"Liao Chang Yong also sang this song at Zhou Xiaoyan's 90th birthday party and was in tears by the end.This almost made me cry and I am not easily moved. Madame Zhou didn't just help him out a lot, she was the sole reason he is what he is today. Liao was rejected initially as a prospective singing student by the conservatory. Madame Zhou alone recognized his potential. Without her he would still be a peasant. My grandparents know her well." - A friend on internet
周小燕父亲是湖北的银行家周苍柏，家境富裕。1935年入上海国立音专，抗日战争爆发后于1938年留学法国，二战期间被困于巴黎；1945年在巴黎国立大歌剧院登台；1947年5月和作曲家亚历山大·齐尔品的妻子钢琴家李献敏在第二届布拉格之春音乐会上登台演唱齐尔品和一些中国作曲家的艺术歌曲。同年返回国立音乐院任教；1956年加入中国共产党；文革后出任上海音乐学院副院长，主持建立周小燕歌剧艺术中心；被认为是中国美声声乐的权威。比较著名的学生有廖昌永、张建一、李秀英、高曼华等。其丈夫为电影艺术家张骏祥。