You Lan serves teaching and performance at once — for teachers who need one instrument for lessons and for taking students on stage, and for players who practise and perform on the same instrument.
Standard series assembly with an emphasis on stability: moisture content is kept in a tighter band, so seasonal changes produce less variation in the voice.
The tone is steady and reliable, with good tuning retention. Students hear clearly in lessons and the instrument holds up on stage — the "one instrument, two jobs" proposition.
With frequent switching between teaching and performance, keep two cleaning cloths to hand and check bridge positions after students take turns trying the instrument.
For how instruments are specified for the stage, see how to choose a performance-grade guzheng.
Buying advice: this model is listed at CNY 9100, which is the mid-range price of the 6 models in the Performance series (prices run CNY 6500 to CNY 9580).Golden Reverie (CNY 9580) is the next step up and is worth comparing if your budget is close. To keep the budget down, start from Mulan (CNY 6500). Only This Green sits at the same price with a different look and voicing — pick on taste. Bulk pricing is explained in How to order.
FAQ: How different is the Performance series from the Grading series? Mainly in orientation: Performance leans toward volume, projection and stage presence, while Grading leans toward stable action and honest feedback. Pick one primary direction for a given stage of study.
Suitable for: built for the stage, the Performance series suits professional ensembles, touring groups and ensemble rehearsal, and is often used for concerts and large events. Buying one model in batch keeps the voice consistent for ensemble work. Ensembles or institutions can reach us through the enquiry form and we will assign a dedicated contact.
The seams on the back are very even, and you can tell the work was done with care, very happy with it!
Bought for the new children in the orchestra, and the feedback has been good. It feels very solid overall, and it does not shift even when you play hard. The strings feel a little soft under the fingers, so a child can press them without strain.
The tuning holds very steadily, two months of playing and it has barely drifted!
The tone overall is on the warm side, rather than bright, which I prefer, it shipped the day after I ordered, delivery was faster than I expected. Very happy overall.
I had been watching this shop for a long time, and finally ordered, the colour is a shade darker than the photos, but it feels better made. The low register is full, and Fisherman's Song at Dusk sounds wonderful on it. Very happy overall.
Bought for stage performance, and the volume really is there, the tuning pins are set just right, neither loose nor stiff, five stars!
This is my second purchase here, and the feel is just as I remembered, a friend heard it at my place, and asked where I bought it, it looks even better made in person than in the photos, you can see the details far more clearly, I would recommend it!
I hesitated for a long time, and ordered during a promotion. The grain on the soundboard looks natural, the finish is thin, and you can tell it was applied by hand, I took it to a lesson, and my teacher said the tone was good too. Very happy overall!
Our ensemble replaced all its instruments, and bought one to try first, they sent me a video of the actual instrument before shipping, which put my mind at rest. At this price it holds its own against anything, I would recommend it!
I compared several sellers, and went with this one. No extra microphone is needed at performances, and the back rows can hear it. Customer service even showed me how to tune it, so I was not nervous picking it up for the first time, it drifted quite often at first, and took three tunings to settle, worth the price!
It has done several commercial gigs, and has stayed rock solid, compared with my last one, the difference was obvious straight away, this much workmanship at this price, there is nothing to find fault with.