Jian'er Zhu

Zhu Jian'er (Chinese: 朱践耳; pinyin: Zhū Jiàn'ěr; born Zhu Rong-shi, October 18, 1922 – August 15, 2017), courtesy name Zhu Pu-chen, was a Chinese symphonic composer and songwriter. Zhu was born in Tianjin, China. In his early years, his grandfather moved his family to Shanghai. His family consisted of flour millers, and his father died when Zhu was three.

Out of admiration for Nie Er, Zhu Rong-shi changed his name to Zhu Jian'er.

He began composing in 1940 and pursued composition studies at the Moscow Conservatory in 1955. He was a professor at the Shanghai Conservatory. He composed for both Western and Chinese instruments and his works have been performed around the world. In 2000 he was commissioned by Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Project to compose Silk Road Reverie.

His 1950 revolutionary work Days of Emancipation (翻身的日子, Fānshēn de Rìzi; for banhu and Chinese orchestra) is well known in the West from its appearance on the 1981 CBS Masterworks compilation Phases of the Moon: Traditional Chinese Music.

Zhu died on August 15, 2017, in Shanghai.