SUMMER CAMPS PROMOTE TRADITIONAL ART FORMS

Seasonal gatherings gaining in popularity

Chen Jiayi was not keen on playing the pipa when her father first suggested she study the 2,000-year-old, four-stringed Chinese musical instrument. She was about 10 years old at the time and had earlier spent two years learning to play piano.

"For a start, the piano is much easier to play than the pipa," said Chen, 21, a Beijing native, adding that her fingertips have fake nails which she uses to pluck the strings. "It was uncomfortable in the beginning," she added.