The Lore of the Chinese Lute


Book Description

The lute, ch'in or guqin is one of China's oldest and most revered musical instruments. Records indicate that it has been a favourite of the literary classes for more than 2,500 years; Confucius himself was a great lover of the instrument. Over the centuries, it became representative of the life, taste and pastimes of the Chinese literati. In addition to its contributions to solo and orchestral musical arrangements, a wealth of symbolic meaning accrued to the lute over time. Not only was knowledge of the instrument reserved for the literati; its study was believed to be conducive to meditation and to facilitate intellectual enlightenment. While a significant body of literature has been written on the lute in Chinese, the present monograph is the first to assemble a broad picture of the instrument and its cultural significance in English. The author, a renowned Sinologue and linguist, studied the playing of the instrument under one of the most famous lute masters of his age.




The Chinese Nail Murders


Book Description

Judge Dee and his helpers investigate a series of murders despite pressure to solve them quickly.




The Lore of the Chinese Lute


Book Description

The lute, ch'in or guqin is one of China's oldest and most revered musical instruments. Records indicate that it has been a favourite of the literary classes for more than 2,500 years; Confucius himself was a great lover of the instrument. Over the centuries, it became representative of the life, taste and pastimes of the Chinese literati. In addition to its contributions to solo and orchestral musical arrangements, a wealth of symbolic meaning accrued to the lute over time. Not only was knowledge of the instrument reserved for the literati; its study was believed to be conducive to meditation and to facilitate intellectual enlightenment. While a significant body of literature has been written on the lute in Chinese, the present monograph is the first to assemble a broad picture of the instrument and its cultural significance in English. The author, a renowned Sinologue and linguist, studied the playing of the instrument under one of the most famous lute masters of his age.










The Way of the Pipa


Book Description

Two thousand years ago, the lute was imported to China via overland trade routes from Central Asia and was adopted quickly in many of the regions. Ancient court documents describe how generations of talented musicians developed its music. John E. Myers translates one of these documents to introduce to readers of the English language the traditional music and artistic philosophy of the Chinese lute or pipa. He combines language and musical skills with an aesthetic sensibility in sharing what he calls this world of expressive beauty.







Standards of the Guqin


Book Description

Standards of the Guqin is the first original textbook in English for the Chinese seven-stringed zither, traditionally favoured by scholars and clergy past and present. This book provides a holistic curriculum for students without prior knowledge of the Chinese language or culture, covering history, construction, technique, and critique of the musical tradition. The Third edition features essay translations, revised textual content and manuscripts, a chapter on the historical manuscript interpretation process known as dapu, and a new section on history and practical applications of musical temperament. All jianzipu fingering tablature and musical scores are digitally generated in high-resolution for quality and legibility.




Abiding with Antiquity


Book Description

This book is an English translation of excerpts from a very rare Chinese guqin zither handbook published in Fujian province in China circa 1860. The original book was written in classical Chinese. The translation includes sections on guqin construction, silk qin string making, stringing the qin, qin tables, composition and fingering techniques and other qin culture information useful to qin students. The original title for the book was the Yuguzhai Qinpu (Abiding With Antiquity) and its author was named Zhu Fengjie. Later much of the original content was republished in Shanghai as the Qinxuerumen (Introduction to the Guqin), which was a very popular late Qing dynasty Guqin book.




Six Dynasties Civilization


Book Description

The Six Dynasties, also known as the "Dark Age” of Chinese history, was a period of political disunity and conflict but also one of important developments in the arts, religion, and culture. This comprehensive and extensively illustrated book covers the material culture of the Six Dynasties, A.D. 220 to 589. Albert E. Dien, a foremost expert on the period, draws on the archaeological findings of mainland China journals as well as historical and literary sources to clarify and interpret the database of over 1,800 tombs developed for this volume. During the Six Dynasties, the influences of non-Chinese nomads, the flourishing of Buddhism, and increasing numbers of foreign merchants in the capitals brought about widespread change. The book explores what the archaeological artifacts reveal about this era of innovation and experimentation between the Han and Tang dynasties.




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