I used to be a member of the Ann Arbor Chinese
Traditional Music Ensemble, where I played bamboo flute. The sound of
Chinese music often creates a time tunnel, bringing me back to many
years ago, while I was in my hometown.
Harmonica
I am a harmonica hobbyist. Harmonica can become a "pocket piano", with advanced techniques such as octave, split, vibrato, and violin. I played tremolo harmonica when I was a graduate student. Later I also learned chromatic harmonica. Suzuki SU-21H Humming harmonica was my starting gear. It has a bright timbre, like brass instrument. I also have a maple wood combed Tombo 1521 which features a mellow tone---more pleasant to the ears especially when playing octaves. Interestingly, these two tremolo harmonica instruments have counterparts in chromatics: the bright tone Seydel Saxony and the silky tone Suzuki Sirius S-64C. Personally I think chromatics are more powerful but less expressive compared with tremolo. I'm trying to migrate some of the tremolo techniques to chromatics to overcome this limitation.
Foosball
At the University of Toronto, I played foosball almost everyday before
having lunch with my friends in the graduate student lounge. Once I won
two labmates using a single hand, with a score 8:0. That is the
best record that I have up to now.
Tai-Chi
I learned TaiChi during my undergraduate years, and still practice
it time and again in the morning. It helps me to start a day with peace
of mind.
