years of collaboration and Gibson says that he hopes for the next 50 years, the two cultures can learn even more about each other and connect more culturally.

"So far, it has mostly been economically," he reflects. "For the next 50 years, I hope that we can learn more about each other culturally."

Speaking from experience of living in both China and the UK, he says that while there may have been a lot of Western influence in China, he hopes that into the future, there could be more Chinese influence in the opposite direction. Using a bridge as a metaphor for the relationship between the UK and China, Gibson says that at the moment, it is only half-built. "I hope maybe the next 50 years can be the other half. I think the only way to do that sensibly is to integrate Chinese culture into Western culture slowly – it’s got to have relevance to people."

For Gibson, there is one ultimate question: "How do you combine Chinese and Western influences together, to create something new, to create something that both parties can enjoy equally?"

Despite everything, Gibson's intentions are pure and simple and his love for music and Chinese culture remain a constant in his life.

"I hope that through my videos and through my songs, through my music, that people can understand a lot more about different cultures. I'm a British guy in China, doing Chinese stuff. I hope this kind of connection between cultures can help people learn more about each other."

Gibson hopes that there can be more sharing of Chinese culture into the Western world into the future. /Shaun Gibson

Despite everything, Gibson's main motivation is his love for music and culture. /Shaun Gibson

Credits

By Catherine Newman
With Elizabeth Mearns, Sun Lan
Video editing Terry Wilson
Animation and video James Sandifer
Chief editor Guo Chun
Executive producer Duncan Hooper