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Performances & Interviews

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Performances

Guangling San 廣陵散

Long regarded as one of the ten best ancient Chinese guqin pieces, Guangling San (Guangling Melody) originated in late Han Dynasty (202 BC to 220 AD). It describes the emotions from hate to rage of the son of a swordsmith who was about to assassinate the king to avenge his father.

Pu-an Mantra 普庵咒

A mantra by Master Pu’an during the Song Dynasty.

Mist & Clouds Over the Xiang River 瀟湘水雲

The Could Over Xiao Xiang Rivers (Xiao Xiang Shui Yun 瀟湘水雲) is one of the most popular qugin melodies. Composed during the Song Dynasty (1127 – 1279 AD), this piece portraits a serene and beautiful scenery of the waters and cloud-hidden mountains in the area surrounded by the Xiao and Xiang Rivers.

Praise of King Wen of Zhou 文王操

The original Wen Wang Cao was composed in praise of King Wen of the Zhou Dynasty (from 1046 BC for about 790 years, the longest dynasty in Chinese history).The piece subsequently disappeared, and in an effort to re-create the melody by subsequent musicians, Confucius was used instead of King Wen as the persona. As a result, the resurrected piece is widely considered to be one in praise of Confucius.

Three Stanzas on Plum Blossoms 梅花三弄

This melody praises the emergence of the blossoms in defiance of the bitter cold winter and as heralds of spring. The plum blossoms are also a metaphor and embodiment of those with high moral integrity and who persevere through hardship.

Flowing Waters 流水

The celebration of a legendary friendship built upon the wood cutter’s genuine admiration for the musician’s masterpieces and the musician’s mutual appreciation for someone who understands his inner feelings expressed in his music.

Lament On Losing Favour 長門怨

The piece from the Qing Dynasty describes the melancholy of a princess who fell out of the emperor’s favour and was sent to her loneliness in a remote palace.

Blue and White Porcelain

Buddhist Hymns

The Great Compassion Mantra 大悲咒

Shaolin Dreams Buddhist Hymn 少林夢梵唄音樂心經

華嚴起止儀

天籟梵唄華嚴字母

Interviews

Interview with Diana Tang

Opening of Stringless Guqin House

Audios 

Mist and Clouds Over the Xiang River 瀟湘水雲

The Could Over Xiao Xiang Rivers (Xiao Xiang Shui Yun 瀟湘水雲) is one of the most popular qugin melodies. Composed during the Song Dynasty (1127 – 1279 AD), this piece portraits a serene and beautiful scenery of the waters and cloud-hidden mountains in the area surrounded by the Xiao and Xiang Rivers.

Wine Maniac 酒狂

This famous ancient Guqin piece was believed to have been composed by Ruan Ji (阮籍, 210 – 263 AD), a Chinese musician during the Three Kingdoms and Wei/Jin periods. An aspiring politician of the royal courts who had dreams of serving the masses, he was subsequently disillusioned by the corruption and infighting there. He left politics and retreated into the deep woods where he was completely surrounded in solitude by nature and spent his days playing music and composing poems, often while intoxicated.