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Junior is UD's only Swedish er hu player
“I've played the piano since I was 10 years old but it is too big,” he said. “I wanted something lightweight and strange instead.” Jonsson taught himself how to play the er hu before returning to Beijing last summer to take lessons. In January, Jonsson played for his first audience in Mitchell Hall at the Chinese New Year celebration sponsored by UD's Chinese Students and Scholars Association. Jonsson said he practiced intensely to prepare for the performance but still was very anxious. “I started with the goal of practicing the piece 100 times but it was not enough,” he said. “I was really nervous when I performed because I don't think I'm very good.” Song Lulu, a UD graduate student, helped arrange Jonsson's performance. Jonsson met Lulu in Beijing in 2000 while competing in a computer-programming contest. In 2001, Jonsson returned to Beijing for a year to study Chinese, and, in 2002, the two married and spent a year in Sweden before coming to Delaware. Last fall, Jonsson transferred to UD from Sweden's Lulea University of Technology. Jonsson said he plays the er hu a few times a week in their apartment but only at certain times. “We got a complaint that I played too late at night, so now I can only play during the day,” he said.
Jonsson said he has liked music since he was a young boy. “When I'm in a bad mood, music helps,” he said. “I can get angry at the instrument, and sometimes it helps me.” Jonsson said he can focus completely on the melody while playing the er hu and feels connected with the music when he plays at his best. “When you are really into it, you can feel exactly how long the note should be to capture a feeling,” he said. “That's rare, but it sounds very good when it happens.” Article by Julia Parmley, AS '07 |
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