Zide, a guqin studio in China, has made the ancient Chinese instrument popular in recent times.Its videos, in which performers play traditional Chinese music with several instruments including guqin, have become popular on the Internet.The performances feature the traditional clothing which the players wear as well as the style, making them look like classic Chinese paintings coming to life.
In 2014, several young people founded the studio in Shanghai.Each of them played the guqin, and together they began to teach others.Since 2015, they have been making videos of their performances, mainly solos.Besides, they produced a series of short videos to teach how to play the instrument correctly.
"Each traditional Chinese musical instrument has a unique characteristic.So 1 pick only one of each kind in a piece of music and make it show its full potential," said Tang Bin, one of the studio's co-founders.
Since 2017, the studio has been working with costumers specializing in historical clothing, make-up, and hairstyles.These elements have made the videos more attractive to the younger audience.In cooperation with the costumers, the video called Kongshan Niaoyu(Birdsong in Hollow Valley)has been a big success on Bilibili, a Chinese video-sharing website that is especially popular among young generations in China."It is hard to imagine that an ancient instrument like guqin can attract over 460,000 followers on a website where the average age of visitors is 13," Tang said.The videos have also become a hit on social media platforms abroad, with the most popular one watched more than 13 million times.Anna Cardoso, a Brazilian viewer; commented, "I love Chinese culture and music! Hope people preserve their history and don't let it die!" In the comment section, foreigners can find explanatory comments by enthusiastic viewers introducing the cultural background or elements, which can help them better understand China.
"This shows that good music and beautiful works of art can break the boundaries of nationality," said Zhu Liyue, head of the studio and another co-founder.The combination of delicate clothes and images can dispel the stereotypes foreigners have about ancient Chinese culture.
4. Which is the highlighted part of Zide's videos?
A.They are made by a famous studio. |
B.They show players playing several ancient Chinese instruments. |
C.The performances look like classic Chinese paintings coming to life. |
D.The performers teach the audience how to play the guqin correctly. |
5. What makes Zide attractive to the younger audience?
A.It is founded by several young people. |
B.It picks only one instrument in a performance. |
C.It mainly produces videos of solo performances. |
D.It adds historical elements to the styling of costumes. |
6. What do we know from Paragraph 4?
A.Zide's most watched video online is Kongshan Niaoyu. |
B.Bilibili is visited mostly by young people at home and abroad. |
C.Ancient instruments like guqin can easily attract followers on a website. |
D.Foreign audience can understand Chins better by watching Zide's videos. |
7. What does the underlined word "dispel" in the last paragraph probably mean?
A.Bring attention to the idea. | B.Separate from the original one. |
C.Strengthen the understanding. | D.Make a feeling or belief disappear. |