French songwriter lets his music do the talking in China

A fascination that began when he was a youngster has turned him into a performer of a different kind

No matter where he appears on stage, singer-songwriter Christophe Hisquin hopes to bring his audience a little closer to China.

The Frenchman, who performs under the name Dai Liang, writes and sings in Mandarin and says his music is a bridge between China and France.

Since November, he has been on a 12-date tour of France, and on May 27 performed before 300 people in Paris.

"When the audience is mostly French I tell them many stories about China, about the similarities between French and Chinese people, such as the passion for gourmet food and culture," he says. "I tell them about my experiences in China, so they will feel China is not so far away."

The 37-year-old, who has lived in Shanghai for 12 years, has established a music career in his native and adopted homes.

He explains that his stage name comes from Liang being the Chinese homophonic translation of Lyon, the city of his birth.

Hisquin's fascination with China began when he studied Mandarin at age 11. Much later, in 2000, he traveled to Shanghai for a yearlong language program. During his stay, he was invited onto a Chinese TV show, where he sang in Chinese a song he had originally written in French. He says his performance received positive comments from the show's director.

When he returned home to France, he decided to record an album in Chinese. But it was not until he completed a master's degree at the University of Lyon and then a PhD in Shanghai - his thesis was on the Chinese music industry in the 21st century - that he was able to realize that dream.

The turning point came in 2005, when Hisquin came third in a talent contest for foreigners organized by China Central Television, the state broadcaster. It was his first appearance on national TV, and his unique style won him many fans.

A year later, he released his debut double album, Wo Jide Ni, or I Remember You, recorded entirely in Mandarin.

He has since appeared on various TV shows as a guest and a host. However, music has remained his first love, and he has gone on to release three more albums: Xia You Dai Liang, Shanghai, and Zhongguo De Faguoren, also known as A Frenchman in China.

He says the title of his second album was inspired by the Chinese expression shang you tian tang, xia you suhang, which translates as: Up above is heaven, below is Suzhou and Hangzhou. The phrase is used to describe the beauty of these two eastern cities.

"I'm quite satisfied with A Frenchman in China," he says, referring to the title track of his fourth album. "Chinese is a foreign language to me, so I usually write simple lyrics, but my style is special, very rhythmic."

Hisquin says his life in China has provided endless inspiration for his songs, in which he talks about his love for the country, the struggles faced by young people, and the times he has felt homesick for Lyon.

"My hometown is at the foot of the Alps, I wrote a song about it, and I want to make a music video to introduce my beautiful hometown to Chinese friends this year."

He has performed in more than 100 Chinese cities.

"At one performance in Bretagne (in northwest France), where I sang A Frenchman in China, a 90-year-old French woman came up to me after the show and said that her husband would've loved my song if he were still alive, because he was born in Beijing. Just like my song, he was a Frenchman in China."

Tang Shuyue contributed to this story.