Poetry then, songs now

Composer Gu Jianfen launches tour of colleges. Chen Nan reports.

Over the past six decades, Gu Jianfen has emerged as one of the country's most prolific composers, with hundreds of songs, including The Kiss From Mother, Missing and Young Friends Come Together. She has also mentored pop stars, such as Na Ying and Mao Amin. But now Gu is looking for new challenges.

"I have had many offers to write pop songs but I turned them down. I want to do other things," says Gu, 82.