Amber Tai

On days with great weather, you can find Mr. Huang sitting under a big willow tree in Boston Public Garden, playing the erhu. The erhu is a two-stringed bowed instrument. “I just play to kill time,” says Mr. Huang with a relaxed attitude. He was born and raised in Sichuan, China, and learned how to play the erhu for two decades before moving to America during the Cultural Revolution in China. In the beginning, life as an immigrant was hard, and he had to work several shifts to make ends meet, leaving no time for his childhood passion: playing the erhu. Now, at 76 years old, he is a grandfather to several grandchildren. During his leisure time, he wears traditional Chinese costume and plays and practices his favorite instrument in the Public Garden.