Tan Shuzhen
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Tan Shuzhen (; 1907 – 2002) was a
Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...
violin The violin, sometimes referred to as a fiddle, is a wooden chordophone, and is the smallest, and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in regular use in the violin family. Smaller violin-type instruments exist, including the violino picc ...
ist, teacher and violin maker. In 1927, he became the first Chinese musician to join the Shanghai Municipal Public Band, now the
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra () is a symphony orchestra in Shanghai, China. Its music director is Long Yu. Founded in 1879, the SSO is the oldest List of symphony orchestras#China, Chinese symphony orchestra. Originally, it was known as the ...
, led by Italian conductor Mario Paci. "Nobody had ever seen a Chinese in the orchestra," Tan has been quoted as saying. "So many people came to see me." Until 1966, Tan headed the Conservatory's violin section and became involved in the establishment of China's first violin-making factory. During the
Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a Social movement, sociopolitical movement in the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). It was launched by Mao Zedong in 1966 and lasted until his de ...
, Tan was confined for 14 months in a tiny, dark closet under a stairwell at the Conservatory. He suffered regular beatings and denunciations before being released to work as a janitor. When the Cultural Revolution ended, he became the vice-director of the
Shanghai Conservatory of Music The Shanghai Conservatory of Music (SHCMusic) is a municipal public college in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the City of Shanghai and is part of the Double First-Class Construction. The college was founded on November 27, 1927. The Sh ...
. Tan features prominently in Sheila Melvin and Jindong Cai's ''Rhapsody in Red: How Western Classical Music Became Chinese'' and in
Murray Lerner Murray Lerner (May 8, 1927 – September 2, 2017) was an American documentary and experimental film director and producer. Career Lerner was born May 8, 1927, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Nacham and Goldie (Levine) Lerner. Murray's father ...
's 1979 documentary, From Mao to Mozart: Isaac Stern in China. Tan is the subject of Heather Greer's 1999 documentary, The Gentleman From Shanghai.


References


Further reading


Books

* Sheila Melvin and Jindong Cai, ''Rhapsody in Red: How Western Classical Music Became Chinese'', New York 2004, {{DEFAULTSORT:Shuzhen, Tan Chinese violinists 1907 births Culture in Shanghai Year of death missing