"What I have learned in China is that Chinese folk music is far broader than what we have now," he says.
He was doing some research on the Internet one day and stumbled upon information about a folk band of about 10 people from a remote village in Shaanxi province. "Their job is playing music for funerals and weddings. Though they have never received academic training, they are very skillful and have a good sense of music," Zollitsch says.
He went to the village and invited the band to play at a music festival in Germany. The feedback was beyond his expectations.
"Audiences in Germany have never seen those instruments. They played like a rock band," he says.
"Young composers are not willing to write folk music, because they are constrained by the traditional folk music format. They should be confident about China's folk music and free their minds."
After marrying Gong in 2004, Zollitsch visited villages near her hometown in Guizhou province, which have many ethnic groups. His big break came after he composed and produced albums, including Jing Ye Si and Ye Xue, for his wife.
"Before I met him, I was a struggling folk singer because all Chinese folk singers sing and perform in the same way. I didn't know where I should go and why I sang. Now, I have gained a new perspective about Chinese folk music," says Gong, 39, who is known for her powerful and expressive live performances.
She will host the concert and she thinks highly of her husband's exploration of Chinese folk music.
"His has deep musical roots in Chinese folk music and his Western influence is just an approach to make Chinese folk music come alive," Gong says.
She cites Qing Zhu, or Green Bamboo, as an example. It's one of the songs Zollitsch wrote for her around 2006.
"When I first listened to the song, it reminded me of the fighting scene in the bamboo forest in the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon."
Nie Yunlei, a sheng player, who started working with the couple in 2006, will play five works in the concert. Sheng, one of the oldest Chinese instruments, has been used as an accompaniment instrument for suona flute performances. However, Zollitsch feels the instrument is magical and has written many pieces for it.
"For Lao Luo, each Chinese folk instrument has its personality and his music serves to make the personality stand out," says Nie, 35, who came from Shijiazhuang, Hebei province, and studied suona with his father and learned to play the sheng in 2001. "I believe chamber music is a way forward for struggling Chinese folk music."
Contact the writer at chennan@chinadaily.com.cn
IF YOU GO
7:30 pm, June 8. Forbidden City Concert Hall, inside Zhongshan Park, West of Tian'anmen Square, Xicheng district, Beijing. 010-6559-8285.
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