New sounds from an old instrument

WHEN someone mentions the pipa, most people either don't know what it is, or just think of it as a very old-fashioned Chinese wooden instrument shaped like a pear that plays funeral music, says The Pipa Quartet's leader, Samuel Wong, with a hint of frustration.

But that stigma is something that he and his quartet are on a mission to debunk, especially with their recent invention of the more versatile electro-acoustic pipa, which has already earned them the first-ever National Arts Council Creation Grant for performing arts.

"Certain genres like metal and punk music need electricity. Acoustic instruments can't play them. But by adding an electric component, our pipa can now play an infinite range of sounds," explains Dr Wong.