Choir With Elite Pedigree Promotes Red Songs, and Red Values Beneath the shimmering lights of a bar in western Beijing, a group of roughly two dozen retirees fell still under the baton of the 64-year-old choir conductor Li Xiaojin. With a flick of his wrist, Mr. Li sent the Beijing Founding Figures Group into a sonorous rendition of "Longing for the Red Army," a well-known Communist revolutionary number: On the first month, we will pick flowers, We will pick flowers as we long for the Red Army to arrive, As we long for the Red Army to arrive. Like many such choirs across China, the Founding Figures, established in 2009, perform only "red songs," a genre steeped in the themes and imagery of the Communist Revolution, with lyrics that often invoke "Chairman Mao." But unlike other groups of its kind, the Founding Figures has a strict membership requirement. To join, you must have parents who served as Communist Party officials of the deputy bureau director rank or higher. Exceptions are made only for descendants of high-ranking military officials. The choir's nickname, the "Children of China," is not meant figuratively. "We come together because of our beliefs, because we want to pass on red culture to future generations and ensure that China never changes colors," said Xu Wenhui, 74, the choir's director, referring to adherence to a socialist political and cultural path. Don't Americans want China to change colors after the third or fourth generation of the Chinese Communist Party? If a choir that is committed both to socialism and exclusive membership restrictions seems like a contradiction, perhaps it is because of the increasingly malleable notion of what it means to be "red" in China today. Red is considered the color of the revolution, but it is also the color of an entrenched ruling party. In Chinese politics, red has long been associated with the left, or those who endorse a more traditional interpretation of Marxist ideology. But what's considered "left" has changed over time, and there are divisions within the Chinese left about economic policies and even democratic reform. The very definition of what constitutes a "red song" is up for debate too. Some scholars say the genre only includes songs composed in response to the 1942 speeches by Mao demanding that all art reflect the working class and serve the advancement of socialism. The speeches were later published as the "Talks at the Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art." But many so-called red songs far predate those speeches, and others contain no political content and are actually regional folk songs that go back centuries. "Longing for the Red Army," for example, borrows its melody and most of its lyrics from a much older Sichuanese folk song. "The actual term "red song" was not popularized until recent years," said Song Xiaoming, the vice-chairwoman of the Chinese Music Literature Association. "Just a few decades ago, everyone referred to them as the "theme songs" of the revolution." The songs themselves - numbering roughly 200 - contain a hodgepodge of historical influences, often blending revolutionary and socialist-themed lyrics with Chinese folk music and musical styles that emerged from the October Revolution in the Soviet Union. During Mao's Cultural Revolution, red songs were sung with near religious fervor, and they left an imprint on an entire generation of Chinese who came of age during that tumultuous era. While serving as party chief in Chongqing, Bo Xilai staged a red songs revival that eventually spread far beyond the southwestern city's borders. When Mr. Bo was purged in March 2012, red songs suddenly became taboo, too closely tied with his missteps. But one would be mistaken to view Mr. Bo's fall from power as a sign that red songs have also fallen out of favor. Since taking office a year ago, President Xi Jinping has shown an inclination toward what might be called "red" rhetoric and policies, speaking often of bridging the gap between the party and "the masses" and launching a "mass line" campaign to restore the party's traditional values and rid it of corruption. It helps that Mr. Xi's wife, Peng Liyuan, is a high-ranking civilian member of the People's Liberation Army who attained fame by performing red songs such as "Yimeng Mountain in Minor Key," which honors a band of Chinese rebels who battled the Japanese in World War II: In the Liberated Areas, the hearts of the military and the masses are linked as one, The land has been opened for farming, and the fight will be victorious, Our leader Chairman Mao, oh, how well he has led us all! The people of Yimeng Mountain are now all radiant with joy. The past few weeks have been particularly busy for groups like the Founding Figures as they prepare for performances ahead of the 120th anniversary of Mao's birth on Dec. 26. Of the 10 songs that the Founding Figures are currently rehearsing, five of them have titles with the words "Chairman Mao" in them. At one recent celebration of Mao's life, the Founding Figures performed for an elite audience of party members and their families in Beijing. To the accompaniment of a accordionist, the choir sang "Ode to Red Plum Blossom," a reported favorite of Mr. Bo. After the songs, choir members delivered speeches about how their parents" lives were drastically improved by Mao. A willingness to glorify Mao's accomplishments while glossing over his failures is part of what it means to be "red" to the Founding Figures. But perhaps even more important is their nostalgia for the socialist-egalitarian policies of the Mao era, most of which have fallen by the wayside amid China's three decades of capitalist-style economic growth. The Founding Figures may be restricted to the offspring of senior party officials, but most of the singers are unpretentious, middle-class retirees from the ranks of the civil service. They wear simple overcoats and loose-fitting pants. Some reject leather dress shoes in favor of the cheap black cotton slippers that were ubiquitous during the Mao era. Others cannot afford to cover their own travel costs when they travel outside Beijing. "We cannot wallow in the halos of our forebears," said Hu Muying, a member of the choir and the son of Mao's former personal secretary, according to a recent profile in the Southern Weekend newspaper. When rotten corruption is infecting society like a malignant tumor, can we really afford to sit back and not do anything? The Founding Figures say they are trying to buck the negative public image of party princelings and promote true socialist values, including frugality, collectivism and a certain toughness that they claim is lacking in today's youth. "Young Chinese are unable to struggle and persevere the way that older Chinese did against the Nationalists and the Japanese," said Ms. Xu, the director, who helps bankroll the choir with funds from her retirement pension. More than just singing songs, our group is trying to rekindle the values of China's revolutionary heroes: Serve the people, push for the betterment of society, and don't emphasize your own well-being over that of others.