By Xinhua Writer Li Kun
TIANJIN Orleans Darkwa Jersey , Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- This Monday marked the 203rd birthday Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the saxophone. The Belgian could never have imagined that over a hundred years after his death his invention would become the lifeblood of a small Chinese village.
For more than a decade, Sidangkouzhong Village, in north China's Tianjin Municipality, has been thriving thanks to the instrument-making industry. It has earned the nickname "Saxophone Village" as it produces more than 10,000 saxophones per month.
"Almost every family in my village has someone who knows how to make saxophones," said Zhang Guomin Brandon Marshall Jersey , Party chief of Sidangkouzhong.
Invented in 1840, saxophones have a complicated structure which cannot be produced solely by machinery, much of the process must be completed by hand.
According to Zhang, the village now has about 70 instrument factories with a total output value of about 45 million U.S. dollars in 2016.
The boom of the saxophone industry in Sidangkouzhong actually happened slowly over a long time frame, he said.
In 1970s, in order to increase villagers' incomes, a small factory was established to produce instrument components for a larger factory in Tianjin.
After China's reform and opening up drive started in 1978 Ereck Flowers Jersey , more factories were set in the village. By the 1990s, almost every family had an instrument workshop, according to Zhang.
In the 2000s the village began to focus specifically on saxophones, due to an increase in worldwide demand. Many small factories were transformed into modern companies and some even attracted foreign investors.
Zhang is involved in a joint venture with an output value of more than 10 million U.S. dollars per year. He said, like many other villagers, over 95 percent of his products are exported.
Saxophones have not only brought wealth to the village, but also created enthusiasm for studying music.
"Many of our students are very interested in playing the saxophone Darian Thompson Jersey , so we established a band to train them," said Liu Huanyu, head of the village primary school.
According to Liu, young farmers can often be seen playing saxophones in the fields in summer. For them the instrument is a form of entertainment while they work.
Although usually made of brass, saxophones are actually a member in the woodwind family.
"They are more powerful than other woodwind instruments and more adaptable than the brass instruments, which makes them popular all over the world," said Jiang Shengyong Sterling Shepard Jersey , a well-known saxophone player based in Tianjin.
Zhang said the village is also exploring how it can transform and update its instrument manufacturing industry in order to meet the diverse demands of the market.
"Producing high-end and tailer-made saxophones and other instruments is the way forward," he said.
By Xinhua writers Cheng Yunjie and Shen Yang
NANCHANG, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- During his first visit to Shanxi, a 1,000-year-old town in Jiangxi Province known for porcelain-making, Eric Kaplan from the United Kingdom received a blue and white plate bearing his family's insignia.
He received the gift at the ongoing 2015 China Jingdezhen International Ceramic Fair. Bearing the serial number 001, it is one of five newly fired porcelain plates that imitate pieces originally manufactured by Jingdezhen craftsmen some 600 years ago for European aristocrats.
Having grown up with a lot of fine china in his home Eli Apple Jersey , the descendant of a noble family in Leicestershire said it felt amazing to obtain something similar to a piece collected by his ancestors.
"We appreciate this art very much, and I am extremely honored to be here and very thankful," said Kaplan.
Master pottery maker Huang Yunpeng, who presented the plate to Kaplan as a gift, has collected more than 300 antique ceramics tailor-made by local craftsmen for special clients in Europe, including aristocrats, high-ranking officials Wayne Gallman Jersey , wealthy merchants and social organizations.
His son, Huang Bin, president of the Jingdezhen Imperial Kiln Company, said he hopes these antique porcelain pieces can attract people to revisit Jingdezhen's ties to the British nobility and boost the town's handmade porcelain industry.
A ROYAL HERITAGE
Hu Yinjiao, a resident of Jingdezhen, takes pride in the town's history as a royal porcelain supplier, not just for Chinese emperors but also European royals and nobility.
In the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) Davis Webb Jersey , Jingdezhen was not only the home of imperial kilns dedicated to Chinese emperors, but also saw strong exports in porcelain. It is estimated that some 100 million pieces of china were sold to Europe from the 16th to the 18th century.
"In overseas museums, quite a number of exquisite porcelain antiques for European royals and aristocrats were made in Jingdezhen. To understand how famous the city is, just look at the mark below each antique. Oftentimes, I've found it mentioned just the city -- adding the country was seemingly unnecessary," said Hu.
"When browsing armorial porcelain antiques in overseas museums, I do feel the town's strong connection with the royalty there Dalvin Tomlinson Jersey ," said Hu.
In Exhibition Hall A at the ceramics fair in Jingdezhen, Chinese swarmed the stands of royal suppliers to appreciate the designs.
Moorcroft, an 118-year-old brand based in Stoke-on-Trent of Staffordshire in England and an appointed "potter to H.M. The Queen" until 1978, is one of the most popular ceramics makers at the expo.
Head of Sales Gina McNicholas said that Moorcroft's heritage as a supplier to the Queen and royal families helps its sales in China.
"We've found our traditional English products have sold better than anything in China. It's very regal and royal. I think people buy into that idea," said McNicholas.
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