Nie Er's tomb is situated on a hillside between the Taihua Temple and the Dragon Gate on the West Hills in Kunming City, Yunnan Province.
Nie Er (1912-1935), born in Yuxi of Yunan Province, was fond of music at a young age. In 1930 he joined the Shanghai Mingyue Song and Dance Troupe and in 1933 joined the Communist Party of China. Participating in left-wing music, plays, movies and other activities, he composedthe March of the Volunteers, which was chosen as the national anthem of the People's Republic of China by the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in 1949.
In 1935, on his way toRussiafor further study viaJapan, he drowned swimming in the sea nearFujisama,Japan. In 1938, his remains were brought back toKunmingCityand buried at the foot of Biji Hill in the West Hills. Nie's tomb was moved to its present location in 1980.
The tomb is shaped like a huge stringed instrument, and the 24 steps leading to it represent his age at the time of his untimely death; the seven parterres signify the gamut. On a black stone tablet are nine Chinese characters inscribed by Guo Moruo that mean "the Tomb of Nie Er -- The Musician of the People". There is also a statue of Nie and a wall with a relief sculpture representing a collection of tunes from the national anthem and the Great Wall.
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