The Zheng in Hong Kong, 1949–1979

The zheng was present in Hong Kong by the early decades of the twentieth century. It was played by musicians such as Dou Wun, a blind man from Guangzhou who specialized in singing naamyam while accompanying himself with the zheng and clappers. Many Chinese came to Hong Kong from surrounding areas; the British colony was also a sanctuary for refugees fleeing war zones and economic hardship. After the Second World War, the zheng and its music became more prominent and the instrument was promoted as a marker of Chinese culture on Hong Kong radio and television. Dou Wun and Chen Lei-shi (also known as Louis Chen) were among the musicians who contributed to these broadcasts. So Chun-bo and Choi Ngar-si are among the zheng experts who performed, recorded, assembled pedagogical materials, and established zheng teaching studios with associated zheng ensembles in Hong Kong.