Chu Qiguizi tunes the sanxian at her studio in Tianjin, north China, April 21, 2026.
Chu Qiguizi is a post-90s musician from Tianjin. She started learning sanxian, a three-stringed traditional Chinese instrument, at the age of 13, and continued to focus on it during college years under the instruction of her teacher Liu Hui.
The sanxian's long neck makes it difficult to produce clean notes, and practicing it was quite challenging for Chu. After years of hard practice, Chu was recognized as an intangible cultural inheritor of the sanxian performance technique.
In recent years, Chu has been dedicated to blending modern elements into the performance of the sanxian. Her innovative works have gone viral and won wide acclaim.
To help more young people discover and appreciate the sanxian, Chu learned video editing, producing short videos of her outdoor performances and posting them online. She also teaches traditional musical knowledge, bringing the heritage into more children's lives.
Chu believes that the popularity of her videos reflects the growing cultural pride among young people, and she vows to make more musical breakthroughs in exploring the integration of innovation and tradition. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
Chu Qiguizi teaches children to play the sanxian at her studio in Tianjin, north China, April 21, 2026. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
Chu Qiguizi tunes the sanxian at her studio in Tianjin, north China, April 19, 2026. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
Chu Qiguizi (R) discusses with her mother about short video creation in Tianjin, north China, April 21, 2026. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
Chu Qiguizi plays the sanxian by the Haihe River in Tianjin, north China, April 17, 2026. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
Chu Qiguizi plays the sanxian at a viewing platform in Tianjin, north China, April 29, 2026. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
This photo taken on April 29, 2026 shows Chu Qiguizi holding the sanxian in Tianjin, north China. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)
