田进勤 Tian Jinqin Archive

This website presents a repository of documents and media developed following the first comprehensive study of the work of 田进勤 (Tian Jinqin), a pioneering figure in electronic music instrument design in China, conducted in collaboration with the author himself. In an upcoming publication, we introduce not only the biographical and contextual dimensions of Tian Jinqin’s contributions but focus particularly on his design principles, which anticipated many concepts later explored in Western academic discourse by several decades.

The materials on this website constitute the first digital archive dedicated to Mr. Tian Jinqin. They result from a visit and in-depth interviews conducted by Enrique Tomás and Martin Kaltenbrunner in February 2024, followed by ongoing conversations and weekly, if not daily, online exchanges between Enrique Tomás, Mr. Tian, and his son.

This study aims not only to highlight Tian’s importance within the history of Chinese music, as other authors have done, but also to understand deeply into his design decisions to inform the core aspects of his work. Our goal is to position his innovations as a bridge between traditional and contemporary China in terms of musical instrument development. Mr. Tian Jinqin was eager to share his experiences in designing electronic instruments and their interfaces; however, the relative obscurity of his work has left an extensive collection of academic, scientific, and artistic materials—including papers, schematics, sketches, and more—largely unrecognized. Organizing and translating these materials, as well as verifying them in consultation with Mr. Tian, has required over a year of dedicated effort.

As the first scholars likely to have engaged with Tian Jinqin’s complete body of published work since its inception, we recognize the critical importance of understanding the sociopolitical context in which he created his instruments and published his papers. For this reason, we are preparing both a book and a scholarly article on his work.

For further information please contact enrique.tomas@kunstuni-linz.at