Wang Yong

b. 1964, Beijing

Rock musician

Wang Yong belongs to the first generation of Chinese rock musicians in the PRC and is now active in the broader field of world-music. He began learning the 24-string guzheng (zither, see zheng) at age nine under his father, a renowned guzheng-master himself, and in 1983 enrolled at the Central Music Conservatory to study the instrument. Around that time he joined Beijing’s early rock formation Tumbler (Budaoweng) as a keyboard player. After graduation in 1987, he continued to emphasize his traditional music background and won several awards on national music contests.

Meanwhile, he started to work with rock musicians such as Cui Jian, Zang Tianshuo and the heavy metal band Tang Dynasty (Tang Chao). A meeting with Laurie Anderson in Beijing turned his focus in the direction of midi-technology and led to his famous Buddhist-inspired composition ‘Requiem March’ (Anhun jinxingqu, 1993). This spirituality, together with his striving for a synthesis of tradition and modernity, East and West, influenced the album Samsara (Wangsheng, 1996). Apart from giving solo as well as band performances inside and outside the PRC, Wang is one of the very few Chinese musicians engaged in the international experimental jazz scene and continues to pursue his interest in Chinese string and wind instruments, all of which might lead him to further experiments and larger orchestral works.

See also: jazz; rock music, rock bands

Further reading

Steen, Andreas (1998). ‘Buddhism and Rock Music—A New Music Style?’ Chime 12/13 (Spring/Autumn): 151–64.

ANDREAS STEEN