At the concert performed by the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra on May 21, Mr Hou Runyu, headmaster of the Xiamen Music School, performed as the conductor. This was the first time that the returned overseas scholar, Mr Hou, had conducted in the Xiamen Philharmonic Orchestra. Like other artists and musicians, Mr Hou has been continually striving to stretch himself throughout his career.

Path to top notes
Born in 1945 in Kunming, the home of the famous Chinese music composer - Nie Er, Hou Runyu was said to have great musical talent as a child. His father was a close friend of Nie Er and they studied together in Japan for seven years.

At the age of twelve, Hou Runyu started learning to play the piano at the middle school attached to the Shanghai Conservatory of Music ( 上海音乐学校 ). After that, he was admitted to the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he majored in conducting.

However, things changed dramatically when he was a sophomore. The Cultural Revolution broke out and therefore playing western musical pieces and western musical instruments was forbidden. "We were not allowed to play the piano. All the pianos of the conservatory therefore were put away in a classroom and gathered dust. We dared not to even touch them. The pianos were so heavy that the floor in the classroom caved in."

After graduation, Hou Runyu worked successively with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra as a long-term conductor and the Shanghai Ballet Troupe as a guest conductor.

Studying in Germany
In 1981, Hou Runyu was sent for further study at Hochschule Fuer Musik Koeln in Germany (Koeln Music Conservatory 德国科隆音乐学院 ). He became the conservatory's first student from mainland China.

Due to his rich work experience and solid musical background, Hou showed his own deep understanding and interpretation of music, which impressed his professor during his first class. The professor said: "You can either choose to attend the class for the freshmen or for the seniors." Hou Runyu attended both. He attended the freshmen's course in the hope of catching up on western music that he had lagged behind during his study at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Meanwhile, he attended classes with the seniors, as he didn't have to learn the basic theories and skills with the freshmen.

"As soon as I arrived in Germany, which enjoyed a strong artistic and musical ambience, I felt hungry and eager for western music. I learned as much as I could just like a sponge absorbs water." He continually strived to stretch himself - exploring different forms of music, especially western classical music. A lot of western musical pieces were therefore brought to China for the first time when he came back five years later, which filled the gap of China's symphony.

But studying in Germany was no easy task, as he had to overcome the language barrier as a priority concern. Although he was already in his late thirties, he learned German fast. "A musician usually has a more sensitive sense of hearing and a stronger ability to mimic( 模仿 ) others. That's probably the reason that I learned a foreign language fast."

Back to China
After five years' study in Germany, Hou Runyu returned to China with his master's degree in piano and doctor's degree in conducting. He worked as the Vice Director and Chief Conductor of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. At his debut right afterwards, his performance was extolled as in a western and modern style.

In 1990, he performed a road show around the US with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra. After a performance in the world famous Carnegie Music Hall in New York, the New York Times was quoted as saying: "When the conductor flung his baton to beat the music, it proves that the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is of the world-class level."

Working as a headmaster
In 1989, Hou Runyu went to Germany on his second tour as a visiting scholar. This time he stayed for more than ten years until he came back in 2002 and worked as the headmaster of the Xiamen Music School. In honor of his contribution, his name was listed in "Who's Who in the World" by the Cambridge International Biographical Center in 1987. In 2000, he was again listed as the "Outstanding People of the 20th Century" by the American Biographical Center.

"Xiamen's music education impressed me, but compared with Beijing and Shanghai, it still lags behind." During these two years, Mr Hou Runyu has been sparing no efforts in increasing the teachers' qualifications and more professional and effective music education for the students. Through his efforts, the Xiamen Music School is becoming widely known with more and more students from outside places like Inner Mongolia and Taiwan attending. At the same time, students have also achieved good results in some nation-wide musical competitions.