In recent years, the piano industry in China has gradually fallen into a deep abyss. Industry insiders say, “Last year was a collapse, this year is liquidation.” The country’s only two listed piano companies, Pearl River Piano and Hailun Piano, are both incurring losses. Former piano prodigies are now facing difficulties in finding jobs with low income prospects. Parents lament, “After ten years of practice and investing hundreds of thousands of yuan, all we got in return was a piece of paper.” The piano is transitioning from a necessary investment in rigid education to something dispensable.
According to a recent report by “China Business Strategies,” the piano industry is experiencing a situation where “last year was a collapse, this year is liquidation.” An owner of a piano store in Beijing lamented, “Many piano stores are starting to operate at a loss and clearance sales are happening. Pianos that used to sell for 50,000 yuan are now struggling to find buyers even for 5,000 yuan.”
Not only are new pianos affected, but the prices of second-hand pianos have plummeted to ridiculous levels. On the online platform “Xianyu,” pianos that originally sold for 40-50,000 yuan are now commonly priced at only a few thousand.
In 2024, over 7,000 piano stores in China closed down, and piano sales plummeted to 190,000 units, a drastic decrease from the peak period.
A seasoned industry practitioner expressed in a social media video, “The piano industry is even more challenging than the real estate sector. Once considered an essential part of childhood education, the piano, the king of musical instruments, has now seen a decline with dwindling demand for piano-making, selling, and teaching, leading to mass layoffs.”
Both of China’s listed piano companies, Pearl River Piano and Hailun Piano, are facing losses. Pearl River Piano recently announced an expected net loss of between 121 to 157 million yuan in the first half of 2025. In 2024, Pearl River Piano’s revenue was 677 million yuan, a decrease of nearly 40% compared to the previous year, with a net loss attributable to shareholders of the parent company reaching 236 million yuan, a 4108.2% year-on-year drop.
On the evening of July 24th, Hailun Piano announced that the Chen Hailun family intends to transfer their 60.26 million shares of Hailun Piano to Quantuo Zhaodai, accounting for 23.83% of the total share capital of the company, at a total price of 548 million yuan. After the transaction, Quantuo Zhaodai will hold 23.83% of Hailun Piano’s shares, surpassing the original controlling shareholder Hailun Investment (whose holdings reduced to 14.56%) to become the largest shareholder.
Behind this transaction is Hailun Piano’s continuous three-year decline in performance. From 2022 to 2024, Hailun Piano’s revenues were 379 million yuan, 297 million yuan, and 159 million yuan respectively, showing a nearly catastrophic decline. In the first quarter of this year, the net profit attributable to the shareholders of the parent company amounted to a loss of 9.6848 million yuan, a 154.56% increase in losses compared to the same period last year.
Reportedly by “China Business Strategies,” in 2025, it has become increasingly difficult for training institutions to recruit students, with some institutions even hiring three professional recruitment teams but failing to enroll a single student, a sight unseen in the industry for years.
Many institutions have tried to lower tuition fees or increase enrollment by offering discounts, but with minimal success. Some institutions have turned to the elderly market but struggle to sustain due to too low customer unit prices. The head of one institution admitted, “The going rate for piano lessons in general senior universities is only 380 yuan per person per year, making it impossible to teach effectively.”
Industry insiders analyzed that with the property market relaxation in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen leading to more layoffs in major companies, the piano, once deemed a symbol of the bankruptcy “trilogy” for the middle class, inevitable decline. The piano has shifted from being a necessary investment in education to being one that can be reduced. As it fails to bring about functional changes for households or secure futures for children, the market has shifted.
The seismic shake-up in the piano industry has not only devastated practitioners but has also shattered the musical dreams of numerous piano prodigy families.
“After all the money my parents spent for me to learn the piano, tens of thousands of yuan in total, after graduation, the institution only offered me a basic salary of 3,000 yuan and a 35% commission on lesson fees, often struggling to attract students. It’s so ironic,” said Ms. Zheng, a recent graduate from a music college in Guangdong in June 2025.
The report reveals that in 2025, only 46.3% of musical professionals earn over 6,000 yuan per month, with most graduates needing several part-time jobs to make ends meet, far below the high costs of their education.
A comment from a Shanghai parent reflects the core of the industry dilemma, stating, “After ten years of practice and investing hundreds of thousands, all we got in return was a piece of paper.” When art education transforms into a utilitarian investment, the burst of this bubble was inevitable.
A report titled “Research on the Status Quo and Development Opportunities of China’s Piano Industry in 2019” indicated that at the time, there were over 40 million piano learners in China, with a 29.3% increase in the number of piano prodigies between 2008 and 2013.
The piano, known as the king of musical instruments, has always been seen as a barometer of the music education market. Its collapse signifies a downturn in the entire music industry. Today, training markets for instruments like the guzheng, flute, vocal training, etc., are all struggling, and in 2025, the number of applicants for art college entrance exams hit a historic low, dropping below one million for the first time, leaving even prestigious schools like the Central Conservatory of Music with unfilled enrollment spots.
Based on observations and insights from industry insiders, three main reasons for the piano industry’s collapse can be summarized.
Firstly, a decline in middle-class consumption, with pianos being one of the first luxury items to be discarded. Blogger “Fenshuguantianxia” mentioned, “Even an entry-level piano costs over ten thousand yuan, coupled with tens of thousands in lesson fees annually, the total investment can reach millions. With the recent economic downturn and shrinking wealth in real estate and stock markets, the purchasing power of middle-class families has significantly decreased, making pianos a prime target for cutbacks.”
Secondly, the discontinuation of bonus points policies for students with artistic talents. The aforementioned industry insider noted that in 2018, all 31 provinces nationwide fully abolished bonus point policies for art certifications and competition certificates, rendering those hard-earned certificates irrelevant to parents. It is from around 2018 that piano sales in China began to decline year after year.
Lastly, piano enlightenment education has been led astray. Blogger “Fenshuguantianxia” indicated that policy-driven false demands have led to chaos in the industry. Examination institutions openly show pass rates but students end up spending hundreds of thousands of yuan on piano lessons without being able to play common tunes.
Mr. Yang Ming, a teacher from “Qin Hang Dajiangtang,” expressed that numerous examination materials have made children lose interest in learning the piano, which has distorted enlightenment education. Most of these examination materials are not compiled by frontline teachers and principals but by experts from elite music institutions, detached from reality, leading the industry down the wrong path.
A parent of a child posted online, saying, “Current piano teaching emphasizes how to handle, read sheet music, and exert force, resulting in a situation where without the sheet music, students can’t play. This is very strange. Piano education should integrate music theory, sight singing, ear training, playing, harmony, accompaniment, and composition, allowing students to gradually develop their own creative abilities.”