Yale a capella group finds harmony in China-US people to people exchange

Chinese Culture

Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump focused on building their relationship during the Summit, just as people in each country have built up relationships.

While the two leaders discussed high-level issues, there’s another type of dialogue that affects hundreds of thousands of lives every year.

That’s called people to people exchanges.

CGTN’s Roee Ruttenberg reports on an a capella group taking part in the exchange.

Meet the Spizzwinks, Yale’s century-old all-male underclassman a capella group. Its members, who must balance study and song, come from across the country and world.

It’s why the group ended up in China last year in Beijing, Hunan, and Shenzhen.

For 20-year old Zhong Yuhao, known in America as “Dale”, it was a special trip.

“These people are my closest friends. And, I’m bringing my American friends to my home in China, and interacting with my friends and family in China,” Dale Zhong member of The Spizzwinks said.

As an extra touch, the group learned a traditional Chinese song and performed in Mandarin.

The performance was such a hit that the guys were invited to come back to China later in the year to take part in a people-to-people cultural exchange. The sort Beijing finds integral to its diplomacy and it seems to be working.

“We think a lot about the cooperation between the United States and China, and what our relationship will be going into the future”, said Nick Massour, member of Spizzwinks.

A lesson best taught outside of the classroom. Take some notes, from the students who are singing them.