Nie Er was born in Kunming on February 14, 1912. His original name was Shouxin and his courtesy name was Ziyi (also known as Ziyi). Originally from Yuxi, Yunnan. In 1918, he entered the Primary School Affiliated to Kunming Normal University and began to receive formal education. He excelled academically in school and loved music. After school, he learned to play flute, huqin, sanxian, yueqin and other ethnic instruments from folk musicians, and became familiar with traditional music. In 1922, he entered the senior department of the private Qiushi Primary School and was an active member of the school's "Student Music Troupe". In 1925, he was admitted to Yunnan Provincial No. 1 United Middle School as a transfer student. At the time when the first domestic revolutionary storm was rising in southern China, he began to be influenced by progressive publications and revolutionary songs such as "The Internationale". In 1927, he was admitted to the English section of the Senior Department of Yunnan No. 1 Normal University. He participated in the "Reading Club" activities of the school's student progress organization, organized the "Nine-Nine Music Club" with his friends, often participated in music and drama performances inside and outside the school, and began to learn the violin. and piano. After 1928, he became more actively involved in various open and secret revolutionary activities. In order to evade arrest, he fled Kunming in July 1930 and transferred to Shanghai via Vietnam.

In November 1930, Nie Er joined the "Anti-Imperial Alliance" in Shanghai. In March 1931, he was appointed as the violinist of Mingyue Opera Society. He received strict violin training from Pudushka and also studied piano, harmony, composition method, etc. on his own. In April 1932, he met Tian Han, a left-wing playwright and poet, and established contact with the left-wing literary and artistic circles, further strengthening his confidence in taking the road of revolutionary music. The friendship and cooperation with Tian Han had a profound impact on Nie Er's artistic achievements. In August 1932, he went to Peking and actively participated in the performance activities and organizational construction of the Peking Left-wing Dramatists Alliance and the Left-wing Musicians Alliance, and continued to study violin under the foreign teacher Tonov. Returned to Shanghai in November.

Nie Er soon joined Lianhua Film Company after returning to Shanghai. With ardent enthusiasm and abundant energy, he participated in left-wing music, drama, film and other aspects of work, and was actively engaged in creative and critical activities. At the same time, he also participated in the music group of the "Friends of the Soviet Union", initiated and organized the "China Emerging Music Research Society", and later participated in the music group of the Chinese Left-Wing Dramatists Alliance. In April 1934, Nie Er entered EMI Records, co-chaired the music department with Ren Guang, and organized the recording of some progressive songs. In January 1935, he transferred to the Second Studio of Lianhua Film Company as the director of the music department. The increasingly serious white terror forced him to decide to go abroad to study in the Soviet Union via Japan. He arrived in Tokyo on April 18. In Japan, Nie Er inspected developments in Japanese music, drama, movies, etc., introduced the new developments of Chinese music to the Japanese literary and art circles, and stepped up his study of foreign languages ??and music. On July 17, he unfortunately drowned and died while swimming at Kunuma Beach in Fujisawa City. He was only 23 years old.

Introduction to the works:

Nie Er composed 37 songs in his lifetime, all in less than two years before his death, while engaging in various activities. Among them, songs that reflect the life and struggles of the working class account for a large proportion. The first work published in August 1933 was "Mining Song" (civilized by Tian Han, interlude of the film "The Light of Motherhood"). Subsequently, in the film "The Road" premiered on New Year's Day in 1934, he also created "Pioneer of the Road" (lyrics by Sun Shiyi) and "Song of the Big Road" (lyrics by Sun Yu). Since then, he has successively composed some excellent worker songs such as "Dock Workers' Song" (poem by Pu Feng), "New Women" (poem by Sun Shiyi), and "Strike the Yangtze River" (poem by Tian Han). Nie Er was the first composer in the history of Chinese music to successfully portray the image of a working-class hero.

Another important part of the songs composed by Nie Er are patriotic songs in the style of marches. This is the most influential part of his songs. Including "Graduation Song" (civilized by Tian Han, theme song of the film "The Peach and Plum Tribulation"), "Forward Song" (also known as "Coolie Song", cimed by Tian Han, interlude of the opera "The Tempest on the Yangtze River"), "Self-Defense Song" (civilized by Tang Na, The theme song of the film "Escape") and the "March of the Volunteers" (civilized by Tian Han, the theme song of the film "Children of the Storm") which later became the national anthem of the Communist Party of China.

With their calling tones with distinctive characteristics of the times, decisive and courageous rhythms, and unstoppable momentum, these songs powerfully express the Chinese people's revolutionary spirit of not fearing violence and fighting bravely in the midst of severe disasters, thus in spread quickly and widely among the masses.

Nie Er also composed some lyrical songs, the most important of which are "Song of Flying Flowers" (lyrics by Sun Shiyi, the theme song of the film "Flying Flower Village"), "Village Girl Beyond the Great Wall" (lyrics by Tang Na, the film "Escape") "Interlude), "The Singer Under the Iron Heel" (lyrics by Xu Xingzhi, interlude in the film "Children of the Storm"), "Farewell to Nanyang" and "Mei Niang Song" (both lyrics by Tian Han, interlude in the drama "The Song of Rejuvenation"), etc. These songs tell the story of the suffering and injustice of the Chinese people who have suffered so much. They contain perseverance in the depth of their emotions and strong beauty in their lyrics. This makes his lyrical songs show new characteristics among the lyrical songs of the same era. In addition, Nie Er also composed some songs reflecting children's lives, the most outstanding of which is the famous "Newspaper Selling Song".

With high revolutionary enthusiasm, Nie Er's songs exposed the contradictions in society and sang out the aspirations of the people. It brings strength and light to the people. He opened the way and laid a solid foundation for China's proletarian revolutionary music.