From Paulownia Blossoms to Strings
Lankao, Henan: China’s National Musical Instrument Hub

I. A Tree and a City in Concert

The Yellow River bends at Lankao, leaving behind sandy yet fertile soil. In the 1960s, Jiao Yulu urged villagers to plant Paulownia to stop the wind and anchor the dunes; half a century later these same trees breathe life into musical instruments that carry the county’s name to the world.

Today Lankao produces 700 000 units of guzheng, guqin, pipa, ruan, yangqin and more than twenty other traditional instruments every year. It supplies 90 % of China’s soundboards and 6 million sets of accessories, turning a desert-control project into a high-value industry.

II. Industrial Timeline

• 1988–2000 | Germination
         The first workshop opened in Gùyáng Town with a dozen carpenters copying blueprints mailed from Shanghai.
• 2000–2015 | Clustering
         Mechanization arrived; hundreds of family workshops scaled up into factories; Lankao soundboards began to dominate the national supply chain.
• 2015–Present | Take-off
         A 321-hectare National Musical Instrument Industrial Park was built, housing 19 leading firms and over 200 accessory suppliers. Xuchang Village and Fanchang Village have become veritable “instrument villages”.

III. The Ecosystem of a Single Tree

1. Paulownia Plantations
   300 000 mu (20 000 ha) of Paulownia are grown; each tree has an “acoustic passport” that records annual-ring density and moisture content.

2. Soundboard Capital
   Gùyáng Town alone hosts the country’s only cluster dedicated to Paulownia soundboards, holding more than 20 patents in vacuum drying and acoustic spectroscopy.

3. Manufacturing Matrix
   • Industrial park with shared spraying and testing centers.
   • Music Town with 36 flagship stores, a museum and 300 000 annual visitors.
   • E-commerce tower running Douyin & Tmall live streams that sold RMB 800 million online in 2023.

4. Ancillary & Derivative Industries
   Bridges, stands, strings, bags, cultural gift boxes—over 500 SKUs—achieve 85 % local sourcing. Off-cuts are re-engineered into furniture and home décor.

IV. Brand Galaxy

• Leading brands: Dunhuang, Zhongzhou, Jiao Tong, Jun Yi, Qin Sheng.
• Innovation: 388 patents in appearance, structure and acoustics.
• Standards: Seven industry standards led by Lankao, including “Paulownia Soundboard” and “Guzheng Timber Specifications”.

V. Portraits of Craft

Dai Shiyong, the pioneer who sold the first Paulownia boards to Shanghai in the 1970s, then brought Shanghai masters back to teach the village.
Yang Bing, a post-90s returnee, has filed nine patents and exports his Jiao Tong brand to Singapore.
Zhou Jinwei, a young luthier, earns over RMB 6 000 a month in his hometown workshop: “Orders now chase me.”

VI. Culture & Tourism: Production Lines Become Sightlines

National Musical Instrument Museum displays 1 200 historic pieces and offers a VR “Digital Luthier” experience.
Wuyin Road in Xuchang Village features 105 households flying 90 factory flags—open workshops for tourists.
Paulownia Forest Music Festival every May gathers thousands under blooming trees; the live stream reached ten million views in 2024.
A one-day study route—Paulownia Forest → Soundboard Workshop → Guzheng DIY → Evening Square Concert—has become a signature IP.

VII. Green Finance: Every Tree a Green Bank

The People’s Bank of Lankao launched the Yue Qi Tong Bao credit line, pooling mutual-guarantee funds and guild endorsements to disburse RMB 1.2 billion to SMEs. A dedicated industry fund reimburses 30–50 % of costs for technology upgrades, e-commerce and exhibitions, paying out RMB 82 million in 2024 alone.

VIII. Challenges & Future

Challenges: price pressure in mid-low segments, R&D below 2 % of sales, weak back-end services.
Roadmap 2025–2027:

• Build a “World Paulownia Instrument Highland” with annual output of RMB 5 billion.
• Create a national germplasm bank where “every tree is traceable and every board tunable”.
• Launch the China Lankao International Guzheng & Guqin Festival and host resident orchestras.
• Found the Lankao Luthier Academy with Central Conservatory, training 300 advanced makers yearly.
• Double export volume within three years via Belt & Road overseas warehouses.

IX. Coda: Strings Unbroken, Paulownia Evergreen

When the final coat of lacquer dries, a guzheng is gently laid into its case, the lid branded with the word Lankao. It will cross mountains and seas, carrying the story of the Yellow River’s old course, the spirit of Jiao Yulu, and the depth of the Central Plains in every resonant note.

The Paulownia trees still stand tall, their rings recording wind and rain; the music they birth carries this small county’s name farther still.

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