周日7月26日晚上，老麥的朋友發來了讓我們猝不及防的消息：帶孩子唱歌的楊鴻年爺爺於當日下午1點55分仙逝了，享年86歲。知道這一天總會來到，但確實沒有想到會以這麽突然的方式。

楊鴻年老師是北京愛樂合唱團創始人、中國著名指揮家、音樂教育家、中央音樂學院終身學術委員，之所以和他有那麽近距離的接觸是因為他的後半生基本上和孩子們在一起，老麥的兒子小時候喜歡唱歌，機緣湊巧，在7歲的時候走進了楊鴻年老師創辦的中國交響樂團附屬少年及女子合唱團（後來改名為北京愛樂合唱團，家長們都昵稱它為楊團）培訓班，從此開始了每周末在鮑家街43號中央音樂學院小白樓的視唱練耳訓練。被孩子稱作楊爺爺的楊鴻年教授當時已經七十多歲了，但他總是經常親臨培訓班，從音樂啟蒙班到視唱初級班、中級班、高級班到預備隊最後到演出隊，每個班裏都會出現他的身影。當年孩子們在中央音樂學院裏的小白樓裏排練，家長們或進去旁聽，或隔著窗戶觀望，看著楊爺爺張弛有度的指揮，看著他頭上卷卷的白發，看著他自帶微笑的慈祥麵容，你會感覺到他有一顆永遠不老的童心。楊爺爺不僅指導孩子們如何發出天籟般的美妙聲音，而且不厭其煩地引領孩子們從小練就能夠沉下心來坐板凳的本事，尤其是後者，讓孩子們直至成年，受益無窮，楊爺爺所傳授的如何去深情地愛音樂和如何有毅力地去做事成為跟隨他們的寶貴財富。

對於楊老師來說，愛和奉獻不是一句空話，他的一生就是讓音樂成就孩子，孩子們也因此成為他一生最大的驕傲。這麽多年來，楊團巡回演出無數：從中山公園音樂堂到國家大劇院，從紐約卡內基音樂廳到林肯藝術中心；這麽多年來，楊團走出國門獲獎累累：從維也納到匈牙利到意大利，從童聲合唱節到國際合唱比賽，與世界高水平的合唱團同台角逐，捧回三十多座獎杯。楊團從無到有、從優秀到卓越，最後成為世界七大童聲合唱團之一。楊老師用他的大愛堅守著他的初心，並把整個家庭奉獻給了童聲合唱事業，楊老師的愛人唐重慶老師被孩子們稱為唐奶奶，是楊團的藝術指導，還經常給楊團做鋼琴伴奏；楊老師的兒子楊力老師被孩子們稱為小楊老師，中國第一位卡拉揚獎學金獲得者，現在是楊團的常任指揮。小楊老師說爸爸平均每天要工作16個小時，自己都自愧不如，因為爸爸覺得自己年紀大了，時間不多有緊迫感，所以才會延長每天的工作時間來教合唱團的孩子們更多的知識。

楊團從1983年成立至今，已有37年，從楊團走出去的孩子們遍布各地，他們帶著楊爺爺播下的音樂種子和純淨的心靈在世界的角角落落生根發芽。今年孩子們在網上成立了《Forever Yang我們的歌》公眾號，疫情期間發起了多次雲合唱，以紀念年少時一起唱歌的美好時光，一群熱愛音樂熱愛合唱更重要的是熱愛楊團的孩子們通過這種方式再一次聚在了一起。

乘著歌聲的翅膀楊爺爺飛去了天堂，那裏也會有他深愛的音樂和他所傳播的大愛。楊爺爺在天之靈會在孩子們天籟般歌聲的環繞下微笑著、欣慰著。

下麵是兒子寫的紀念文字，在這個混亂的世界，愛是我們所需要的，愛讓我們心安。

Locked away, inside every soul, there are boxes of precious memories with snapshots of the people and stories long gone to remind us of a simpler time. Hearing the devastating news of the passing of Professor Yang unlocked such a box that I once thought I had forgotten. Seven years of age, a timid, terrified me with practically no experience in solfeggio and sight-reading somehow earned myself a place in the Yang Choir. And thus began a five year-long journey in the most prestigious children’s choir in all of Beijing, heck, perhaps all of China. Unlike most of my bandmates, the choir didn't take up a huge chunk of my life, and I have never really felt that I belonged in that place (perhaps I realised that other people are so much more talented than me). When I left, I never really looked back. This piece of my history almost felt like it just dissolved into the back of my head. So why then, among an endless sea of beautifully written tributes, am I writing this to remember the extraordinary life of Professor Yang? The world moves fast. We have all these 'tabs' open in our brains, each worrying about different issues. There often comes a moment in everyone's lives when we sit back and wonder... 'What is the point of all this?' We eventually burn out. For me, an often-ignored boy in the choir, Professor Yang introduced me to the captivating world of not just music, but the world of art as a whole. Ten-year-old me never realised that there could be a whole other realm out there, a much better world: where realities and dreamscapes dance and blend together like myriad colours on the canvas of the creative consciousness. In a world where there are more people spreading hate than love, when I pick up the guitar, when I immerse myself in elegantly written words, everything around me seems to slow down just a little bit. All the rage, all the furious shouting seems to get quieter just a little bit. And I get to burst my head through the surface and take a giant breath and say ‘maybe stuff isn't too bad after all!' This man lived and breathed art, and dedicated his whole life to art. No, he did not just bring joy and happiness to other people's lives, he gave people the tools to discover their own intrinsic happiness that has been hidden from them all this time! Our hearts and bodies are rented to us for a limited amount of time, but you can catch Professor Yang among the vibrating piano strings, vocal cords, the twirling conducting baton and the serotonin-filled minds of each and every one of his students and all the people he influenced. Art never dies. In such a messy, chaotic and hatred filled world, Professor Yang gave me the keys that transported me to a place where I can find my own peace of mind.