Every weekend, about 20 amateur musicians gather under a big tree in a square in Beidou village, Chongqing, where they play various instruments such as drums, cymbals, trumpets, French horns, creating music that is only interrupted by the noise of tractors used by villagers to farm their land.

The mountainous area is an hour by car from downtown Chongqing in Southwest China.

And the musicians are the stars of the village.

In 2011, when musicians from the China National Symphony Orchestra, including conductor Li Xincao, violinist Liu Yunzhi and trombone player Yang Xiao, visited the village as part of a program to take classical music to rural China, the orchestra decided to help set up a local band of players.

Since then, the orchestra has donated many instruments and provides regular classes to the villagers every year.

"Five years have passed and we are surprised to see their progress," says Zhou Hong, a veteran French horn player of the orchestra who trains the village's farmers. This year, his classes were held from May 9 to 11.

"I can still remember the first year. Most of them had never seen the instruments before and they didn't know how to hold them, let alone read any musical scores or play a decent note. But now, they not only know how to play the instruments but have also learned how to express themselves and communicate with others through music," he says.

He didn't expect the villagers to take the sessions seriously, he adds.

Zhou also points out that besides talent, a key part of learning instruments is practicing them. Although the farmers missed the best age to learn instruments, they have made efforts to enjoy music now.

Rapid urbanization is leading to the disappearance of village life across the country. Men work in big cities to make more money and women stay at home to take care of children and elderly parents. In many cases, both parents work in urban areas and their children are raised by grandparents.

In Beidou village, the average annual income of a resident is around 10,000 yuan ($1,600). Most of the income of a family comes from the farmland.

According to Yang Shiyong, conductor of the band, who is also in charge of the local government's cultural activities, most of the farmers used to play cards or mahjong in their spare time. But with the birth of the band, they have devoted much of their time to learning and practicing music.

He recalls that, at the beginning, many people applied to join the band out of curiosity or just hoping to kill some time but they soon quit because of the difficulties of learning the instruments.

"Most of the members are above 40, which makes the process of learning very hard. They had to start from zero, like breathing, counting rhythms and reading the musical scores," says Yang, 44, who learned to play the saxophone when he served in the navy and has been working in Beidou since 2008.

Yang says the band has influenced other villagers and new members join every year. Besides performing regularly for the local people, band members have also participated in big-stage events such as the one with the China National Symphony Orchestra at the Beijing Concert Hall in 2014.

Zhou Yongshu, a 44-year-old member of the village band, who has played the trumpet since 2011, says she was so excited to come to Beijing that she bought new clothes and shoes for the trip.

Before joining in the band, she spent most of her time taking care of the family and working in the fields.

"I couldn't even tell trombone from trumpet at the beginning. But now I can play more than 20 songs. I am very proud of myself," she says.

chennan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily USA 05/22/2015 page15)