The Butterfly Lovers 梁祝 Liáng Zhù (

Check out the video of Lü Siqing’s or Yu Lina’s violin solo.

The legend has been handed down over a thousand years. Among various versions of this classic story, the most popular form is the violin concerto “Liang-Zhu”, composed by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang in the 1950s. First performed by Yu Lina in 1959, the concerto is one of the few Chinese pieces that have entered the international stage. It has been performed by many famous violinists, including Japanese violinists Takako Nishizaki and Akiko Suwanai.

Zhu Yingtai, the only daughter of a wealthy Zhu family in Shangyu, Zhejiang, convinced her father to allow her to attend school in disguise as a young man. On her way to Hangzhou, she met Liang Shanbo, a young man from Kuaiji in the same province, who was also going to Wansong Academy to study. The two became sworn brothers and studied together for three years. Liang Shanbo was still unaware of the femininity his roommate revealedwhen the latter was returning to Shangyu. When he finally realized what Zhu Yingtai had hinted at to him, he hurried to the Zhu family. However, Zhu Yingtai was already engaged to Ma Wencai, a man from a rich family. Depressed, Liang Shanbo died in office as a county magistrate in Ningbo. On the day of Zhu’s marriage, whirlwinds prevented the wedding procession from escorting the bride to the bridegroom’s residence. Zhu asked the sedan bearers to stop the bridal sedan near Liang’s grave and she got off the sedan to pay respects to Liang. The rain poured, and suddenly, a huge bolt of lightning hit the grave and it split open. Zhu threw herself into the grave to join Liang, and the grave closed up. The storm immediately disappeared and the skies became cleared. The couple was transformed into a pair of butterflies rising out of the grave and dancing side by side in the sunshine.

The tragic romance of

and Zhu YingtaiLiang Shanbo

The story is set in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420), when marriage was determined by social status and arranged by parents . . .

The Butterfly Lovers:梁 山 伯 与 祝 英 台

东晋 Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420)