Veteran singer Cho Yong Pil from South Korea, Shinji Tanimura from Japan and Alan Tam from Hong Kong (not pictured) present their first "Pax Musica" concert in Shanghai tonight as part of their continuing campaign to promote world peace through the power of music.

Shanghai Daily news

 The first `Pax Musica' concert was 20 years ago, but on Friday the trio of musicians who gave the original performance will be re-united on stage in Shanghai, writes Jin Haili.
 ``Pax Musica'' means ``music for peace'' in Latin and that was the motivation for three Asian pop superstars to launch their first concert on that theme 20 years ago. Their first reunion since that night takes place at the ongoing Sixth Shanghai International Arts Festival when Shinji Tanimura from Japan, Cho Yong Pil from South Korea and Alan Tam from Hong Kong will try to reprise the group's original sensational success.
Tanimura is the only one of the three who has participated in all previous 10 sessions on the concert stages of Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul and other major cities in Asia. ``Sometimes we have new artists join in while Cho or Tam was busy with other business and this will be the first time we have performed together in 20 years and I hope we can revive the original `Pax Musica' scene in Shanghai,'' says Tanimura, 56. Last March, the pop star started a teaching career at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music where he lectures in composition and music production as well as helping the conservatory to set up its own studio. In a singing career spanning more than 30 years, Tanimura has staged nearly 4,000 concerts worldwide, a record by any Japanese singer. But ``Pax Musica'' remains very special to him. ``It's the unchanging mission of promoting peace through music that makes me treasure `Pax Musica' the most,'' Tanimura says. ``There are no superstars on stage, just people who love peace.'' When talking specifically about his collaboration with Tam and Cho, Tanimura recalls some interesting fragments from his memories of their first concert in 1984. The former lead vocal for Wynner, Tam was then a nobody to Japanese audiences so it was arranged that he would perform ahead of Tanimura and Cho. Although the lighting and stage setting were not working well when he was performing, he still gave his all to the audience which won him their immediate applause. Now 20 years have passed and tremendous changes have taken place in the pop music industry which is filled with lip-synching pretty faces. Does the trio feel they have become somewhat jaded with the passage of time? ``Our mission is also changing with that of the pop industry as Alan, Cho and I have discovered through such a long-term involvement in it,'' Tanimura says. ``We have never stopped trying to come up with new ideas and are always willing to accept and support young talent.'' In 2002, Tanimura took newcomer Ayumi Hamasaki with him to perform at the concert to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the normalization of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations. Ayumi was then emerging as the hottest new talent in pop. For the upcoming Shanghai reunion concert, it will be Chinese singer Mao Ning who will have the chance to join the big names. ``It's a great honor for me to be invited by Mr Tanimura to perform with three of my favorite singers. Apart from their classic hit songs, I think it is their strong will for peace and never-ending commitment to their careers that I most want to learn from,'' says Mao, whose new album, ``I'' was produced by Tanimura and features eight compositions of the Japanese veteran.

Date: November 5, 7:30pm
Venue: Shanghai Grand Stage, 1111 Caoxi Rd N.
Tickets: 180-1,280 yuan
Tel: 6272-0455, 6272-0702