duffy@543 wrote: 活动网页 http://mandarin.org.sg/latest_event/celebrities_tanya.htm http://www.zaobao.com/cgi-bin/asianet/gb2big5/g2b.pl?/sp/sp007_220903.html 联合早报 新闻：新加坡 2003-09-22 华语不够用　他们曾感到缺憾 --------------------------------------------------------------- ● 黄佩玲 　　年轻人懂英语是基本要求，如果想“耍酷”就讲华语吧！通晓双语 的本地企业家叶金利是这么认为的。 　　这名仟湖渔业集团（Qian Hu）执行主席兼董事经理认为，华语肯 定在未来世界里占有一席之地，而且可能越来越流行，成为英语之外最 流行的沟通语文。 　　对于今年连同本地歌手蔡健雅被选为讲华语运动宣传大使，叶金利 感到很荣幸。他完全否定华语、华文是老土的说法。“你看台北的年轻 人，他们的流行文化很前卫，可是却是以华语为文化媒介。” 　　今年38岁的叶金利认为，新加坡年轻一代的华人能在双语教育的环 境中长大，是很幸运的事，因为掌握两种语文等于开启两个不同的世界 。中华文化里有很多精髓，想要了解就要从语文入手，通过翻译文本来 了解中华文化与思想是不足够的。换个角度从经济实用价值来看，随着 中国经济的强大，新加坡人懂得华语肯定是优势，这个老调已经唱了好 几年。 　　出身华侨中学的叶金利，对自己的华文根基一向很有信心，直到在 1991、1992年开始到台湾和中国做生意时，才发现自己的不足。 　　他说，中国人、台湾人讲起华语来非常漂亮，而且用词很生动﹔反 观自己，由于在中学以后就没有修读华文，之后去到美国念书，几乎可 以说是和华文脱节了。 　　“可能没有失去就不会懂得珍惜，从那时候起，我下决心要把握每 一个学华文的机会，能讲华语就讲华语。”叶金利在忙碌的工作之余， 也一定会阅读华文报章和书籍。 　　除了让商人获益，能讲华语也帮助本地歌手蔡健雅在华语流行乐坛 打出了一片天地。 　　中学时期在圣尼各拉女校念书的蔡健雅，原本华文程度还不错，只 是在开始工作后，由于周围的人都讲英语的关系，自己就渐渐地和华文 疏远了。 “给华文一个机会” 　　 　　“我到台湾发展后才发现，自己的华文‘不行’了，可是我以前却 能够讲那么流利的华语，怎么突然又很难跟媒体沟通呢？那时我真的觉 得很遗憾。” 　　现在，蔡健雅除了找回自己“失去的东西”，也开始跟一些讲英语 的朋友用华语沟通。身为今年讲华语运动代言人之一的她说：“我们要 传达的信息很简单，虽然英语很重要，但如果你同时也能说得一口流利 的华语，那才是一件很酷的事情。” 　　讲华语运动代言人所说的话难免让人以为在“卖膏药”，可是说到 底，以上受访者之所以支持讲华语的理由，其实很简单。就如叶金利所 说，身为华人就应该毫无疑问地会讲华语。 　　“我想告诉年轻人，请不要抗拒你的母语，给华文一个机会，你会 发现它很可爱、很漂亮。” http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/ POSTER GIRL: Singer-songwriter Tanya Chua, a spokesman for this year's Speak Mandarin Campaign, resolved to improve her command of the language when images of her at a loss for words during her first television appearance in Taiwan were broadcast repeatedly. The campaign's organisers hope she will inspire youngsters to also improve their Mandarin. -- CHEW SENG KIM http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/singapore/story/0,4386,211198,00.html? StraitTimes Use it or lose it, warns Speak Mandarin campaign Singer Tanya Chua and businessman Kenny Yap fronting drive By Yvonne Koh THE spokesmen for this year's Speak Mandarin Campaign, singer -songwriter Tanya Chua and businessman Kenny Yap, have one thing in common: Both were shocked to find they were no match for people in China and Taiwan when it came to Mandarin. For Tanya, it led to humiliation during her first television appearance in Taiwan, when images of her at a loss for words were broadcast repeatedly. Mr Yap, chairman of ornamental fish company Qian Hu, felt inferior upon meeting business associates from China and Taiwan who used 'beautiful idioms and graceful proverbs' in their speech. Both resolved to improve, and now front this year's campaign. The slogan is 'Use it. Don't lose it.' As in the last 12 years, this year's campaign continue to target English-educated Chinese Singaporeans, many of whom favour English at the expense of Mandarin. Said Minister for Information, Communications and the Arts Lee Boon Yang, who launched the campaign at Mox Bar and Cafe in Tanjong Pagar Road yesterday: 'If we lose our ability to switch between English and Mandarin, we would have lost a tremendous competitive advantage.' The venue chosen for the launch was significant: It aimed to drive home the message that speaking Mandarin is trendy. The spokesmen were also chosen to reach out to this particular set. The organisers hope Tanya will appeal to trendy youngsters, while Mr Yap will encourage professionals to use the language more. Both appear in a series of film advertisements, the first of which began airing yesterday. The 30-second ads bear the message that it is a pity to let Mandarin language skills go to waste. Tanya knows that lesson all too well. Her rusty Mandarin turned her first appearance on Taiwanese TV, in 1999, into a 'nightmare'. 'I said 'Hello, I'm Tanya Chua', in Mandarin,' she said. 'Then I blanked out and stuttered as I did not know how to express myself.' The clip of her at a loss for words was repeated over and over again during the hour-long programme. To improve her Mandarin, she began reading Chinese newspapers daily to pick up new words. She is now fluent enough to banter with TV comperes in Mandarin, and pen Chinese lyrics for her songs. For Mr Yap, the problem was slightly different. The ex-Chinese High student always felt his Mandarin was up to par, but found out otherwise when he started doing business in Taiwan and China in 1991. Compared to the Chinese, who made the language sing with their idioms and proverbs, his skills were 'very inferior'. Said Mr Yap: 'They aren't surprised that we speak fluent English, but they are shocked when they hear us struggling with Mandarin.' His Mandarin has since improved with constant use, he said. 'Mandarin opens up business opportunities, and it's also been a key for me to properly appreciate Chinese culture, literature and art. 'So, youngsters should think twice about giving up on Mandarin.' > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- < From: duffy (咬着会员卡的鸭) Board: TanyaChua Subject: Re: Tanya担任新加坡说华语运动代言人 Date: Wed Sep 24 21:14:37 2003 New paper http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/hey/story/0,4136,36210,00.html Hello everyone, I'm Cai Jianya Tanya Chua recalls when she couldn't say her name in Mandarin... Now, she's the Speak Mandarin Campaign ambassador TANYA Chua recalls that her Mandarin was once so 'rusty', she couldn't even introduce herself properly on TV. It was the then-rookie singer's first TV interview, and she botched it up. 'All I had to say was 'Hello everyone, I'm Cai Jianya (her Chinese name), but I just couldn't do it properly!' said Tanya, sounding embarrassed. The singer, who's been appointed the ambassador for this year's Speak Mandarin Campaign, was recalling the language gaffes she made when she was starting out in Taiwan. And the simple sentence took her countless NGs (no-good takes) before the director finally said okay. Even then, Tanya's nightmare was far from over. FLUBBING HER LINES For a laugh, the show's producers decided to broadcast the interview, together with all her previous NGs, and Tanya was shown flubbing her lines over and over again. According to Tanya, her Mandarin wasn't as bad as is popularly believed. 'It was just very rusty from lack of use,' she said. 'I used to excel in Chinese back in school. And, in primary school, my Chinese was even better than my English.' However, Tanya stopped using Mandarin once she got into a polytechnic. It was only years later, when she was trying to break into the Taiwan market as a singer, that she realised what an asset the language could be. 'When I first got to Taiwan, I found myself unable to communicate with people. I couldn't speak properly. I couldn't find the words to express myself. A LOT OF BOO-BOOS 'I also made a lot of boo-boos, because I tried to translate my thoughts from English into Mandarin, and they just didn't come out right.' Fortunately, immersion in the language and culture helped. Tanya now speaks Mandarin with ease, and has even started writing her own lyrics. She said: 'I still have trouble with the proverbs, though. Either I use them in the wrong context, or I get the words jumbled up. 'But, hey, at least I'm using proverbs!' -- ▇▆▅ ▇ ▊ ▂▅▃▂ █ ◢▍ ▄▅ ▆▇▆ ▄▅ ▄▅ █ ▉▆◤ ▊▁▊▋ ▋▊▁▊▊ ▊▊ ▋◥◣ ▋ ▉▆◤ ▋ ▋◢▌▋ repeat@cia▋ ◥◣◥▇▊▋ ◥▇▊◥◤▊◥▆◤● -- ▌ ▁▌ ▌▁ ▌|情报员标号: 218-166-81-184.HINET-IP.hinet.net |局中| ◤ ▌ ▌ ▌▃ ▌|隶属☆单位: 中央情报局 (bbs.e-cia.net) |邑情| ◣