After two decades overseas, violinist Pan Yinlin returns as concertmaster of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.

It's all about giving something back to the people and city that nurtured his talent, writes Susan Zheng Pan Yinlin, at the age of 56, has come full circle. The newly appointed concertmaster of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra was also the first violinist of the orchestra 22 years ago.

The smiling and soft-spoken Pan might not fill the image of a passionate artist, but his impressive resume tells all. Pan, now holds a Japan passport and former concertmaster of three leading orchestras in Japan and Australia, returns to where his career started, ready to revive the 124-year-old local orchestra.

"My achievements are attributed to the 14 years I spent at Shanghai Symphony Orchestra," Pan says. "I feel obligated to reciprocate it with my overseas experience."

In 1967, Pan, a straight-A graduate from the Middle School Attached to the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and a student of violin teacher Wang Renyi -- also the teacher of national anthem composer Nie Er -- was recruited into the orchestra and two years later, appointed first violin player. Pan reminisces that many senior musicians gave pointers to his performance. "I was so lucky to have their help," he says.

In the late 1970s, Pan gained nationwide fame by premiering many household melodies by renowned composer Chen Gang, who also co-wrote the fabled "Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto" in 1959. The violin solos Chen wrote were heavily influenced by folk music from Hunan and Yunnan provinces as well as the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The tunes were smash hits on radio and TV, and his performance was claimed to inspire a whole generation.

In 1981, Pan left Shanghai for Tokyo to unite with his wife, a Chinese pianist who has a Japanese mother. The move launched his international career.

In 1982, he won the first prize in a violin competition in Japan and two years later was appointed concertmaster, the first Chinese to accomplish this in Japan, of Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra -- one of the three major orchestras in Japan. However Pan attributes his success to luck. "The majority of Japanese musicians in the orchestra were kind to me," says Pan. "For a musician, your artistry is the primary thing to convince others. And you should be 'neither too humble nor too arrogant' (as a Chinese idiom goes)." The Chinese philosophy, an amiable temper and, above all, his virtuosity all pushed him from the back seat to the front row. Before the orchestra started hunting concertmasters around the world, Pan was chosen by his fellow musicians to be the first violinist. However, Pan and his family longed for something different. The dense urban jungle and crowds of Tokyo offered little relaxation.

In 1992, Pan and his family moved to Sydney. He became the concertmaster of the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra. In a year, he was involved in 10-plus operas and ballets performed in the famous Sydney Opera House. But his penchant for classical music drew Pan back to Japan and his former experience easily won him another prestigious stint -- as concertmaster of the Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra. During his stay in Japan, he also held dozens of solo recitals playing works by Chinese composers, winning wide acclaim.

His career culminated in 1997 as he acted as the concertmaster in a symphony concert that combined many of the best overseas Chinese musicians to celebrate Hong Kong's handover to the Chinese government. During the years working in the world's first-class orchestras, Pan has cooperated with many world-famous musicians, including Yo-yo Ma, Pinchas Zukerman and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

Last year, Chen Xieyang, artistic director and resident conductor of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, performed with Pan in Osaka. Afterwards, Chen cordially invited Pan to work with the orchestra. "Pan is an excellent and experienced violinist, who is familiar with international practices," Chen says. "Many Japanese orchestras offered him the post of concertmaster and higher pay than we could. But he chose ours because he has deep affection for the orchestra and his hometown Shanghai." For Pan himself, he regards applying his experience to upgrade the city's orchestra as "a very meaningful thing." Pan is bringing back a surprise for his fellow violinists. He returns with a big box of score books collected for more than 20 years. Inside the pages are recording techniques and bow skills and the fingers used by renowned orchestras. He will donate the collection to the local orchestra. "Some techniques are very different from those used in China. Hopefully, the methods can help my fellows here improve their skills," Pan says.

Pan formerly planned to return in April, but the SARS outbreak suspended his trip. However, he didn't allow depression to set in. Instead, he held a small charity concert in Sydney. With the help of the Chinese Consulate in Sydney, he donated all the proceeds to China's anti-SARS campaign. Starting working in the city this month, Pan's first performance with the orchestra will be the Asian premiere of Tan Dun's cello concerto "The Map" in late August. Newcomers in the orchestra Pan is not the only new musician to join the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra in August. Eleven graduates from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music mixes it up this season.

"This is the biggest recruitment we have had in recent years since more than 10 instrumentalists retired this year," says Song Guoqiang, director of the orchestra. "We will provide the newcomers with plenty of opportunities." The graduates major in violin, viola, cello, bassoon and flute among others. They are selected from dozens of conservatory graduates who applied. So far, the orchestra has 110 instrumentalists. Last Sunday, they had their debut concert with the orchestra under the baton of French conductor Philippe Entremont.

"We are so lucky to be recruited and many of our schoolmates envy us," says Su Ting, a new violinist. "Many young musicians in the orchestra are promoted to the front rows because of their high ability, it shows that the orchestra will give equal opportunities to all members regardless of their age. I will try my best."

(eastday.com August 6, 2003)