He Yang

He Yang is currently a huqin virtuoso with the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra. She joined the Orchestra in 2012. She started her formal training at the age of nine, and at twelve, she came second in a public examination and gained entry to the middle school affiliated to the Wuhan Conservatory of Music on a government grant to study under Bie Xiaoxia. While at school, she was awarded the ‘merit student’ scholarship several times and was able to leave middle school one year ahead of the stipulated curriculum to enter the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where she trained in erhu under Liu Jie and Wang Yongde. She was a member of the group which won the Silver Award for Traditional Ensemble Music in the Wenhua Awards, presented by the Ministry of Culture of China, in 2008. Upon graduation in 2009, she furthered her training under the famous banhu virtuoso and teacher, Huo Yonggang, and joined the Shanghai Culture and Broadcasts Chinese Orchestra, with which she performed solo and lead on several occasions. In 2018, she was awarded a Master of Music in Erhu Performance by the Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

Over the years, whether in school or after graduation, she has performed with the Shanghai Chinese Orchestra, Shanghai Peking Opera Troupe, Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra and Shanghai Farce Troupe. She has therefore gleaned a lot of stage experience in various genres and styles, from traditional Chinese opera to symphonic music. Having lived in different cities in the course of her studies, she has gained first-hand experience in acquiring the different character and styles of different regions, viz. the more delicate and tuneful music of the south, and the robust, earthy tunes of the north. She is able to apply that understanding to her interpretation of music and styles. She was on the editorial board of two highly acclaimed teaching aids, 99 Popular Tunes in Erhu and 99 Golden Oldies in Erhu.