In a whirlwind of excitement and youthful exuberance, pipa (a four-stringed Chinese lute) maestro Wu Man took center stage with the dynamic Beijing Youth Orchestra for two concerts in the capital last Friday and Saturday.

With her signature grace and passion, Wu led the orchestra through a vibrant exploration of traditional Chinese music with Zhao Jiping's Pipa Concerto No 2.

As the air filled with the sound of delicate plucking and rising and falling tones, which wove seamlessly with the orchestral tapestry, the young musicians, brimming with enthusiasm, responded with palpable eagerness, their instruments resonating with vigor alongside Wu's evocative playing.

Each moment was a celebration of creativity and collaboration. The concerts offered a preview of the orchestra's upcoming performance under conductor Lyu Jia at New York's Carnegie Hall, to be staged on Sunday.

"I've performed with lots of professional symphony orchestras from around the world. I was very surprised by performing with this orchestra of teenagers," Wu said in an interview with China Daily after a rehearsal at the National Centre for the Performing Arts on July 24. "I am particularly happy with this collaboration, where the ancient timbres of the pipa meet the orchestra's vibrant rhythms.

"For the young musicians, it was not just about rehearsals and concerts but also about a thrilling adventure into the heart of musical exploration," she continues, adding that the musicians reminded her of her own days as a student learning to play the pipa at Beijing's Central Conservatory of Music. A child prodigy who began learning at 9, Wu was accepted into the conservatory at 13 and became the first recipient of a master's degree in pipa in the country.

Talking about the Pipa Concerto No 2, a warm, rhapsodic piece Zhao wrote expressly for her, Wu says the 22-minute movement integrates elements of pingtan, a type of folk art from Suzhou in Jiangsu province, which combines storytelling and ballads in the Suzhou dialect. Performers are usually accompanied by traditional stringed instruments, such as the sanxian (a three-stringed lute) and the pipa, as well as woodwind instruments.

The concerto premiered at the Sydney Opera House where it was performed by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra with Wu as soloist. Since then, she has performed it many times around the world.

"The concerto has become one of the most performed pieces in my repertoire. Whenever I play it, it conjures up images of my hometown, its rivers, pavilions, teahouses and even its dialect," says Wu, who was born and raised in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.

The pipa, which has its roots in Central Asia, has been in existence for over 2,000 years. Known for its distinctive pear-shaped body, it typically has four strings and is played either with the fingers or a plectrum. It is known for its versatility and expressive range and is capable of producing both melodious and percussive sounds, playing a significant role in Chinese musical heritage.

The celebrated player, who currently lives in California, is considered the ambassador for the pipa and has brought the instrument international acclaim.

Her performances and recordings have helped introduce the pipa to global audiences by blending classical Chinese music with contemporary styles. Her latest album Seeking the Tao of Strings was released in June by Longyuan Music.

Aside from her experiments with contemporary rock and jazz musicians, Wu is a traditionalist and plays 11 pipa instruments from the late 19th century to early 20th century.

Some of their previous owners were masters Wu has admired since she was a student. One belonged to Jin Zuli (1906-2000), who Wu met during a summer break when she was pursuing her master's degree, traveling to Shanghai to learn to play the classic piece Flute and Drum Music at Sunset with the master.

"It gives me great joy to play these old silk string pipa previously played by masters. It's truly an honor to be able to record this album," she says.

Wu spent a whole day in her hotel in Shanghai in the winter of 2023 testing the 11 instruments to decide which one should be used to play which piece.

"I wanted to preserve the distinctive sound of the old pipa," says Wu. "I dedicated my entire day to acquainting myself with each of them, 'dating' them one by one by playing them and familiarizing myself with their characteristics."

"The resonance in my fingers as they glide across the strings is nothing short of profound. I can feel the essence of my predecessors coming through each instrument," she adds.

Unlike contemporary pipa, which have strings made of steel, old pipa had strings made of silk. They also varied in the size and thickness of their bodies, which poses a challenge to controlling nuances such as strength and tonal quality.

"No contemporary pipa can replicate the sounds produced by these old ones," Wu says.

With 13 tracks, the new album not only has well-known pipa pieces such as White Snow in Sunny Spring and Ambush From Ten Sides but also pieces that have rarely been recorded before, including Slow Shang Tune and Three Leaps Over the Stream.

At the end of the recording, which lasted three days, Wu took off her shoes and played an improvisation, Seeking the Tao of Strings, after which she later named the album.

"She is a great musician and understands her instrument as well as she knows herself," says recording engineer Li Xiaopei, who worked with Wu for the first time on the new album.

Li says that instead of "beautifying" the sound, they tried to ensure the sound of the old pipa remained as natural and authentic as possible.

Wu was first exposed to Western classical music in 1979 when she saw Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra performing in Beijing. In 1980, she participated in an open master class with violinist Isaac Stern and in 1985, she made her debut in the US before moving there in 1990.

As a principal and founding musician of Yo-Yo Ma's Silkroad project, Wu has performed throughout the US, Europe and Asia. She is featured in the 2015 Emmy-Award-winning documentary The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble, as well as on the film's 2017 Grammy Award-winning companion recording Sing Me Home, which won Best World Music Album.

"I love working with musicians from around the world. Their instruments, style and way of thinking and performing music all inspire me," Wu says.

In October, the Aga Khan Master Musicians will make their debut tour of China. Wu, who is one of its founding members, will be accompanied by five musicians from Central Asia. Founded in 2013, the troupe draws inspiration from traditional sources but creates an exuberantly contemporary sound through its mosaic of styles and sensibilities.

The tour will include mentoring opportunities for young musicians in the form of workshops, master classes and artist residencies that explore how traditional musical styles and repertoires can be expressed in a contemporary musical language that integrates performance, composition and improvisation.

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