Chinese music in Sydney, Australia, and new modes of transmission: The case of a community conservatory

Chinese people have performed their music in Sydney (Australia) for well over a century, albeit with fluctuating frequency and mostly to Chinese audiences. Since 2015, interest in Chinese music has been mounting in Sydney. This case study explores the experiences of nine instructors who teach Chinese musical instruments at a private music conservatory which one of them founded. The data collected reveal that: teaching Chinese music in a multicultural diasporic context involves a range of unique challenges; while there has been an increase in the number of people learning Chinese musical instruments, the music is still not widely known or popular in Australia, and; the study’s participants are successfully employing a range of novel strategies to address some of the challenges and to raise the music’s public profile. The study uncovers aspects of Chinese music’s dynamism in a multicultural context, and the vibrancy it brings to Australia’s contemporary culture.