All of the musicians began studying music when they were children and entered music schools. Both Ma and Li Jia taught at the China Conservatory of Music in Beijing after they graduated from that school Wang joined the Shanghai National Music Orchestra.
An invitation from Tan Yaozong, chairman of the Hong Kong Longyin Record Production Co, brought the three original members together in 2003. Tan, former principal erhu player of the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, is enthusiastic about traditional Chinese music and tries to promote it.
Establishing Oriental Glamor is one of his strategies. As professional musicians, the three were impressed by Tan's idea as they were well aware of the charm of Chinese traditional music and its declining popularity at home.
"The Western music that swamped China together with Western culture for decades has almost pushed traditional Chinese music to a dead end," says Wang.
Many Chinese at her parents' age can play one or two traditional Chinese instruments, she says, but today most parents choose piano for their children. Western symphony orchestras and Broadway musicals are usually more popular than concerts of traditional Chinese music today.
"Many people claim that they don't like or cannot understand traditional Chinese music," says pipa player Li Jia. "But actually, they simply do not give themselves the chance to know it."
Everybody has the ability to appreciate music and for Chinese, it is supposed to be even easier for them to understand and appreciate traditional Chinese music because of their culture.
Li cites the famous composition "Shi Mian Mai Fu" ("Ambush from All Sides") based on a great battle during the Chu-Han Battle (206-202 BC). "Most Chinese know the story well and that makes it easier for them than for foreigners to visualize the story while listening to the music," she says.
