Americans planning on visiting a factory in China?

[WC8KCY]

For those of you who have turned off the ads, I’m getting ads now for 7% off flights to China via Air China for Chinese New Year!!

Do they include the standard 3-week ransom “layover”?

Where's that damned "like button" when you need it?

+1

[Doug Elliott]

Winter of 2011-2012 my wife and I (string bass & trombone) did a tour of China with an orchestra from New York. Similar story, all the provided instruments (basses, cellos, and harp) were seriously substandard. One time an overnight travel was on unheated buses, temperature about freezing when we were promised luxury sleeper coaches. I was never aware of anybody following us around, and we did quite a bit of walking around the cities.

I'm glad we had a chance to do it, but I don't think I'd go back. I had a cough from the air pollution for a few months after.

[TheBerlinerTuba]

I hope everyone's 2019 is getting off to a good start

For an excellent firsthand account of how business really works in China, I can recommend this book by Paul Midler:

Poorly Made in China

https://www.amazon.com/Poorly-Made-Chin ... 1491552549

[Dan Castillo]

Just to ad to the anecdotal evidence of being "followed around" in China: when my quintet flew into Beijing in spring 2011, the first night at our hotel, we were approached by an "English professor" from another "part of China" who was in Beijing on business. He spoke very good English and wanted to know all about us and what brought us to China. For the rest of the trip we all joked that this "professor" was a government spy gathering information on us.

[mikebmiller]

The NY Phil goes to China every summer and Joe Alessi has done several seminars there. I wonder how they get all their basses, etc. there safely. Somehow, I don't see the NY Phil using rented student instruments.

[BopEuph]

Top-tier professional orchestras own a complete set of not-inexpensive trunks to carry their instruments under the chartered airliners.

I remember reading about how the NY Phil has exactly this, and in the wake of 9/11, many of the instruments were missing or damaged from TSA on one of their tours.

[bort]

Top-tier professional orchestras own a complete set of not-inexpensive trunks to carry their instruments under the chartered airliners.

I remember reading about how the NY Phil has exactly this, and in the wake of 9/11, many of the instruments were missing or damaged from TSA on one of their tours.

But are they traveling with their most valuable, irreplaceable instruments? I'm guessing not. Sure it's still bad and it's a hassle, but that's what insurance is for. I can only imagine which set of instruments they took with them to Pyongyang in '08...

[BopEuph]

But are they traveling with their most valuable, irreplaceable instruments? I'm guessing not. Sure it's still bad and it's a hassle, but that's what insurance is for. I can only imagine which set of instruments they took with them to Pyongyang in '08...

I imagine their backup instruments are still great instruments. And while insurance is highly likely, and all that was likely covered, it's firstly still stressful to have to deal with a broken instrument, especially on tour when you can't figure this stuff out; and secondly, your instrument insurance companies shouldn't have to foot the bill from incompetent workers who are handling our stuff and should know better than to steal and/or damage. Accidents do happen, but throwing our luggage around or "confiscating" without telling you (Here's an article about Christian McBride's bow disappearing from his case during travel: https://news.jazzline.com/news/christia ... tolen-tsa/" target="_blank) should be considered unacceptable by society, yet we just say "that sucks" and allow this to keep happening. It's incredibly frustrating, and I was much happier dealing with what could best be described as "an oversized thumb piano" than stressing about bringing my own bass to China.

So...I'm sorry for going completely off-topic here!

[MaryAnn]

That book sounds fascinating. And I wonder if Wyvern will chime in on the revived thread, what with apparent multiple trips to China.

There is apparently a sequel called What's Wrong With China by the same author.