Zhao Cong and the pipa (four-stringed Chinese musical instrument) have been attracting a great deal of international attention of late. Zhao, the lead pipa player with the China National Orchestra, has received worldwide acclaim for her performances and her 2008 album, entitled Sound of China — Dance in the Moon. Stephen Moss, a staff writer with The Guardian, wrote, "I doubted whether traditional Chinese instruments could survive the ubiquity of pop, but 10 minutes of her (Zhao Cong) remarkable playing and performance style convinced me it had a future." Kevin Rudd, former Prime Minister of Australia, has said, "I am so thrilled that I must stand up to listen to her music."

Talented Student
唯一被录取的外地学生

The pipa has long been referred to as the emperor of traditional Chinese instruments. "Its extraordinary power canbe used to describe a war. The famous score Shi Mian Mai Fu (Ambush on All Sides) is about the war between the Chu and Han armies after the regime of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) was overthrown," Zhao recently told Women of China.

"The pipa also expresses soft feelings. Another pipa classic, Chun Jiang Hua Yue Ye (Moonlight over Spring River), gives a picture of the beautiful night view in a southern town. Different aspects of a topic can be displayed through two pipa classics. Ambush on All Sides, for example, focuses on the experience of Liu Bang, who led the Han army to victory in the Chu-Han War, while Ba Wang Xie Jia (King Takes Off His Armor) tells the story of Chu leader Xiang Yu, who committed suicide."

When she was six, Zhao's father, Zhao Xiaodong, and mother, Sun Duoping, both of whom are musicians, asked her and her older sister, Zhao Lei, to learn an instrument.

Her sister chose the violin and Zhao picked the pipa. "Maybe I like the pipa because my mother always listened to pipa music when she was pregnant with me," Zhao says. However,
she notes it is not easy to learn to play the pipa. "Playing the instrument requires great strength in the fingers."

Zhao has never felt bored while practicing the pipa. "When I was a child, my father played the piano and I and my sister sang together … We were happy every day," she says. Zhao soon displayed the extent of her musical talent; she won virtually every musical competition in which she entered.

When she was a junior middle school student, Zhao set a goal for herself: Pass the Central Conservatory of Music's entrance examination. Talent, though, was not enough; to enroll in China's most prestigious conservatory, she had to beat out hundreds of examinees, from across the country.

After setting her goal, Zhao practiced the pipa between 6-8hours per day. She sat in front of a mirror to check her posture and movements. Her teacher was Sun Shulin, a professor at Jilin College of the Arts. "Mr Sun devoted most of his time to teaching me. I lived in his house to continue practicing during vacations. A teacher's devotion is important for a child's
progress," Zhao says.

With her best endeavors, Zhao became the sole student from outside Beijing who was enrolled by the Central Conservatory of Music that year.

Musical Fusion
“叛逆期”的尝试

While a student at the conservatory, Zhao, who had studied classical Chinese music for several years, drew inspiration from Western music. "Young people should not only inherit traditions, but also attempt to innovate and make contributions to the world." Zhao says. Her tutor, renowned pipa performer and educator Li Guanghua, supported Zhao's efforts to promote exchanges involving various types of music.

After she graduated, Zhao joined Musicat, a Chinese women's band. "Musicat is similar to the Bond, a British quartet that specializes in classical crossover music. The nine of us play Chinese and Western instruments. It's a tradition that pipa players sit and put the pipa on their legs. But I find it hard to sit still when the music is exciting. My movements must match the music. So, I designed a new type of pipa that has a shoulder strap, like that on a guitar. I can carry the pipa when I am standing," says Zhao.

She obtained a patent for her invention, which makes it possible for musicians to perform with greater energy. Director Zhang Yimou planned a program, in which performers used Zhao's pipas for the eight-minute performance at the closing ceremony of the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.
Some people have suggested Zhao is not a traditional pipa performer. "Original Chinese folk music may be too mysterious for foreigners to understand. If our music blends Eastern and Western styles that are familiar to foreigners, it will be easier to grasp the beauty of Chinese music and culture," Zhao explains.

To present Chinese folk music to the world, Zhao recorded the Sound of China — Dance in the Moon. It was an immediate hit in China.

Going Global
让“新民乐”与世界对话

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(Executive Editor: Lei Yang)