Introduction

Choi Chang-sau began handing down his art of qin making in 1993. His workshop serves as an important stronghold for research into Hong Kong’s qin studies. “Knowing how to play the qin” is a prerequisite to being one of Master Choi’s students. This is because he believes that without a passion for the qin, it is simply impossible to learn qin making well.

Over these past 50 years, Choi Chang-sau has repaired more than 100 qins, many of which have a history dating back more than one thousand years. Whenever the internal structure of the qin’s cavity belly is discussed, Choi shares his experience with his students and explores the variations of qin making with reference to the style of each respective period. To implement their teacher’s instructions, students experiment with materials according to records found in ancient literature. They also frequently form groups to look for ancient wood and lacquer materials. None of them is bothered by the potential allergy some people have to raw lacquer and everyone goes to the workshop every week to pick up his or her tools. They have one aim and that is to create a good qin for their own playing, and to carry on the tradition of qin players who have created their own instruments through the ages.

Choi Chang-sau teaches without discrimination. His students come from a variety of backgrounds, are of different ages, and have varied experience in qin making. The group comes together through their shared passion. Stories and views on the qin are discussed and shared among teachers, students and peers, with each member contributing their expertise. Thanks to these interactions, the art of qin making and its required skills are preserved and passed on in Hong Kong.

In a bid to be part of the qin making culture, to conduct research and to promote sharing of the techniques, Choi Chang-sau and his students formed the “Choi Chang Sau Qin Making Society” in 2011, with a mission to introduce the craft to the community and create a qin making culture in Hong Kong through academic exchange, organizing exhibitions and conducting promotion activities.

From its modest beginning as a musical instrument making class to becoming an institution, and from a small circle of qin players with a like-minded zeal to learn how to make qins to becoming a knowledge geared for the public, this cultural heritage has made itself unique in Hong Kong.

  



Qin making class in action at the workshop