Fun in games
"It was an unforgettable experience because we saw how much children enjoyed music. They were not bored at all," recalls Lei, who learned to play the piano as a child and graduated from the China Conservatory of Music as a composer with a master's degree in 2005.
"Their improvement was beyond music itself. For example, they developed their social skills during such classes."
Zu was also impressed by the experience.
"As children, we learned music by practicing our musical instruments for hours every day. It was not so much fun, to be honest. I just practiced the music pieces as my teacher said but I didn't enjoy the process very much," says Zu, who learned to play the erhu (two-stringed Chinese fiddle) as a child and graduated from the China Conservatory of Music with a bachelor's degree in 2004.
"Many children learn music in the country. For those who don't become professional musicians, they can also benefit from learning music in a fun way."
The experience sparked an idea. In 2018, after becoming mothers, Lei and Zu, along with their musician friend, Lin Yan, decided to become entrepreneurs by launching their own music label to offer music training to children of all ages.
After a few years of experimenting with the idea by giving music classes to children through online courses and physical classes at kindergartens and primary schools, their label, Dolala, was introduced online in the form of a new app recently.