Professor of Horn、Head of Brass Studies, The Yehudi Menuhin School Qingdao
Head of Brass Studies, The Yehudi Menuhin School Qingdao
Professor of Horn, Shanghai Conservatory of Music
Distinguished Professor, School of Music, Soochow University
“Oriental Scholar” Distinguished Professor of Shanghai Higher Education Institutions, 2011–2016
Buffet Crampon Artist

Professor Wei Zhengqi entered the Shanghai Conservatory of Music in 1978, where he studied under Professor Han Xianguang. After graduation, he remained at the Conservatory as a horn teacher. In 1986, he was awarded an arts scholarship by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and went to Paris for further studies under a Franco-Chinese cultural exchange programme. In 1988, he received a master’s degree in horn, an Award of Excellence, and a doctorate-level third-cycle masterclass diploma from the Conservatoire de Rueil-Malmaison in France. He then entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris with a full scholarship, studying under the world-renowned horn pedagogue Georges Barboteu and André Cazalet, Principal Horn of the Orchestre de Paris. Between 1991 and 1994, he successively won First Prize in Chamber Music at master’s level, First Prize with a master’s diploma in horn, and a doctorate-level third-cycle masterclass diploma in horn chamber music.

As a professional horn player, Professor Wei served as Principal Horn of several professional orchestras from 1991 to 1994, including the Orchestre National du Mans in France, and undertook concert tours around the world. Since 1994, he has been Principal Horn for life of the Orchestre de Chambre Nouvelle-Aquitaine in France, and from 1994 to 2011 he was a guest hornist with the Orchestre de Paris. During more than thirty years based in Paris, he has collaborated extensively with world-class symphony orchestras and opera houses, performing in Paris and on international tours. He has been invited to appear at leading musical events such as the Orchestre de Paris’ “Mozart · Beethoven · Tchaikovsky” themed concerts and La Folle Journée de Nantes. He has also recorded several acclaimed horn albums, and his recordings have been broadcast regularly on French radio stations.

Professor Wei has long served as a jury member for entrance and graduation examinations at major French conservatories. In 2018, he was appointed to the jury for horn graduation and postgraduate examinations at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris, becoming the first Asian-born jury member in the institution’s history. He is frequently invited to give horn masterclasses at leading Chinese conservatories, including the Central Conservatory of Music, the China Conservatory of Music, the Xi’an Conservatory of Music and the Wuhan Conservatory of Music. He has also been invited on many occasions to participate in professional music events in China, such as the Sichuan Horn Week, the Sanya Horn Festival in Hainan, and the Dezhou Horn Festival in Shandong. In 2021 and 2023, he was invited to serve as a jury member at the Shenzhen Alexander International Horn Competition. In 2025, he was invited to serve on the jury for several categories at the Shenzhen International Horn Competition.

While devoting himself to the exchange and promotion of classical music culture between China and the rest of the world, Professor Wei Zhengqi has also dedicated decades to horn teaching. Many of his students have gone on to positions with leading professional orchestras at home and abroad, including the Hagen Symphony Orchestra in Germany, contemporary music ensembles in France, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra and the Suzhou Symphony Orchestra. Many of his students and chamber music ensembles have also won major awards at international horn competitions.