China News Service, Yinchuan, August 20th Telegram: Fifty Years of Dreaming on "String": Zheng Huayan's "Erhu Life"
Chinanews reporter Yu Jing
Sometimes gentle and lingering, sometimes deep and heavy, from the Xialiba people to the white snow in the spring, like weeping and singing, like singing, the simple two strings perform different styles in the hands of Zheng Huayan, transforming the unique charm and interest of national musical instruments.
On August 20, the reporter walked into Ningxia Senior Citizen University, and suddenly heard a pleasant sound of erhu. The sound of the piano was sometimes agitated and free, sometimes low and arrogant, sometimes gentle and soothing, sometimes vicissitudes of life and restrained, as if it were all about life.
Zheng Huayan is playing erhu.
Photo by Yu Jing
The tune was written by Zheng Huayan. He loved erhu since he was a child. He was the lead player of the band at the age of 15. At the age of 17, he was specially recruited as an erhu player by the propaganda team of the Fifth Division of the Lanzhou Military Region Production and Construction Corps. At the age of 23, he joined the Ningxia Song and Dance Troupe.
Fifty years of spring and autumn, he insisted on rooting in the northwest, playing the voice of Ningxia again and again.
Today, at the age of 67, he is still persistently walking on the path of pursuing art.
Erhu is one of the ancient Chinese national stringed musical instruments. Its structure is simple. It is a thin wooden piano rod, about 80 cm long. There are two strings on the piano rod, and a teacup-shaped piano tube is installed under the piano rod. There is also a ponytail bow.
It is such a simple instrument, but it can have rich expressive power and is good at expressing deep emotions. It is called "Chinese violin".
It is also this simple musical instrument, when Zheng Huayan's hands are playing, the babbling tunes pass through the mountains, fields, streams, alleys, streets, and rural market towns, interpreting the joys and sorrows of the world, ups and downs, ups and downs, Telling a story that happened...
"The rocking arm sees the spring color in the south of the Yangtze River, and the finger can tell the story in the north of Henan. The shadow of the candle shakes red and the night fades, and the war horse gallops and kills life. In the countless passing yesterday, on the starry night, the long bow sings the sun and the moon. , two silver strings v. Spring and Autumn." This is a verse in the poem "Erhu Praise", and it is also a true portrayal of Zheng Huayan's erhu life.
Zheng Huayan told reporters that the erhu is a living heritage, with a solid mass foundation and deeply rooted in oriental culture.
The current prosperity of the erhu comes from the efforts of generations of outstanding erhu musicians, and it benefits from this era, and I am the beneficiary of it.
Therefore, he has been committed to the development and innovation of contemporary national string music. While inheriting and promoting traditional music, he has traveled to more than 20 countries and regions such as Canada, France, Italy, Norway, etc., and has cooperated with many composers at home and abroad. , performers cooperated, played a large number of modern music works, and spread the classical sound of erhu outside the country.
In addition to busy performances, Zheng Huayan is also enthusiastic about public welfare undertakings.
He has accumulated free training for hundreds of middle-aged and elderly erhu enthusiasts. Under his leadership, more and more people regard erhu as their hobby or their favorite career, which not only enriches the people's spiritual and cultural life, but also contributes to erhu skills. The inheritance has accumulated living strength.
Zheng Huayan (first from right) is playing the erhu.
Photo by Yu Jing
On the same day, the reporter saw Zheng Hua at the University of the Elderly. He lightly placed the erhu pole with his left hand and pulled the bow with his right hand.
He earnestly explained the historical knowledge of erhu to the elderly while playing the teaching repertoire affectionately. He was particularly attractive when immersed in music.
"Teaching the elderly to play the piano is actually teaching friends, mainly to stimulate interest, and the level of students is also very different. It is necessary to take care of students at elementary, intermediate and advanced levels." Zheng Huayan said that he would post some videos in the group after class. , let the students practice.
Talking about the charm of erhu, he smiled and replied: "Erhu has a Chinese style, a traditional musical instrument, friendly and beautiful, subtle and euphemistic, and happy!"
As a native of Anhui, due to fate, Zheng Huayan took root in Ningxia, explored unique experience for Ningxia erhu training, and sent a large number of talents, which promoted the development and spread of erhu interpretation in Ningxia.
Today, his pace of exploration is still continuing, and he will continue to play the most beautiful melody in his life in Ningxia with his erhu.
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