CHINA DAILY | HONG KONG EDITION Wednesday, April 15, 2020 | 17 YOUTH In harmony with the past

Ancient instruments that evoke another era now deliver modern melodies thanks to an innovative group of musicians, Xing Wen reports.

ts sound seems to evoke the further in that direction. platform Douyin, performing both very essence of China. Its sooth­ Her interest in the guqin first time­honored tunes and modern ing notes seem to fade into the appeared when she was in primary compositions, which won her more distance, beyond rivers and school through reading the martial than 400,000 followers. Isnow­capped mountains. But the arts novels of Hong Kong writer “The algorithm will recommend ancient instruments, such as the Louis Cha. my videos to many people who don’t guqin, or the seven­stringed Chinese “Many fictional characters in his know much about guqin, enabling zither, with more than three millen­ books play the guqin, which gave me them to enjoy its charm. That might nia of history, are finding a new lease a vague but romantic impression of lead to a higher level of public of life as their strings are plucked to the instrument,” recalls Bai. appreciation someday,” says Bai. deliver modern tunes. At that time though, it was hard to The studio has certainly drawn Members from the Zide Guqin find a proper guqin class in her people’s attention to the instrument Studio are challenging preconcep­ hometown of Changsha, Hunan and its repertoire. tions about the instrument with har­ province. She didn’t actually get to About 1,500 students from across monies redolent of the modern day. touch the instrument until her sum­ the country are following the Since the Shanghai­based studio mer vacation in 2010. group’s online guqin training ses­ was founded in 2014, its members Back then, the high schooler had sions, and nearly 70 percent of them have been using guqin to perform just finished gaokao, or the college are aged between 16 and 30. hit modern music, including the entrance examination, and followed “The key for guqin to be passed theme songs from the British TV the suggestion of her father, a mate­ down in a sustainable way is to grow series Sherlock, American TV saga rials science professor, to major in its fan base — getting more people Game of Thrones, Japanese anime his field of expertise. She enrolled in interested in the ancient art,” says Doraemon and even the popular the Sino­European School of Tech­ From top: Musicians of the Shanghai­based Zide Guqin Studio (from left) Ye Lijia, Tu Huabing, Bai Zhu Liyue, manager of the studio. mobile game Honor of Kings. Wuxia, Cai Shan, Yin Yihaonan and Chen Xi present ancient music in era­appropriate costumes. nology of Shanghai University. “The more diverse the ways we use to Playing modern pieces on the As a reward, her parents found Some members of the studio edit a video together after a performance. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY approach it, the more fascinating it zither requires the musicians to use Bai a guqin studio located on west­ will be.” the instruments in a manner they ern Changsha’s Yuelu Mountain, Zhu, who majored in computer are not used to. the musical instruments, blend well to the crescendo. those in attendance. where she learned the fundamen­ engineering, was captivated by the The hit tunes they’ve adapted are together. To bring out the best of the instru­ “I like to sit closer to the audience tals of the instrument. guqin in 2009 since he found that it available to the public for free and These visually and acoustically ment in an ensemble, Tang has util­ when I perform so people can catch At university, she joined a music has a unique ability to soothe the can be taught in the studio’s training pleasing music videos have garnered ized a range of techniques and other the subtle emotions I articulate club focusing on traditional Chinese mind. sessions, online and offline, encour­ nearly 20 million views on the Chi­ instruments to amplify the sound through rubbing the strings,” she instruments, but the club struggled “Intensive practices were very bor­ aging people to join them to explore nese video­sharing platform Bilibili, while ensuring quality and fidelity. says. “Now I can fully express my sen­ to attract more young enthusiasts. ing at the start,” Zhu recalls of his the variations. and reached large audience over­ Variety is the key and, after a tra­ timents when playing music with To bring in more students, she learning experience, “but, after my The studio’s music videos, released seas, with one video notching up ditional introduction, more instru­ other guqin lovers from the studio.” came up with the idea to collaborate two­hand technique reached a cer­ on social media, have provided not around 15 million views on YouTube. ments come into play, ranging from Another thing she likes about the with their school’s kung fu club and tain level that allowed me to freely only a feast to the ears but to the eyes. “We want to create, within our the xiao and the “hang drum” studio is that she used to perform stage a musical themed around express myself using the instrument, In one video, six musicians, play­ power, a visual effect that suits the (which originated in Switzerland just a handful of ancient, classical martial arts. The musical was a hit. it brought me so much fun.” ing the guqin, guzheng (Chinese style and conception of the piece we and resembles a pot cover) to the pieces in conventional shows, but It helped the club become more He also points out that learners zither), pipa (a four­stringed Chi­ play,” says Tang Bin, 35, the artistic African Udu drum. But the guqin’s now, as a group, they “play the hot­ popular. It not only attracted more should treat the guqin as a common nese lute), xiao (a vertical bamboo director for the studio. centerpiece role is enhanced in pro­ test new releases on guqin” while members, but also paved the way for member of the instrument family, flute) and other traditional instru­ He adds that the most time­con­ viding the rhythm and harmony clad in gorgeous garments that high­ them to perform at a theater festival rather than something that should ments, perform the theme song of suming part for producing a stylish base in the band. light the fashions of a bygone era. in Shanghai. be put on a pedestal. hit Chinese thriller series, The Long­ guqin music video is not the prepa­ Combining guqin with diverse After her graduation in 2015, she The studio has pledged to pro­ est Day in Chang’an, which is set ration of the setting, clothing or instruments has given Cai Shan, 34, A different tune joined the Zide Guqin Studio. The duce a series of programs to get the during the Tang Dynasty (618­907). filming, but transcribing and an added zest. Cai, a founder mem­ Most of the innovative endeavors following year, Bai helped the studio public closer to guqin and other tra­ Their costumes, makeup and arranging a melodious piece for the ber of the studio, learned the guqin at they’ve made to deliver a guqin­cen­ stage its first commercial show at a ditional instruments, and release hairstyles all seek to reproduce the guqin and the other traditional the Tianjin Conservatory of Music. tered performance aim to nurture a local theater. more videos that recreate the image distinctive fashions of that dynastic instruments that are paired with it. She says that in university, she larger group of receptive listeners After that, the studio started to of ancient people with background period. The guqin, with its refined and was unwilling to stage solo shows and even enthusiasts for the time­ hold regular concerts for guqin music provided by guqin players, Against a light amber backdrop, delicate timbre, is often used by in a music hall, where the guqin honored instrument, especially enthusiasts, who relished the Zhu says. the arrangement of musicians and Tang to give off a meditative ambi­ player had to keep apart from the among the younger generation. prospect of attending a live show. props in the frame, as well as the ence through the intro and con­ audience, which makes the subtle­ Another studio member Bai Additionally, Bai also posted her Contact the writer at euphonious notes flowing out from jure varied moods when building ties of the guqin barely audible for Wuxia, 28, knows how to go a step solo shows on the short video­sharing [email protected]

By XING WEN “Under Gong’s instruction, I no longer slavishly imitated other sea­ A part and parcel of the nation’s soned players, but started to play my intellectual history, the guqin, an own style,” he says. He later moved to Plucking a new ancient seven­stringed instrument, Shanghai and regularly stages charity arguably, epitomizes China. performances in local communities. But Tang Bin, 35, a guqin player In 2014, Tang and several other who now lives in Shanghai, is illus­ musicians founded the Zide Guqin sound from trating the instrument’s versatility Studio, which produces stylish music by using it to create a modern musi­ videos and solo shows. The studio cal vibe. By converting its strings’ quickly gained online popularity. vibration into electrical signals As its artistic director, Tang says history through an amplifier and a synthe­ the studio aims to better spread the sizer, a new sound is generated. culture of ancient music in as many With a modified guqin, Tang has ways as it can. He keeps exploring formed an electronic music band and testing electronic effects on the Tang Bin performs with a custom­made guqin, which is wired that is wowing appreciative fans. Left: instrument. with electronic effects in a live show last year in Shanghai. At one of his live performances “I’m not sure whether stepping The instrument he plays onstage. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY last year in Shanghai, a blue­colored Above: into the electronic world is right or beam of light swept the venue; a not, but I am absolutely certain that nebula hologram, reminiscent of a activate its strings to create an even sound, which I never heard before. I am really enjoying the journey,” he faraway galaxy, seemed to float lower pitch. The sound he made by plucking the says. above the stage. Then the sound of He admits that although many strings came to pluck my heart­ To better deliver his creative ideas the original guqin collided with the concertgoers haven’t accepted the strings,” he recalls, adding that he for popularizing the ancient instru­ electronic noises, drum beats and a new electronic format of the ancient began to fervently search for related ment, he taught himself how to mas­ tune played on a metal percussion instrument, he still wants to keep books and video tapes, trying to ter practical skills, including instrument. The stereotypical attempting to make the instrument learn how to play the instrument by arranging, recording and mixing impression of a traditional music more expressive, and explore its himself. sounds, as well as filming and edit­ performance vanished in the haze of potential in different genres. After enrolling in a Beijing uni­ ing music videos. an electronic universe. Tang’s interest in the guqin was versity to major in advertising, he One of his students, Bai Wuxia, Through the live show, Tang ignited by a sequence in director kept practicing two­hand tech­ also a member of the studio, says recalls, he wanted to tell a thrilling Zhang Yimou’s 2002 blockbuster niques in the dormitory and attend­ Tang’s passion for playing with the time travel story about swordsmen Hero. There was a duel between two ing salons and concerts. guqin has motivated the team mem­ from the ancient world and human­ swordsmen on a rainy day, with a Among all the video tapes he bers to utilize their versatile array of oid robots. gray­haired old man sitting nearby, bought, Tang’s favorite performan­ talents. Experimenting with more daring accompanying their struggle by ces were by master player Gong Yi, “His words and deeds encouraged ideas, he has even tried, to play the playing a captivating melody with who lives in Shanghai. He paid a vis­ me to take action once an idea hit ancient instrument, not with both the instrument. it to Gong a dozen years ago and me, without fear of the unknown,” hands, but with a violin’s bow, to “I was suddenly awestruck by the became one of his students. Bai adds.