Barbarians at the Gate

This week, we explore a topic close to our hearts: the world of jazz in China. Jeremiah and David bring their respective musical experience to the table—Jeremiah as a rock and blues keyboardist, and David as an active pianist in Beijing's jazz scene. David takes us back to his experiences in the 1980s, a period of renaissance for jazz in Beijing, when Chinese rock musicians began to discover—or rediscover—this intricate Western genre. During China's early "Reform and Opening Up" era, musicians with little prior exposure to jazz and scarce recordings embarked on the challenging journey of mastering its fundamentals: the elusive "swing" rhythm, the art of improvisation over complex harmonies, and the pursuit of a unique musical "voice." For them, jazz represented a liberating contrast to the structured pop music of their youth, offering a sense of artistic freedom and boundless creativity. David reports that a new generation of post-millennial jazz musicians has emerged who, having grown up with the genre, are quickly ascending to world-class status, gracing stages at prestigious international festivals. In a previous podcast, we covered the origins of the jazz scene in 1920s Shanghai in our interview with Marketus Presswood about his award-winning documentary "Yellow Jazz, Black Music." [https://blubrry.com/barbarians/81109224/yellow-jazz-black-music-with-marketus-presswood/] David's article on Jazz in Beijing: The Book of Changes: Twenty-five Years in Chinese Jazz [https://theanthill.org/jazz] Spotify Playlist of Contemporary Chinese Jazz [https://open.spotify.com/playlist/71JYFNfQr3ObHvZeOtfyTv?si=07500a95adb844a0]

In this episode of 'Barbarians at the Gate,' hosts Jeremiah Jenne and David welcome Jane Perlez, former Beijing bureau chief for the New York Times, to discuss the evolving challenges of reporting from China. Jane shares her experiences from her tenure in Beijing (2012-2019), where she served as bureau chief for the New York Times. She describes the gradual erosion of press freedom, the increasing difficulties foreign journalists face under Xi's leadership, including the expulsion of journalists in 2018, and the ongoing obstacles that news assistants working for foreign media encounter in China. The conversation explores how reporters have had to adopt creative strategies to conduct investigative journalism, given the current lack of direct reporting from within the country. Additionally, Jane discusses her latest podcast project, 'Face Off: The US vs. China,' which examines the dramatic deterioration of U.S.-China relations in the 21st century. FACE-OFF: The US vs. CHINA [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/face-off-the-u-s-vs-china/id1734890307] The Great Wager [https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2022/02/07/the-great-wager-podcast] On the Trail of Xi Jinping [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-trail-of-xi] China Books Review, Graham Peck: Two Kinds of Time [https://chinabooksreview.com/2025/01/21/archive-peck/] reviewed by Jeremiah

Happy Year of the Snake! In this archive episode from January 2024, we chat with Andrew Stokols, who is researching varieties of digital urbanism globally, with an emphasis on China. We briefly compare notes on the urban development of Beijing in the 21st century, including the contradictions between Beijing as a technologically advanced urban center and an ancient capital city. Andrew also provides updates on the progress of Xiong’an, the digital “smart city” being constructed in Hebei province, as a showcase for Xi Jinping’s vision for urban development. The urban plan was initially unveiled in 2017 to relieve pressure on Beijing and promote the coordinated regional development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, but what Xi has called a “thousand-year plan of national significance” has run into numerous setbacks and controversy. We also hear from Andrew about how the Party is merging Marxist ideology with traditional Chinese culture in recent urban architectural projects, particularly the mammoth National Archives of Publications and Culture (Zhongguo guojia banbenguan 中国国家版本馆), described as a “seed bank” of Chinese civilization. These mammoth archives, being constructed in the four geographically significant locations of Beijing, Hangzhou, Xi’an, and Guangzhou, will house original and digitized editions of imperial archives such as the Complete Library of the Four Treasuries (the Siku quanshu四库全书), as well as historical artifacts, music, and literature from the Mao era, thus effecting the goal of “two combines” (liangge jiehe 两个结合), Xi Jinping’s goal of “combining Marxist theory with China’s outstanding traditional culture.” Andrew's own online archive: https://www.andrewstokols.com/

In this episode, we are thrilled to welcome Jean Hoffman Lewanda back to the podcast to discuss her new book, Shalama: My 96 Seasons in China [https://www.amazon.com/Shalama-My-96-Seasons-China/dp/988884377X], published by Earnshaw Books. Listeners may recall Jean's previous appearance, where she shared insights about her father, Paul Hoffman's memoir, Witness to History: From Vienna to Shanghai—A Memoir of Escape, Survival, and Resilience [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/from-vienna-to-shanghai-a-memoir-of-escape/id1119553188?i=1000547756266]. That captivating memoir details how Paul fled Vienna at the age of 18 to escape the rise of Nazism, arrived in Shanghai in 1938, and became part of the historic wave of Jewish refugees who found a safe haven in China during World War II.   Jean's new book enriches this family saga by recounting events from her mother Shalama's perspective but presented as historical fiction. Drawing on firsthand accounts, including her mother's, Jean tells the story in Shalama's voice, tracing the family's journey from Harbin to Shanghai during the war-torn decades of the mid-20th century. The book interweaves the family's history with major historical events, including the Sungari River flood of 1932, the Japanese occupation, and the Communist takeover of China.   Links:   Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai_Jewish_Refugees_Museum]   Historic Shanghai [https://www.historic-shanghai.com/] (Host of the Shanghai Book Club)   Dan Ben-Canaan, Tombstone Histories: Tales of Jewish Life in Harbin [https://www.amazon.com/Tombstone-Histories-Tales-Jewish-Harbin/dp/9888769731]   Dara Horn, People Love Dead Jews: Reports from a Haunted Present [https://www.amazon.com/People-Love-Dead-Jews-Reports/dp/0393531562]   Dara Horn, "Cities of Ice: A dispatch from frozen Harbin, where Jews once flourished—and melted away [https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/arts-letters/articles/cities-of-ice]," Tablet, April 19, 2019

In this episode, we invite Rory Truex, an associate professor at Princeton University, to discuss a recurring issue on the podcast: the plight of the US-China academic exchange and the urgent need to attract more American scholars to do research in China.  Despite the recent revival of several American academic programs in China, the post-COVID number of US students in the PRC is still woefully inadequate. Professor Truex gives an overview of some reasons for this deterioration of interest by American scholars and the challenges of doing meaningful research in the current Chinese academic environment.  We also discuss predictions about the new Trump administration’s possible effects on US-China relations, the implications for government support and funding of educational exchange programs, and the perception of Chinese and American exchange students as security risks. Rory also describes his path of development as a China scholar during the so-called "Golden Age" of the early 2000s in China, and the current difficulties of carrying out unfettered academic research in a new era of tightening restrictions. Rory Truex is Associate Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University. His research focuses on Chinese politics and authoritarian systems. He regularly contributes to major publications such as The Atlantic, Washington Post, and New York Times. Mentioned on the podcast: “Where have all the American China experts gone?" [https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2024/01/03/us-shortage-china-experts/] Washington Post, January 3, 2024