Since Weng Zhen-fa and Mou Shan-ping developed the 37-Reed Sheng in 1985, all related instrumentation, finger chart, timbre, and performing techniques have all been discussed. However, there are only few existing literatures about the 37-Reed Sheng, and there have not been any articles or reference books that summarize all aspects mentioned above. Therefore, to gain insights into the original design concept of the 37-Reed Sheng, the structure of the instrument, and the sounding method of the instrument, I asked Weng Zhen-fa for advice, reviewed my experience of learning the Sheng and related literatures, and, furthermore, mapping the finger chart to describe the timbre of each register. On the aspect of Sheng performing, by reviewing the notation methods such as Jianpu numbered notation and five-line staff notation, the way of sound production is explained, and the notations are systematically summarized.

In addition, this thesis selected pieces written by different composers in different periods from 1976 to 2022 along with my analysis on contemporary pieces for Sheng to get better understanding of the orchestration and the use of timbre, exploring the imagination of different composers to the instrument.