A Shanghai-born cellist was a jewel in the crown of the famed Philadelphia Orchestra's recent performances at the World Expo, Nie Xin reports. The oriental face of Ni Hai-ye in the Philadelphia Orchestra performing at the Expo Culture Center was hard to ignore and the fans loved her.

The orchestra's Shanghai-born principal cellist is one of the most accomplished young cellists of our time and her performance was integral to the group's stunning shows last month.

There is a sweet irony in Ni's key role in the contemporary orchestra. In 1973 it was the first Western orchestra in many decades to undertake a concert tour of China where it was very popular and signified a new era of cultural exchange between the countries.

Ni has been hailed for her skills as being "incredibly pure and well intonated" with a "captivatingly beautiful manner."

Her play in Shanghai was a showcase of technique with a beautifully controlled cantabile line, soulfully expressive and brightly aware as she ran brilliantly through all the repertoire.

"I was so glad to have the opportunity to perform at the Expo site. It's a big honor to show my hometown to my colleagues in the orchestra," said the low-key artist in an interview in the lobby of the Donghu Hotel.

Clad in simple T-shirt and pants, baby-face Ni's gentle smile and quiet manner contrasted with the richly traditional and antique red-wood furniture in the stylish hotel.

During her short stay in Shanghai, Ni became the focus of Chinese media, even stealing the limelight from popular Chief Conductor Charles Dutoit.

Apart from the two concerts in Shanghai, Ni attended a master class with music students and repeated the performances in Beijing.

Ni is no stranger to the high-profile attention accorded to world-class musicians. She has performed at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Smithsonian Institute, and the Wallace Collection in London. Her performances have been broadcast throughout the United States on National Public Radio.

She won the best performance prize from the Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow and featured on the cover of Strings magazine and in the book "21st Century Cellist."

Born in Shanghai in 1972 and migrating to the US with her family at the age of 13, the Expo performance was her fourth visit back to her hometown since leaving.

Ni toured the Expo site and was impressed by the Spain and China pavilions. "Like other visitors, I was excited and bought some souvenirs from the Expo Park," Ni said.

Ni started learning the cello at the age of seven, three years after first playing the violin. "My mum is a cellist and she was my first teacher," she said. Then she studied in Shanghai Conservatory of Music.

After moving to the US, Ni studied with Irene Sharp at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Joel Krosnick at the Juilliard, and William Pleeth in London.

"Nowadays more and more Chinese musicians go to Western countries to learn music," she said.

"It does help their music career a lot, due to the mature classical music environment, cultural background and education standards," she said.

Ni first came to prominence via her critically acclaimed New York debut at Alice Tully Hall in 1991. This noted performance was a result of Ni winning first prize at the Naumburg International Cello Competition in 1990.

Ni has soloed with many orchestras such as the San Francisco Symphony, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, National Orchestra de Paris, the Finnish Radio Symphony and the Shanghai Symphony.

She made her debut with the Chicago Symphony in 1997 under the baton of Christophe Eschenbach. That same year, she performed a 14-city US tour of a new concerto by Bright Sheng, "Two Poems," for cello and Chinese traditional instruments.

She has collaborated with renowned artists such as Pinchas Zukerman, Yefim Bronfman, Leonidas Kavakos, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Joshua Bell, Lynn Harrel, Christian Tetzlaff and members of the Emerson Quartet.

In 2009, she performed with Lang Lang at Carnegie Hall for their Chinese festival, "Ancient Paths, Modern Voices: A Festival Celebrating Chinese Culture."

Ni started her career as an associate cellist in 1990 with the New York Philharmonic. During her tenure through to 2006, she collaborated with Bobby McFerrin in the Vivaldi Concerto for two cellos, and made her solo debut with the orchestra in 2003.

"It's different playing as a soloist compared to being a member of an orchestra," she said.

"My time as a soloist gave me a lot of strength and experience. After that, I considered entering a group to learn how to work with a team. As a principal cellist in an orchestra, I need to be more responsible to my team and consider my colleagues."

When Ni gave her second performance in Shanghai in 2005, she played Elgar's "Op. 85 Cello Concerto in E Minor" in concert with the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.

The piece is the signature work of British cellist Jacqueline du Pre, another student of William Pleeth, and it's unavoidable for Ni to be compared to du Pre given their tutelage by Pleeth.

"I am not unhappy with those comments or comparisons with other musicians. Actually it's a big honor," she said.

The comparisons go further with Western commentators hailing her thus:

"Cellist Hai-ye Ni sounded like the youthful Yo-Yo Ma."

"I am still young and have a lot to learn from those top musicians with more experience and success. Both Yo-Yo Ma and Jacqueline du Pre are my models," she added.

Like many Shanghainese who have been away from home for many years, Ni is shocked by the city's rapid development.

"I still remember the first time I returned to Shanghai in 1995, 10 years after I left as a teenager. There were no tall buildings like today. One of the few shopping malls was the Friendship Shopping Mall in Hong Qiao area," she recalled.

"It was just like when I originally left, but things were totally changed when I returned 10 years later.

"It seemed that Shanghai became another city -- a metropolitan city like New York and Tokyo."

Ni missed the typical Shanghai-style foods. Every time she came back, she had to find her favorites -- xiaolongbao (steamed buns), shengjianbao (fried dumplings), hun-tun (small dumplings) and kaofu (wheat gluten).

Witnessing the growth of the classical music environment in China, Ni is willing to give more frequent performances in her home country. Like other famous Chinese musicians living overseas such as Yu Long and Wang Jian, Ni also has plans to collaborate with Chinese local ensembles.

She will return to Shanghai next month to play in Tan Dun's "Map" in collaboration with Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra.

In December, she will perform in Beijing with the China Philharmonic Orchestra.

"I will also come to Shanghai next June," she said, excited at the prospect of more frequent visits.

Her schedule with the Philadelphia Orchestra will include Europe through to next June.

"I like European cities like Vienna, London and Berlin but also Tokyo. Of course Shanghai is always the most special city to me," she said.