Students, from ages 5 to 15, from the harp summer camp perform at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing on July 22. [Photo provided to China Daily]
In 2011, when harpist Wang Guan launched a training program at the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, during the Gateway to Arts Summer Festival, there were only about 30 students and none of them knew anything about the musical instrument.
For Wang, who teaches at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, this was not a surprise.
"The musical instrument is less well-known in China, compared to other Western musical instruments, such as the piano and violin. I can still recall that along with my colleagues, we started from zero to introduce the harp. It was a challenging process but very rewarding," says Wang.
Now, a decade later, the 10th harp summer camp program, which lasted for four days, concluded with a concert performed by students at the Forbidden City Concert Hall on July 22.
