The Shanghai Style: A century of openness and modernity

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Shanghai is arguably the most international city in China. It was the first city to have modern department stores, movie theaters and steak houses. In the early twentieth century, a generation grew up with these western trends. CGTN reporter Yang Chengxi takes a look at how this modern upbringing has long been a part of the city's DNA.

Meet the world's oldest jazz band, literally. These musicians playing at Shanghai's Peace Hotel, are on average over 80 years old.   

PETER HUANG  MUSICIAN "We can play world classics, old Chinese songs, pop melodies, whatever our audiences want."  

For nearly 40 years they have ensnared listeners' hearts by playing nostalgic tunes of the early 20th century. These jazz notes are time capsules of the days when Chinese people started to embrace musical styles from the west.  

YANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI  "To many, that was an iconic era. The city saw the first generation of Chinese people who sported the bold look of the suit and tie, mechanical watches and hair gel."  

And that became the quintessential image of what's known as the Shanghai style, romanticized in TV shows and movies. People have a name for them: "Laokele", or "old kele".  

YANG CHENGXI SHANGHAI  "So what does Kele really mean? Well two of the most popular explanations are white collar and clerks. Both concepts were new and fashionable to the majority of Chinese people back in the early 20th century."

These majestic historical bank buildings along the bund are among where the old clerks originally worked. And across the Huangpu river lays the heart of China's modern financial industry. Within these high-rise buildings is a new breed of Shanghai elites. Patrick Liu is the China-CEO of a US finance firm.  

PATRICK LIU, CEO NEUBERGER BERMAN CHINA "I was born and bred in Shanghai and I am proud of that. Shanghai, as far back as the 1920s and 30s, had already become the financial center of the region."  

He heads a wholly foreign-owned asset management company, which wasn't possible until two years ago, when Shanghai started to open the industry to global players.  

 PATRICK LIU, CEO  NEUBERGER BERMAN CHINA  "I think the city is very, it's almost in its DNA very receptive to new ideas. When you map these qualities to the modern world, I think these are the things that make the city very unique and very well positioned for global industry."

 We went to see the Peace Hotel jazz band. It was an occasion to dress up for.

The Shanghai style has been an organic mixture of old and new, east and west. This value of openness and modernism is shared across time.  YCX CGTN SHANGHAI.