They come from a diverse range of ethnic minorities but have found one voice: A group of children from the Oroqen, Ewenki and Daghur ethnic minorities, and the Mongolian Buryat and Baerhu tribes of Inner Mongolia's Hulun Buir Grasslands have formed the country's first ethnic minority children's choir.

Multicolored Hulun Buir Grassland Children Choir will perform in Beijing at the beginning of 2008, raising their small voices in a big production.

Currently, the choir is comprised of 37 children ranging in age from 5 to 13. Two-thirds of the youngsters come from pastoral areas, forests and farming villages. They use five local languages and dialects to sing a repertoire of more than 30 songs, all of which are children's ballads that have been passed down through the generations.

The choir's performance program Hulun Buir Fantasy takes traditional ballads, dances, games and religious ceremonies to the modern stage. And scholars and experts have lauded the group's narrative approach to performance.

Yu Qiuyu, one of the most acclaimed cultural and literary figures in contemporary China, says the choir "is doing something of great significance".

Xi Murong, a well-known poet from Taiwan, said after watching a performance: "We must have lost something while developing the economy. This something can be seen in the performance of the children's choir."

The choir will perform at Beijing Exhibition Hall from January 4 to 6. 6406-8888, 400-818-3333

(China Daily 12/26/2007 page12)