One zither, two strings, the world's masterpiece for thousands of years.

For Zhang Qiang, a folk musician, erhu has such charm that he has been intoxicated with it for 40 years.

On January 5, Zhang Qiang opened a three year long large-scale erhu solo concert. In the nearly two hour concert, he used the erhu in his hands to give the greatest "resonance". "This concert is a 'summary' of my 40 years," Zhang Qiang said.

Married to erhu and began to learn folk music at the age of four

In the late 1970s, music was far away from Zhang Qiang.

The turnaround took place when he was four years old. "My uncle was an educated youth from Chongqing. He played erhu, and my family asked me to learn from him." Zhang Qiang recalled, "At that time, when I was young, I didn't like erhu, but my family forced me to learn it." Zhang Qiang's parents had a strong belief that only by learning a skill can he "starve to death".

Under the careful guidance of his uncle and the supervision of his parents, Zhang Qiang became proficient in erhu. In 1993, Zhang Qiang joined the Arts and Crafts Troupe of the Political Department of the Sichuan Armed Police Corps to play erhu, where he got a systematic professional study. The playing level of erhu rose rapidly

Inherit Erhu from a fan to a inheritor

During his work in Dazhou Culture and Arts Center, Zhang Qiang, in addition to completing various business work of the unit, also participated in large-scale cultural performances and public welfare activities held in Dazhou, and constantly honed his erhu playing skills. In addition, Zhang Qiang also summarized his years of playing experience into a paper.

"The farther I go on the road of playing the erhu, the more I feel that I have a great responsibility for the inheritance of folk music." Zhang Qiang said that the erhu is one of the representative instruments of traditional folk music, but the inheritance of folk music in Dazhou is dated, and fewer people are learning it. As the leader of the band of Dazhou Culture and Arts Center, Zhang Qiang often guides the young generation of folk music learners in playing skills, actively participates in folk music performances with the young generation, and strives to cultivate the next generation of folk musicians. "I hope that through our efforts, more young people can learn folk music and pass on traditional art." Zhang Qiang looked forward to it.

Erhu Solo Shows 40 Years of Achievements

When the long erhu melody rings, only the song sounds slow and dull at the beginning, and then the rhythm turns fast. The bright melody makes people's mood clear. With the change of melody, the fingering of the player's hand is also changing, and one player with two strings has pulled out a magnificent momentum.

As the opening song of Zhang Qiang's concert, Ba Qu Narrative is Zhang Qiang's masterpiece. "This is my own erhu ballad, inspired by the local folk song" Jianjian Mountain "in Dazhou." At that time, Zhang Qiang went to Wanyuan City, Sichuan Province to collect wind, and overheard villagers singing the folk song "Jianjian Mountain", which inspired him to work at night. After many performances and modifications, a ballad showing the changes in the life, work and spiritual outlook of the working people before and after the reform and opening up was born. "I like to express my emotions with undulating tunes, so in the song" Ba Qu Narrative ", before the reform and opening up, people lived a miserable life, and the rhythm of the song was low and slow; after the reform and opening up, people's life was better, and the rhythm was also more lively." Zhang Qiang said.

At the concert, Zhang Qiang prepared more than ten pieces of music, including Love in Late Autumn, There is a Golden Sun in Beijing, Two Springs Reflect the Moon, and Rivers and Rivers, which were played in four chapters. Throughout the concert, the erhu solo was interspersed with performances in different forms, such as solo singing, poetry recitation, grand ensemble, etc. The creative combination form made the traditional folk music glow with new vitality.

At the end of the last folk music ensemble "The Good News of Beijing", Zhang Qiang was relieved. "These dozens of songs are the reflection of my 40 years of art career." Zhang Qiang said that the concert not only wanted to show the music achievements of 40 years of art, but also wanted to promote the inheritance and development of national music through the concert.