The Butterfly Lovers' Violin Concerto (), along with the Yellow River Piano Concerto, is one of the most famous Chinese works of orchestral music. It is an adaptation of an ancient legend, the Butterfly Lovers. Written for a Western-style orchestra, it features a solo violin played using some Chinese techniques. This concerto is written in traditional 5-note technique (pentatonic scale). It uses melodies from Shaoxing Opera, chord structures and patterns, and tries to imitate the playing techniques of Chinese musical instruments. This gives the piece a distinctive "Chinese" sound, though it uses tonal harmonies. The concerto was written in 1959 by two Chinese composers, He Zhanhao (何占豪, born 1933) and Chen Gang (陈钢, born 1935), while they were students at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. The work is a common feature in figure skating and in concert halls worldwide. This concerto is now often performed with Chinese instruments playing the violin part, the most common being Erhu, Pipa and Liuqin. In such cases the soloist is often accompanied by an orchestra consisting of Chinese instruments. He Zhanhao is more widely credited for the composition of the concerto. However, his main contribution was the famous opening theme while most of the development was in fact written by Chen Gang. This was revealed in an interview of by China Central Television with several artists contributed in the creation and popularity of this piece of work in China and worldwide. The 1959 premiere of the Butterfly Lovers Violin Concerto featured 18-year-old violinist Yu Lina and took place in Shanghai as part of the celebration of the 10th anniversary year of the founding of the People's Republic of China. It was first recorded in 1959 with soloist Yu Lina on violin and the Symphony Orchestra of Shanghai Music Conservatory conducted by Fan Cheng-wu, and later by Shen Rong in 1961 with the same orchestra and conductor. The latter recording was re-released in 1977 by China Record Company. This piece is also adapted into other forms, including piano concerto by Chen Gang and piano solo by Sun Yilin (孙亦林, Jan 3, 1935 - Apr 5, 2015). Story and musical elements The concerto is in one movement, but is broken into seven distinct sections. Each tells a different part of the story of the Butterfly Lovers. Some of the melodies come from the Chinese Opera of the same name or from traditional Chinese folk songs. The