Draft:Xiaoqi Zhou

Zhou Xiaoqi

Zhou Xiaoqi (1967~) was born in Queshan, Henan, China. He is one of the founders of Haoyun Musical Instruments Co., Ltd, and a master of violin luthier.

Personal Life

Zhou Xiaoqi grew up in a poor family, but he developed strong hands-on skills in childhood. In 1986, he began to learn how to make violins at Beijing Erwin Violin Co., Ltd. Since Beijing Erwin Violin Co., Ltd. was the only foreign-owned company in Beijing at that time, the selected raw materials from Europe were highly favored by violin manufacturing professionals in Beijing. In China, Beijing Erwin Violin Co., Ltd. had widespread attention from China’s academic violin manufacturing professors at that time. Under the guidance of famous Chinese violin manufacturing professors such as Zheng Quan, Zhou Xiaoqi's production level has also made qualitative leaps throughout the years.

Li Lianzhi (1970-) is Zhou Xiaoqi's wife. In 1992, she began to specialize in violin post-production modifications. After learning the painting process from her teachers, she completely mastered the complex and complete manual processes including the initial coloring of the violin, the background coloring, and the final tone shaping. Especially on the premise of following the ancient methods, she developed a unique hand-painting process and achieved great success in the coloring restoration of European classical violins (1600-1900), paving the way for Haoyun Musical Instruments Co., Ltd.

Zhou Feilong and Zhou Ying are the children of Zhou Xiaoqi and Li Lianzhi. Zhou Feilong and Zhou Ying studied violin and cello since childhood. Zhou Ying graduated from the Tianjin Conservatory of Music, while Zhou Feilong majored in cello and studied under An Jingzhi from the Central Conservatory of Music. The siblings gained a unique understanding of the timbre of violins and cellos in classical music and the modern violin. They boldly tried different violin-making methods used in the past and nowadays and formed their methods. This laid to the foundation for inheriting the violin-making craftsmanship from their parents and gradually taking over the family's violin-making industry.

Haoyun Musical Instruments Co., Ltd.

Since 1996, the mid-to-high-end violins produced by Beijing Yatong Violin Co., Ltd. and Queshan Haoyun Violin Manufacturing Company, as well as OEM violins produced for European counterparts, account for the 2% share of the exports of China's violin manufacturing industry. Haoyun Musical Instruments Co., Ltd. was founded by Zhou Xiaoqi, Li Lianzhi, and Li Jianming in 2001. It is a famous violin company within China and also a world-famous violin manufacturer.

Under the guidance of the investment promotion policy of the Queshan County Government, and with the promotion of Zhou Xiaoqi, Li Lianzhi, and Li Jianming, Queshan County, Zhumadian, Henan Province, which was once a national-level poverty-stricken county in China, has formed a violin manufacturing center, represented by the Henan Haoyun Musical Instrument Co., Ltd. It has an annual production capacity of more than 400,000 to 500,000 violins, with an annual export value of 20 to 30 million US dollars. Data shows that 90% of the world's violins are made in China, and more than 80% of the mid-to-high-end violins made in China come from Queshan, Mr. Zhou Xiaoqi's birthplace, of which Haoyun Musical Instruments Co., Ltd. accounts for 10%.