An orchestra in China has set its heart on reviving the country’s ancient musical traditions.

It feels like a fantasy to be inside a large hall, filled with the melody of Auld Lang Syne being played on a set of stone percussion musical instruments that date back to at least 2,000 years ago.

But when the Huaxia Ancient Music Orchestra plays all 10 kinds of ancient musical instruments in its possession, the Henan Museum comes alive in an acoustic feast, transporting listeners to a long-lost time. Huaxia is considered a romantic synonym for the word China.

The 15-member orchestra was founded in 2000 in Zhengzhou, the capital city of central China’s Henan province.

According to Huo Kun, deputy head performer of the orchestra, the orchestra’s birth was triggered by a project in the province’s Xichuan county, where wangsungao bianzhong (bronze bells) were unearthed in 1978.

As many as 26 different bells from 2,500 years ago are among the best preserved musical instruments of that era. Their copies are now at the heart of the orchestra.

“Central China has been an important hub of music since the dawn of human civilization,” Huo tells China Daily.

Driving Huo’s point is a bone flute from about 8,700 years ago, left as a key exhibit at the Henan Museum. The flute is believed to be among the world’s oldest musical instruments that can play seven pitches.

The orchestra’s shows help to present the museum’s archaeological exhibits in an artistic way and audiences are made to understand history through music, he adds.

During the two shows that the orchestra holds at the museum daily, its members endeavor to make their music travel wide so as to enhance people’s knowledge of traditional Chinese culture.

“We cannot change at will the musical instruments or costumes to better adapt to today’s audience,” Huo says. “Each adjustment requires academic research that takes a long time. That’s why our shows take years to prepare.”

Mu Wenjun, 33, has performed in the orchestra since its founding. Although she already played several traditional Chinese musical instruments before she joined the group, Mu describes her early days with the orchestra as “meticulous”.

“There were no textbooks to teach us how to play these instruments, they demand different techniques,” she says. “We had to learn by ourselves, through trial and error.”

The Huaxia Ancient Music Orchestra doesn’t have a conductor onstage, because in the older days, no performer was allowed to turn his back on the emperor. However, rhythmic drumbeats throughout the show help to coordinate different parts of the ensemble.

The members’ marvelous costumes, their musical instruments and the rituals during performances are all based on research in Henan.

Wang Geyang, assistant artistic supervisor of the troupe, says: “While translating ancient music recordings into modern scores, we often find that the original cultural context is lost.

“It’s impossible to present the music as it was played thousands of years ago. We have to reconstruct the music in such a way that we are able to keep its original spirit while meeting modern society’s aesthetic needs.”

Her team has deciphered more than 20 ancient scores and created 30 pieces of such melodies.

“When people get close to the old musical rituals, they will have a better understanding of the harmony between human beings and nature, which is embedded in the melodies, and will nurture new feelings for life.”

In 2011, Wang led the troupe to present an ancient Chinese-style musical called Shangyuan Dengyue (the moon as seen during Lantern Festival) at the museum, which was critically acclaimed.

She says that there’s a need to develop new techniques to better present the ancient music, without performers having to deviate from any rigorous research-based approach.

When the orchestra travels around the world, Wang says that ancient Chinese music resonates with people overseas.

She cites the ancient Silk Road as an important route where the music of different civilizations intermingled. During the orchestra’s tour of 10 universities in the United States last year, she also found younger people taking to the music. The revitalization of ancient Chinese music is more than just an experiment, Wang says.

“We want to rebuild a musical hub at the museum to preserve China’s cultural heritage and spread it to a wider audience,” she says.