Chinese county plucks the strings of world's violin market

When Gao Yanding decided to make his own violin, he started with an unusual piece of wood: spruce that had been naturally aged for three decades.

The Chinese-American scientist, who spent more than 20 years conducting biomedical engineering research in the United States, wanted to answer a question that had fascinated him for years as an amateur violinist. Why can two instruments made from seemingly similar pieces of wood produce vastly different sounds — and command dramatically different prices?

To find the answer, Gao brought the carefully selected tonewood to Queshan county in Zhumadian, Central China's Henan province. There, he worked with veteran luthier Jiang Baoming to build a violin and applied scientific methods to analyze and refine its acoustics. Through their collaboration, Gao acquired nine violins from Jiang, each of which saw its value increase significantly.

His experiment reflects a much larger transformation taking place in Queshan, an agricultural county that has become one of the world's largest violin manufacturing centers.

Today, the county produces around 400,000 violins annually, supplying customers across Europe, North America and Asia. Local industry officials said Queshan has become China's leading production base for mid — to high-end handmade violins, producing more than 80 percent of the country's total.

The industry's roots in Queshan date back to the 1980s, when several craftsmen traveled to Beijing to learn violin making before returning to establish workshops.

One of them was Wang Jinwu. Now 54, Wang has spent four decades making violins.

Wang's workshop has built long-term relationships with overseas buyers, including a United States musical instrument wholesaler that has worked with him for nearly two decades. The partnership began when the buyer discovered Wang's violins at an international trade fair, purchased one instrument, and later placed an initial order for 10 violins. As trust grew, so did the business. Today, the customer buys more than 2,000 violins from Wang each year.

"Overseas customers value Queshan violins because they are handmade, reliable in quality and reasonably priced," Wang said.

According to local authorities, Queshan now has 144 violin-related companies employing more than 2,600 people. Together, they generate annual revenues of more than 600 million yuan ($89.4 million), supported by a complete supply chain covering wood processing, component manufacturing, varnishing, assembly and packaging.

The concentration of suppliers and skilled workers has helped lower production costs while allowing manufacturers to develop more specialized production processes.

Rather than training every apprentice to master the entire violin-making process, local producers have increasingly adopted a division-of-labor model.

"In the past, it took about three years to train someone to make a complete violin," Wang said. "Today, workers can become production-ready in around three months by specializing in just one stage of the process."

The next challenge for Queshan's violin makers is expanding their reach beyond traditional export channels.

For years, most instruments were sold overseas through distributors. Increasingly, manufacturers are turning to cross-border e-commerce platforms, short videos and livestreaming to connect directly with international buyers.

"Professional buyers have long known that many high-quality handmade violins come from Queshan," said Jiang Baolin, secretary-general of the Queshan Handmade Violin Makers Association. "The difference now is that overseas consumers have more direct access to buying them."

To sustain the industry's growth, local players are also focusing on cultivating younger generations of people involved in the craft.

"We hope the next generation will inherit not only the skills, but also the artistry behind the craft," Jiang said.

WANG ZHUOQIONG in Zhumadian, Henan