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7. Compliance, Autonomy, and Resistance of a "State Artist": The Case of Chinese-Mongolian Musician Teng Ge'er
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7. Compliance, Autonomy, and Resistance of a “State Artist” The Case of Chinese-Mongolian Musician Teng Ge’er nimrod baranovitch Teng Ge’er is a musician of Mongolian origin who lives in Beijing and is known all over China for his many pop, rock, and folk songs, especially those about Mongolia, many of which he not only performs but also wrote and composed.1 Since 1985 he has been a member of China’s Central Nationalities Song and Dance Troupe (Zhongguo zhongyang minzu gewutuan, hereafter CNSDT), one of the country’s many highly politicized official cultural organizations , which since its establishment in 1952 has served as a showcase of the state’s policy toward its ethnic minorities.2 Like many other artists who belong to state institutions, Teng Ge’er is on the state’s payroll system, is entitled to welfare benefits, and resides in an apartment allocated to him by his work unit within its walled domain in northwest Beijing. Teng Ge’er’s close links with the state are also revealed in frequent appearances in large-scale, officially organized live events and on China’s Central Television (CCTV), which broadcasts nationwide and is one of the most tightly controlled media in China. In addition, he has been awarded numerous official prizes, has been granted the prestigious title “State’s First Rank Performer” (guojia yiji yanyuan), and has been invited to serve as a judge in officially organized singing competitions. It has been common practice among scholars writing about artists in postMao China to make a distinction between state-employed artists, sometimes referred to as “state artists,” and artists who work outside state institutions, who are often referred to as “independent artists.” It is often implied or explicitly suggested that the former serve as mouthpieces of the state, creat- 174 nimrod baranovitch ing and performing official art that is saturated with propaganda, while the latter, by contrast, create unofficial art that is autonomous of the state and often subverts state ideology.3 Reflecting Western sensibilities, specifically the Western view of the Chinese state being totalitarian and extremely utilitarian, and the strong Western adherence to the ideal of autonomous, individual, and critical art, most Western scholarly attention and popular interest, be it in the domain of cinema, plastic arts, or popular performing arts, has focused on the so-called independent artists. This trend has been particularly clear in the case of popular music: since the publication of the first Englishlanguage book on the subject, which argued for a clear distinction between officially sanctioned pop and independent rock (Jones 1992a), most works have focused mainly on rock music and rockers (e.g., Friedlander 1991; Brace and Friedlander 1992; Jones 1992b, 1994; Schell 1994; Steen 1996; Wong 1996; Chow and de Kloet 1997; Efird 2000; Huot 2000; de Kloet 2000). Within the framework described above, Teng Ge’er’s affiliation with CNSDT and his strong links with other official bodies clearly identify him as a “state artist,” one who works for the state and serves as its agent. One would therefore expect that his music should reflect and conform to the political agenda of his state-run troupe, which is to praise and promote the party-state and its nationalities policy (minzu zhengce) and advance the unity and solidarity of all nationalities in China (minzu tuanjie).4 This chapter, however, will show that while some of Teng Ge’er’s artistic activities certainly fit this official agenda, others do not and may even conflict with it. By doing so, I aim to challenge the popular stark dichotomy between “state artists” and “independent artists,” and thus to shed a new light on the complex relationship between state and artists in contemporary China. This essay is certainly not the first to point to the problems inherent in the widely used dichotomous distinction between state/official and independent/ unofficial art and artists. Several publications have already challenged this dichotomy by questioning the independence of some well-known Chinese artists widely considered independent and subversive (Barmé 1999 [1989]; Pickowicz 1995). These studies suggest that some of these artists frequently collaborate with and receive financial support from the state, working within the framework that Miklós Haraszti has named the “velvet prison” (Haraszti 1987).5 Such artists, it is argued, may criticize some aspects of reality but basically remain loyal to the state: they play according to the rules, keep good and close relationships with state officials and officialdom in general, and ultimately help legitimize the regime...