On Aug 26, 2026, the sheng opened “Good News from Beijing Reaches the Border Village” at the “Sound of Nature” concert of the fourth London International Chinese Music Festival. Young performer Julia Luo began with a solo line; other instruments entered in response, and the sheng gradually became part of a larger ensemble texture. The moment captured a wider feature of London’s Chinese music scene: traditional instruments are appearing in concerts, mixed ensembles, workshops and regular teaching, where they can be heard in different contexts and sustained through continued participation.

For Luo, a sheng player with the UK Chinese Orchestra, this work connects performance with cultural exchange. From August to October, she took part in the London festival, a community celebration and cross-cultural concerts, while also helping organise and teach a Chinese music course. Across these settings, she has worked to make Chinese music present not only on stage, but also in rehearsal rooms and classrooms.

Julia Luo performs the sheng during the fourth London International Chinese Music Festival.

Held from Aug 24 to 28, the festival brought together concerts, a summer school and workshops. Directed by pipa artist Cheng Yu and organised by China Arts, UK Chinese Music and the London Youlan Qin Society in partnership with SOAS, University of London, it presented regional traditions including Chaozhou music, Jiangnan sizhu and Kunqu alongside contemporary works. Luo performed with the UK Chinese Orchestra and also supported the festival’s coordination, rehearsals and activities.

The programme asked musicians to move between distinct sound worlds. At the Aug 27 gala at Holy Sepulchre London, Luo played in Michael Ellison’s “Wanqu” (“Curve”), written for a mixed Chinese and Western ensemble. The collaboration required her to consider how the sheng’s sustained tone and changing breath direction could meet the phrasing and decay of other instruments.

Luo grew up in Guangdong and began studying the guzheng at the age of five. She later majored in euphonium at Xinghai Conservatory of Music in Guangzhou. The breath control and ensemble awareness developed through brass playing now inform her approach to the sheng. Its sound can sustain harmony or connect the fading resonance of plucked instruments; the player must judge how much to contribute while remaining alert to the ensemble.

The UK Chinese Orchestra performs at a London celebration marking the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. Luo is playing the sheng at left.

After the festival, Luo continued performing with the UK Chinese Orchestra. In September, she played at a London event marking the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. The change of venue and audience called for fresh decisions about repertoire, tone and balance. In the opening of “Good News from Beijing Reaches the Border Village”, the sheng introduces the melody; within the full ensemble, its volume and colour must be adjusted so the line remains clear without masking other parts.

Luo (second from right) and pipa artist Cheng Yu (second from left) meet leaders of the UK Teochew Culture and Commerce Association at a reception during the 77th anniversary celebration.

Luo’s London practice also includes brass ensembles. She was principal euphonium with the Southampton University Brass Band and the Southampton University Symphonic Wind Orchestra (SUSWO). That experience gave her a practical understanding of how a player can move between melody and accompaniment, blend within a section and make space for a colleague. The listening skills transfer to her work on the sheng, even though the instruments use different techniques.

Julia Luo (front row, centre), principal euphonium, with the brass section of the Southampton University Symphonic Wind Orchestra (SUSWO).

Julia Luo (front row, centre), principal euphonium, with the Southampton University Brass Band.

The work extends beyond performance. A ten-week autumn Chinese music programme organised by China Arts in partnership with SOAS began on Oct 17. Luo manages the course project and, with Wan Ying, teaches the ensemble class. There she helps students work through the same practical questions that shape concert rehearsals: when a part should enter, how it can answer another instrument, and when a player should reduce volume so a different line can be heard.

The same exchange between traditions was heard on Oct 26 at “Late Autumn: Between Wind and Moon” at St Mary-le-Bow Church. Organised by Rain Music in collaboration with China Arts, the concert brought together pipa, sheng, guzheng, piano and voice. Chinese songs and instrumental works appeared alongside music by Gabriel Fauré and Alexander Scriabin. Luo performed on sheng with pipa artist Cheng Yu and pianist Yuanfan Yang, contributing to a programme in which Chinese instruments shared the evening with Western classical repertoire.

Performers share the stage at “Late Autumn: Between Wind and Moon” at St Mary-le-Bow Church, London, on Oct 26, 2026.

Sheng player Julia Luo with pipa artist Cheng Yu after the “Late Autumn” concert.

For Luo, these activities form a connected path. A concert can introduce an unfamiliar instrument; a workshop gives musicians time to explore it; and a recurring class or gathering gives people a reason to return. Cheng’s long-running work in London, including summer schools, yaji gatherings and concerts, has helped create settings where Chinese instruments can be studied and performed. Luo contributes as a performer, course organiser and teacher, carrying ensemble practice from the stage into ongoing learning.

From a sheng solo at a festival concert to new mixed-ensemble works, community events and weekend classes, Luo’s work reflects the varied ways Chinese music is taking shape in London. Its reach depends on more than a single performance: it grows through the musicians who prepare the music, the organisations that create opportunities, and the listeners and students who keep engaging with it.