The melody of the bamboo flute named the Thivats of Autumn is presented by Yao Jianhua. Thanks to the performance, Yao Jianhua comes to the spotlight of the Chinese Youth Cultural and Artistic Grand Ceremony and wins the golden prize. According to all judges in attendance, Yao Jianhua's performance is sweet, smooth and full of affection.
Yao Jianhua was born in a village of Haimen in Jiangsu province in 1980. A black and white television brought him much of his entertainment. He was especially attached to the bamboo flute performances presented on it.
"I could hardly have believed that there is so beautiful a melody in the world before I heard Lu Chunling's performance. He is the master of the bamboo flute. Then I told my parents I wanted to learn it and they agreed. My father bought me a cheap little bamboo flute. And I became a student of Fan Hongxing."
Fan Hongxing is a bamboo flute teacher in a senior middle school of Haimen. He describes the young Yao Jianhua as a promising man. In Yao Jianhua's best interests, Fan Hongxing took him to visit Dai Jinsheng, a well-known bamboo flute player in Shanghai. Dai Jinsheng liked Yao Jianhua at first sight.
"I saw that he is a man of high intelligence when I first saw him. After I heard his performance, I found that his understanding of music is much deeper than other young people. He is diligent and has a passion when he plays. This is a precious quality among players. I feel proud to be his teacher."
Yao Jianhua began his regular training then. He commutes between Shanghai and Nantong every week. His hard work plays a key role in the development of his musical journey.
After he graduated from senior middle school, Yao Jianhua enrolled in a conservatory. There, he met his third mentor, Wang Xiaolong, a doctor of music.
Yao Jianhua became more concentrated in practicing after he became a student of a conservatory. Over 8 hours of daily practice ensured him a sound basis in playing the bamboo flute.
"It is time to practice hard in basic skills. Basic skills are always essential to one's performance and it took me several years to build a sound foundation. Only if one has a sound foundation can he build a higher house."
Yao Jianhua graduated from the conservatory in 2002. Later he worked in Taihu Senior Middle School in Wuxi as a music teacher. Many people questioned why he chose to be an ordinary middle school teacher since he was so well-trained - by many well-known masters. He always answers like this.
"It is not bad to play bamboo flute myself and further enhance my own performance. However, I think it is more meaningful to propel the national instrument by teaching my students. I feel proud when my students win prizes in their field and I am glad to be teacher. Moreover, teaching others teaches myself."
In the small musical classroom, Yao Jianhua, the prince of the bamboo flute, is standing at the platform and teaching students performing the art of the bamboo flute. He hopes that the art of the bamboo flute can be carried forward by later generations.
Students say that they love their teacher, Yao Jianhua, and are touched by his exquisite performance.
"I chose to learn the bamboo flute because I found the sound of it beautiful, and playing it cool. Then I heard my teacher Yao's performance, which motivated me to practice. My performance is improving with his instructions."
"Our teacher not only teaches us skills in playing the bamboo flute, but also inspires our interests in learning."
Life is not always plain-sailing. Yao Jianhua often feels puzzled in teaching and learning. Luckily, he met Yang Qiang, a famous flute player and a good teacher experienced at integrating theory with practice. Yao Jianhua visits Yang Qiang every weekend and Professor Dai Jinsheng every end of the month. Through years of extensive training, Yao Jianhua became a master of the bamboo flute and was then proclaimed ‘Prince of Bamboo Flute'.
Bamboo flutes are not simply instruments for performance, but precious remembrance as well. Yao Jianhua has collected more than 100 bamboo flutes, each of which in correspondence to a certain flute song. A rosewood-made flute named ‘Hao Miao', Yao Jianhua's favorite, was sent to him by professor Dai Jinsheng. Yao Jianhua says that the name conveys his professor's expectations for him.
"Professor Dai Jinsheng sent me the flute as a reward when I won the golden prize in a national competition, with the song Water of River. I asked him to name the flute. He thought it over, and after two days, he finally named the flute Hao Miao. The character Miao is formed with three Chinese characters meaning water. That is an echo of the melody Water of River and also an encouragement for me."
Wuxi is entitled as the hometown of the Erhu and bamboo flute. Living in it, Yao Jianhua feels especially creative. He has made plans for the coming 5 years. The three-step plan is to win the national ‘Song Ting cup' in 2008, to hold a concert in shanghai in 2009 and, most importantly, to cultivate two outstanding students who are highly talented in music in the next 5 years.
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"I could hardly have believed that there is so beautiful a melody in the world before I heard Lu Chunling's performance. He is the master of the bamboo flute. Then I told my parents I wanted to learn it and they agreed. My father bought me a cheap little bamboo flute. And I became a student of Fan Hongxing." 
