When the maestro met the monk: a tale of two souls

After Tian Haojiang had his hair lopped off he knew he was right for a special role

Chat for any length of time with the bass singer Tian Haojiang, someone who spends much of his life honing his vocal chords, and you are likely to end up being utterly charmed by that powerful, alluring voice.

Indeed it is that voice that has helped turn someone who once used to work as a laborer in a factory in Beijing into a mainstay of the New York Metropolitan Opera and a Chinese star in an international opera firmament dominated by Western singers.