Siyao Duan in the Global Best Creative Awards Hall of Fame — Composer & Music Producer

Siyao Duan has been awarded the Platinum Prize in Original Composition with her work “Yue Ren Ge” at the Global Best Creative Awards 2025.

“Yue Ren Ge” is a musical piece inspired by one of the oldest surviving ancient Chinese poems, also titled 越人歌. The lyrics are entirely based on the original classical text, preserving its poetic integrity and cultural essence.

The composition blends three distinct vocal styles—traditional Chinese opera, Chinese folk-pop, and Western R&B—alongside a fusion of Eastern and Western instrumentation, including xiao, guzheng, dagu, strings, and piano. The musical form progresses from a dramatic operatic opening to lyrical folk-pop expression, followed by a smooth R&B section, symbolizing the merging of heritage and modernity.

Siyao Duan - singer-songwriter, composer, and music producer

Artist Background

Siyao Duan, known by her stage name Bulan, is a Chinese singer-songwriter, composer, and music producer based in the United Kingdom. She holds a degree from the University of Bristol and a master’s from the University of Glasgow.

She began studying guzheng at age four and later taught herself composition and production, releasing over 80 original works. She signed with iFlytek Music in 2021 and founded Bulan Music Studio in Beijing in 2025. Her work focuses on bridging traditional Chinese music with diverse contemporary global styles.

Artist Interview

Q1. What inspired the setting or context of this work?

“I first came across the ancient Chinese poem Yue Ren Ge when I was in middle school. It tells the story of someone who, because of social class differences, could only keep their affection hidden in their heart. I was deeply moved by the beauty and subtlety of its imagery. Later, I also experienced an unspoken admiration for someone in my own life, which made me resonate even more with this poem. When I revisited it, I was reminded of that tender, unexpressed yet beautiful feeling. Through this song, I wanted to capture and express that delicate emotion, turning it into music that could both honor the poem and reflect my own story.”

Q2. What emotions or ideas were you hoping to express through this work?

“The lyrics themselves portray the emotions of secret admiration… The opening pre-chorus is sung in a traditional Chinese opera vocal style, as if a storyteller is introducing the tale.The middle section is performed in a Chinese folk-pop style, representing the protagonist’s direct voice—intimate, tender, and shy—confessing the emotions of that secret love.The final section shifts to an R&B vocal style… looking back after having moved on.”

Q3. Was there a specific concept or influence that guided your creative process?

“This poem has been adapted into songs before, but mostly in traditional or classical Chinese styles. This is the first time I reimagined it as a contemporary pop song while also blending in R&B elements… I believe that traditional Eastern art forms should not remain confined within their own cultural boundaries.”

Q4. What do you hope audiences take away from this work?

“By combining the poetic elegance of ancient Chinese lyrics, the timbre of opera singing, and the sound of the guzheng with the rhythm and harmony of Western R&B, my hope is that the audience will experience the beauty of cultural fusion—the unique and refreshing charm that arises when East meets West.”