26th July 2005

This, the 14th meeting of the London Youlan Qin Society, was held during the Chinese Music Summer School at the Royal Academy of Music, London. 

 Programme

  1. Zeng Chengwei: talk - "The Shu (Sichuan) Style of Qin Playing"; Kongzi Du Yi (Confucius Reads the Book of Changes), Liu Shui (Flowing Water)
  2. Julian Joseph: Yu Nü Yi (Prelude to Jade Lady Mode), Huan Pei Ying Feng (Heavenly Jade Jangling in the Breeze)
  3. Stephen Dydo: Pu'an Zhou (Incantation of Pu'an)
  4. Charlie Huang: Meihua San Nong (Three Variations on the Plum Blosson Theme)
  5. Christopher Evans: Jiu Kuang (Drunken Ecstasy)
  6. Tsai Tsan-Huang: Guanshan Yue (Moon Over the Mountain Pass) [sung]

Introduction

Cheng Yu began the proceedings by introducing our guest speaker, qin master Professor Zeng Chengwei. She also introduced our other guests, including qin scholar Xiao Mei from Shanghai and composer Peter Ferguson.

The Shu (Sichuan) Style of Qin Playing

by Zeng Chengwei, interpretation by Marnix Wells.

There are a number of different schools of qin music, generally separated by region. That of Sichuan is one of the most important. The old name for the northern part of the province was Ba; the western part (in which Chengdu is located) was called Shu. During the Three Kingdoms period, Liu Bei established the kingdom of Shu. The name Sichuan came into use about 1000 years ago during the Song Dynasty. The Sichuan school of qin playing is usually referred to as Shupai, but can also be called Chuanpai, preference being given to the older name. It is closely associated with the culture of the region. many famous literary figures, such as Sima Xiangru and the Tang poet Li Bai. The qin has a history of at least 2000 years in Sichuan.

In the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-24 AD), Sima Xiangru wooed his bride by playing the piece Feng Qiu Huang (The Phoenix Seeks His Mate), which he composed. As she had already been married but widowed, this went against the Confucian morals of the time, but perhaps because of his exceptional talent for qin playing, he got away with it. He wrote an essay which mentioned several famous qin pieces - such as You Lan (The Solitary Orchid) and Bai Xue (White Snow). He mentioned various playing techniques that could be used to convey different feelings, from serious to more free playing styles. He held a high position in both qin and literary circles. He had a famous qin called Lu Yi (Green Silk). It was so famous that Lu Yi became a generic term for a qin. Li Bai used the expression in several of his poems.

Pottery figures and paintings found in graves from the Han Dynasty often depicted qin players.

In the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), Li Bai was both a great lover of the qin and a frequent visitor to Sichuan. He wrote many poems about qin. In this way he made friends, whom he would meet and play qin with under the moonlight. In one poem, he says farewell to his friend and asks him to return the following night with his qin. In another famous poem, he celebrates the qin playing of a monk: listening to him was like hearing waterfalls on Mt Emei. In 700 AD a prime minister of Empress Wu Zetian was banished to Sichuan, where he met a number of famous qin players.

Not only did playing techniques become very highly developed during the Tang Dynasty, so also did the art of qin construction. By the Tang Dynasty, qin making had become popular. The main materials (zimu - purple sandalwood, tongmu - parasol tree/pawlonia, and silk) were all to be found in Sichuan, so it was ideal as a centre of qin manufacture. The leading qin making family of the period, the Lei family, was in Sichuan. The famous Chun Lei (Spring Thunder) qin was the favourite qin of emperor Huizong, a great patron the the arts, who was said to have 10000 qins (in his Hall of 10000 Qins). When the Jin overthrew the Northern Song, the emperor had this qin put into his tomb.

There is a close connection between the making of qins and playing technique. The famous poet, writer and politician Su Shi said strings very close to the soundboard, make the instrument very easy to play. Someone gave him a qin as a family heirloom. He was a connoisseur of qins who once criticised a friend for playing too fast. A qin must be played; it won't sound if it is just put into a box. Qin is the interaction between a person's mind and the instrument.

There were a number of famous players during the Ming Dynasty (1368-164 AD).

The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 AD) was generally considered a period of decadence, but for the qin in Sichuan it was a time of great develoment. It was during this period that Zhang Kongshan published his great work, the Tianwenge Qinpu, which contained some 80 qin pieces he had edited. The most famous of these are Liu Shui and Zui Yu Chang Wan (Evening Song of the Drunken Fishermen). He greatly enhanced the Shu style of qin playing and did much to propagate it. In a Tang Dynasty description of other schools, one was described as being like a beautiful woman, another as strong and martial. The Shu school is strong and fast. In the Yuan Dynasty (1261-1368 AD), there was a famous prime minister called Chu Sai, who said the Shu style was fast and beautiful to listen to. Many people still say this today. You can hear the strength in the playing. This style has been preserved, and Liu Shui is a classic example.

Zhang Kongshan developed his Liu Shui by direct contact with nature. Sichuan is full of mountains and torrents of water. He developed several new techniques, which Professor Zeng demonstrated:
The piece caused a sensation when it appeared, and spread across the whole of China. It is powerful, yet tranquil.

In addition to inventing new techniques, Zhang Kongshan also used existing techniques in new ways which could describe people's character and attitudes. For example in Zui Yu Chang Wan, the peresonality of a drunken man comes across clearly. When listening to Kongzi Du Yi, you can almost see the old man poring over his book. In his later years, Confucius became fascinated by the Yi Jing (Book of Changes), and would spend  hours poring over it.

Professor Zeng then played Kongzi Du Yi and Liu Shui. After that, members of the London Youlan Qin Society and guests played.





Stephen Dydo playing Pu'an Zhou
 Christopher Evans playing Jiu Kuang




Copyright the London Youlan Qin Society, 2005. All rights reserved.