Wu Man Visits The Met's Extraordinary Pipa

Wu Man (left) and Ken Moore (right) pose with The Met's Ming dynasty pipa. Photo by Jayson Dobney

«Pipa musician extraordinaire Wu Man returned to The Met last April to demonstrate her extraordinary instrumental skills by recording in the Museum's Astor Chinese Garden Court. Wu Man has long admired a spectacular Ming dynasty pipa in our collection that is decorated with over 110 hexagonal ivory plaques showing Taoist, Confucian, and Buddhist figures, and the April performance provided an opportunity for her to examine and appreciate the instrument again up close.»

Pipa, late 16th–early 17th century. China, Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Wood, ivory, bone, silk; 37 x 9 15/16 x 1 1/8 in. (94 x 25.3 x 2.9 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Bequest of Mary Stillman Harkness, 1950 (50.145.74)

Shortly after moving to the United States, in 1990, Wu Man first performed at The Met in 1992 in an Asian concert series sponsored by the Department of Musical Instruments, the World Music Institute, and the Society for Asian Music, followed by an encore performance the following year for the Museum's Membership Concerts. Since then, she has recorded over 40 albums (5 of which were nominated for Grammy Awards), became the first performer of a non-Western instrument to be named Musical America's Instrumentalist of the Year, and obtained The United States Artists Award. She was the first Chinese musician to perform at the White House, was a founding member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble, and has performed with the Kronos Quartet in addition to premiering many prestigious works.

Wu Man performs White Snow in Spring in the Astor Chinese Garden Court at The Met, April 13, 2016

This performance is part of a series of videos showing musicians demonstrating instruments from the Museum's collection. The most recent videos, which are supported by The Augustine Foundation, feature Wu Man and the guqin player Jiaoyue lyu.

Related Link
Of Note: Ken Moore, "The Many Sounds of Stone" (May 27, 2015)