Ancient instrument makes comeback in modern world

In 1994, he enrolled to study the sheng at Hebei Vocational Art College, graduating in 2000. From 2001 to 2005, he furthered his sheng study at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in Beijing. As a student, he worked with Robert Zollitsch and his wife, the singer Gong Linna. While working with the couple, Nie was introduced to chamber music, which features a small number of performers originally meant to fit into intimate palace settings.

Nie's longtime collaboration with Gong and Zollitsch also inspired him to release an album in 2021 titled Like You and Me, which featured seven pieces presenting the sheng via chamber music.

"I met Nie for the first time when he held a concert at the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts in 2001. I was impressed by his music and the creative ideas he had about his instrument. We've been working together for over 20 years and he still inspires me," says Gong.

After graduation, Nie joined the Jingju Theatre Company in Beijing, one of the largest professional Peking Opera ensembles in China. Peking Opera, known as jingju in Chinese, is a 200-year-old art form combining diverse performative aspects like instrumentals, singing, dancing and martial arts.

"I've been watching lots of performances of traditional Chinese opera since both the Hebei Vocational Art College and the National Academy of Chinese Theatre Arts have lots of students learning it," says Nie. "Both traditional Chinese opera and traditional Chinese music focus on creating a sense of unique charm, relying on rhythmic sounds and movements. When you listen to Chinese music or opera, you feel like you are drifting in a river at different speeds and in different directions."

In 2005, Nie started working with veteran Peking Opera actress Chi Xiaoqiu, who is known for carrying on the Cheng School founded by Peking Opera master Cheng Yanqiu (1904-58), which focuses on representing the inner turmoil of characters and often tells tragic stories.

Nie has also tried to improve the instrument by making a number of alterations to the sheng, ranging from its tone, volume and note arrangements to its appearance and weight.

"These alterations may encourage contemporary composers to create new pieces and expand the sheng repertoire," says Nie.