Poem rings a bell

"Yet it is quite astonishing that despite its special place in human history, the bells as an instrument haven't made it to international fame. Of course specialists, Sinologists, music archaeologists, they know about the bells－but even most professional musicians outside China have not heard of this instrument yet. So, there's still quite a path to go to really see this instrument shine, or rather resonate again, after more than 2,000 years of silence," he adds.

Born and raised in Munich, Germany, Zollitsch, who is also known as Lao Luo among Chinese audiences, came to China on a scholarship to study the guqin, the seven-stringed Chinese zither, in Shanghai in 1993. He met Gong at a concert in Beijing in 2002. She has throughout her career performed many works by her composer husband.

Born in Guiyang, in Southwest China's Guizhou province, Gong started to learn Chinese folk songs at a young age. She joined the China Conservatory of Music in Beijing when she was 16 and went on to sing for the China National Traditional Orchestra after graduation. In 2000, Gong won the best female singer award at the Chinese National Singing Competition and became a popular figure on TV shows.