The ethereal, Zen-style music that plays when the main character Monkey King Wukong meditates on his cushion is not produced by a synthesizer—it is the konghou, a traditional Chinese plucked instrument with more than 2,700 years of history.

Shi Jing, a konghou player born in the 1990s, contributed her music to the game's soundtrack. As the first graduate with a bachelor's degree in konghou performance from the China Conservatory of Music in Beijing, Shi has cultivated a strong professional foundation and blends traditional artistry with contemporary innovation.

"Through new expressions of traditional music that are accessible to young people, I hope to introduce this beautiful instrument to the world," Shi told Beijing Review.

China's younger generations are in the process of reshaping traditional music—Young musicians who are passionate about their art forms, like Shi, are transforming ancestral melodies for the modern era.

Sounds across time

The konghou comes in a variety of forms, including horizontal harp and vertical harp styles. The vertical konghou was introduced to China's heartland during the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) along with Indian Buddhist culture, via what is now Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on the ancient Silk Road.

According to Shi, the instrument represents a blend of ancient and modern elements as well as Chinese and Western cultures. "In ancient times, harps and konghou were identical. But the modern konghou features double rows of strings—plucked with the right hand while the left hand modulates vibrato, creating uniquely Eastern resonance," she said.

This instrument flourished during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), frequently appearing in poetry, murals and imperial court performances. During the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), the konghou vanished for over 500 years with no surviving scores or recordings.

In the 1930s, Chinese musicians reconstructed the instrument using the Dunhuang murals and accompanying pottery figurines as a reference. These fourth-century Buddhist murals, painted on the walls of the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, Gansu Province, depict the konghou over 200 times—second only to the pipa, a four-stringed, pear-shaped Chinese lute.

Today, the traditional instrument is thriving again in the hands of younger players. Shi has also composed for Honor of Kings, a popular Chinese mobile game. An in-game skin for a character called Doria was released in 2025, featuring a soundtrack composed by Shi.

"Though ancient, the konghou can also play pop, jazz, blues and poetic ballads or contemporary hits. Its versatility knows no bounds," Shi said.

In the 1990s, three konghou, dating back to the Western Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D. 25), were unearthed in Qiemo, a county in Xinjiang, now honored as the hometown of the konghou. The county, located in the Taklimakan Desert, is also the hometown of Aydina Yasen, one of Shi's students.

In 2016, Xinjiang's first konghou training base, funded by local authorities, was established in Qiemo to promote the instrument, drawing many students and music teachers.

Aydina, who was then 10 years old, was among the first students. After years of study, she became the first person from Qiemo to begin a tertiary major in konghou playing, beginning in 2025 at the Shenyang Conservatory of Music in Shenyang, capital of the northeastern province of Liaoning.

More than 200 children in Qiemo have been trained to play the konghou, and all local primary and secondary schools now have konghou clubs.

Duo of resonance

For Lan Ruping and Hu Pingting, playing pipa is more than a way to make a living—it is a way to express themselves and to resonate with others.

The two had only one thing in common before they met: They both began studying pipa at around 5 years old. Hu had a decade of specialized training in the instrument and graduated from the Central Conservatory of Music in 2022, while Lan pursued studies overseas before returning to China to work as an artist agent. Their paths crossed when they both traveled to Dali, a mountain resort in the southwestern province of Yunnan, where a chance encounter led to an impromptu joint performance. In 2023, the two decided to establish the Shuang Pipa studio, dedicating themselves to both performance and teaching. Shuang Pipa means a pipa duo.

"Our artistic tastes are quite similar. So we thought, why not create China's first two-pipa ensemble? It is quite rare in China, and we wanted to give it a try," Lan told Beijing Review.

According to Hu, pipa playing techniques are very complex. With over 2,000 years of history, the technique system has absorbed regional styles from every era. Mastering and fully applying these skills is an exceptionally challenging endeavor.

While firmly rooted in tradition, their performances incorporate modern elements. "We express traditional music in a modern way that reflects contemporary lifestyles," Hu told Beijing Review.

Performance-wise, they play in unexpected spaces—performing for yaks, for flocks of sheep, or even in bustling marketplaces. They have liberated the pipa from its confinement to elegant concert halls and brought it back down to earth. Their repertoire also extends beyond classic pieces to include adapted folk songs. "This is what makes us distinctive—returning the pipa to everyday life," Hu said.

In recent years, they have promoted the pipa through performances across China and abroad. "Many still consider this instrument niche and we hope to bridge that gap, making it accessible to more people," Lan said.

Ye Zi (pseudonym), who saw them perform in 2025, said Shuang Pipa opened the door to a whole new world for her. "I felt the change of emotions as the pipa's sound flowed from powerful intensity to delicate gentleness. The performances provided a fresh experience for amateur audience members like me," she wrote on Xiaohongshu (RedNote), a popular Chinese lifestyle and e-commerce platform.

When performing abroad, the musicians feel that music transcends all borders, especially in countries with large Chinese populations, such as Singapore. "The emotions and atmosphere we create make me especially aware of the cultural identity felt by overseas Chinese watching our performances and how it reignites their cultural pride," Hu said.

Lan said she was the only Chinese member of a traditional Chinese music ensemble when she studied in Spain, with the rest being Spanish. "They played the erhu, guzheng and yangqin, which are traditional Chinese instruments, showing their appreciation of the Chinese culture," she said.

For both Lan and Hu, the heart of their performance lies not only in technical mastery, but in truly reaching the audience. "We aim to let art exist purely as art. On stage, we open our hearts to the audience—a sincerity they palpably feel," Hu said. BR

(Print Edition Title: Plucking Heartstrings)

Copyedited by G.P. Wilson

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