Bird and Flowers on Ceramic Plate by Yu Fengbo

Porcelain art’s inspiration to the world – philosophical commentary on porcelain art [Abstract]

A) Motivation

Life is limited, so life is all about to transcend time, and to resist the passage of time. We have comprehended this point in Heidegger’s philosophy. Therefore, as an existence, painting expresses ideas and emotions. It is meant to solidify the time in order to transcend time. Externalization of emotion is mental transcendence of flesh, and expression of idea is transcendence of spiritual world beyond material world. Both have to be accomplished through solidify the time. This relies on its material: canvas, paint, ink, or rice paper, etc. Transcendence of the material is achieved by reorganization of the substance. Eternity of material is the eternity of art. Immortal material, immortal art. From this perspective, oil painting is better than ink painting; porcelain painting is better than oil painting. Epitaph, which engraves name on stone, represents our longing for eternity – like the stone. Chinese seal carving also engraves name on stone, except that the stone is more elegant and more beautiful with a good moral meaning in it. The motivation of porcelain painting is the same. The creation of art replaces the artist himself. Eternity of the artwork is the eternity of the author. Porcelain is harder than paper, cloth, or jade, and lasts longer. It is man-made, brought back to nature, and reunited as part of the nature with expectation to exist forever, like heaven and earth. From Heidegger’s perspective, this is to achieve self-transcendence of time by artistic means.

B) Material

Porcelain has its unique, highly cultural texture. As to outward appearance, copper and iron are hard, cold, antique, heavy, solid and solemn, which basically is the natural expression of their natural properties. In contrast, porcelain, which looks hard, noble, elegant, with spirituality, barely presents any natural attributes. Copper and iron are purified from ore – a natural mixture, thus still maintain their natural properties; porcelain, however, is re-created from natural objects. Porcelain is made from earth. Once fired, porcelain loses its natural properties, therefore it belongs to humanity. Compared to metal, porcelain is much more cultural.

C) Porcelain as the meaning of existence

“A room without porcelain is not elegant”. This is a well-known Chinese proverb. How is it elegant? It is because porcelain art is poetry. The porcelain surface is gorgeous and luxuriant, just like poem. It presents paintings at its surface, which implements the “picturesque” aesthetic realm. We can grasp the artistic concept of poetry within porcelain’s color and luster. It is like music, with a sense of melody; it is like poems’ rhymes, which are rhythmed. Comprehending porcelain beauty leads to understanding the beauty of poetry, and vice versa.

D) Shape

Shape has become to exist as a special language and unique expression of porcelain art. Together with material, decorative pattern and painting, it formed the artistic composition of porcelain art. No shape, no porcelain art: because shape is solidified emotional state, and shape is a unique aesthetic expression in three-dimensional way. It has its posture, it has its language, and it occupies the space to display its beauty, the beauty of the shape. If we say dance forms its shape with movements, then porcelain art shows movements through its shape. Collingwood said: Dance is the mother of language. Dance is motion, motion is posture, and it is posture that speaks to us.

E) Appearance

The layer of glaze on porcelain is highly cultural. “The reality of a thing is the work of thing itself, while the appearance of a thing is the work of human.” (Schiller: “Aesthetic Letters” P133) Schiller said: “The essence of art is appearance.” (Schiller: “Aesthetic Letters P134) People no longer feel happy merely for a thing itself, but for a thing he creates. One reaches aesthetic reality from general (natural) reality and achieves aesthetic from simple natural life. This is proof of an external freedom: that he has achieved transcendence beyond himself through the transcendence of nature. This is also proof of an inner freedom: he has the power of imagination and creativity. Then we can appreciate the freedom that artists achieve through aesthetic. The viewer achieves aesthetic through the aesthetics and emotions the works exhibit, so the viewer also reaches freedom. This is the inspiration that porcelain art brings the world.

F) Painting

Color: The color which porcelain gains after firing is more beautiful than natural color. It has a texture of light. Regular paintings are colorful, while the color of porcelain art is even brighter than regular painting pigment. Compared to regular painting pigment, it has richer various levels and broader gradations. Color is one of the reasons why painting of porcelain art is more expressive.

Space: Regular painting is to reproduce three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional plane. Porcelain art painting, compared to regular painting, has certain technical difficulty, because it is to reproduce visual objects on the surface of a three-dimensional space. To paint a triangle on a plane, all sides of the triangle will have equal length. However, as to triangle on a porcelain object, the lengths of all sides are unequal. This is Einstein’s concept of curved space. Porcelain artist paints on a curved surface. He needs to reproduce images on the surface of curved space. In the mean time, he needs to conform to human visual habits.

Completeness: In regular plane painting, the world is an “isolated” world. Its four sides are its boundaries, and what’s behind it is always unknown. Thus painting, in fact, exists isolated from the rest of the world. We will also feel in our visual impression that regular plane painting is out of tune with its surrounding world. It is an isolated presence and therefore it can only talk with the visual, but cannot be integrated into the world. It is because it is formed by illusion, so that, no illusion, no painting. Thus, it is formed in a visual, so it will also fades away in the visual. Its existence relies on the visual, thus it is a dependent existence: no visual, no painting. This is to say, it is not an object of self-existence. However, porcelain art is not the case. Porcelain is complete by itself, it communicates with the world as a complete existence. It is of self-existence. Whether visual pays attention to it, it exists. Since porcelain painting is drawn on the surface of an object, it thus obtained a life by borrowing the reality of the object. Painting on porcelain surface spans end-to-end, 360 degrees, forming a complete world. Hence it is not isolated from the rest of the world. Its complete self talks with the complete world. It fuses together with its shape. The expression of shape becomes the expression of painting. Therefore, compared to regular painting, it is more fluidic and more three-dimensional, more vivid, more perfect, with more vitality. This is a class of three-dimensional visual effects that regular painting does not have.

Porcelain slate painting: Visual believes that the world it sees is the complete world. Rationality proves it, thus oil painting needs to paint the entire canvas. Then, color, perspective, lighting and shading are expressed. But the whole composition ignores its carrier – canvas or drawing board. Chinese painting pigment creates artwork together with its carrier (rice paper or silk cloth). Black is “being” and white is “null”. This is much in line with the view of the world, the “yin and yang” in ancient Chinese philosophy. On Chinese painting, the world is not fully painted. It is not a visual belief but a conceptual belief. Black and white can represent anything. Thus, oil paintings depict the visual world, while black and white elaborates the world of ideas. In Chinese painting, “white”, aka “blank”, is “vacancy” or “incomplete”. “Black” represents “fullness”, so it has blocks of color, it has halo of staining. Black represents all the colors; one color is multiple colors. Black and white represents the variations between all colors. Lighting and shading plays a key role in oil painting; the relationship between lighting and shading is the relationship between things in the world, it is a confrontation. In Chinese painting, black and white, yin and yang, also express relationship between things, it is a struggle. Confrontation and struggle, however, are merely nature’s expressions; the struggle is neither the destination of philosophy, nor the end of world. Civilization eventually will transcend the nature, will reach the beauty of order and harmony. This ideal of order and harmony is expressed in porcelain art. This is the role of “porcelain color” in artistic expression.

[Chinese Keywords]
瓷艺 瓷板画 哲学评论

Chinese playing/watching poker in a park by qifei@Flickr

Known for their delicious food, stunning architecture and rich history, China is becoming an even more popular vacation destination with thousands of people flocking to see the great sites from The Great Wall of China to the Terracotta Army.

Besides the fragrant food and the historical landmarks, China is also home to Chinese Poker which is a popular variation of the internationally played gambling game. So if you’re a fan of poker, then you might be interested in learning about Chinese poker.

Chinese poker is also known as Pusoy. It is a thrilling and exciting card game which has been played in the Asian community for many years. Due to its exciting nature, Chinese poker has in fact started to gain popularity all around the world. In addition, it is quick and easy to pick up so if you already know a thing or two about poker, then you’re sure to find it really fun and easy to learn.

Even if you’re a beginner, you will probably have a good chance of winning something since it is a game of chance. The great thing about Chinese poker is that the players are not as easily deterred by losses because they can blame their loss on a bad hand rather than bad skills.

However, there is still a huge amount of strategy and concentration required to play Chinese poker.

Chinese Poker dates back to the nineties; the game was played in the World Series of Poker in 1995 and 1996. Some of the first winners of the game include John Tsagaris in ’95 and Steve Zolotow and Gregory Grivas in ’96.

It may not be as well known as Texas Hold’em, but Chinese Poker is still a popular game which is often played as a side game in large poker tournaments. The stakes are much lower here, but some high stakes poker players have been known to play as high as $500 or $1,000 per unit.

American casinos including The Venetian and Bellagio are known for their Chinese poker spread at their poker tables.

[Chinese Keywords]
扑克 十三张

“Red Flowers Blooming All Over the Mountain (山丹丹开花红艳艳)” is a folk song praising Chinese Communist regime. It is manifested in the style of Shaanxi/Gansu folk songs. Its original singer was famous singer Guo Lanying. It is known as the classic of classics in China.



“Red Flowers Blooming All Over the Mountain” was written/adapted in 1972 from Northern Shaanxi Folk Song “Xin Tian You 信天游” and the East Gansu Folk Song “Getting Work Tune 揽工调”. The two songs are intertwined together. The former has high-pitched melodious, while the latter gives unrestrained passion. The whole song has not only variations and contrast, but also seamless mutual integration.  With open high-pitched melody, fresh and bright tone, it honors the customs of the northern Shaanxi Province.



”Red Flowers Blooming All Over the Mountain” is a painting of history. It is a vivid portrayal of a important historical fact in the revolution – the Central Red Army arrived in northern Shaanxi after Long March. This part of history is critical, because since then, the focus of the Chinese revolution moved from the south to the northwest. Northwest became the headquarters of the Chinese revolution; Yan’an has become a sacred place of Chinese revolution.

People across the country went on from victory to victory under the leadership of the Communist Party of China, until the establishment of new China. In 1999, the 50 years anniversary of the Republic, China Central Television, has included this song in the “the Classic of the Century” music broadcast.

Guzheng version

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0au_JfgTvw
Vocal version

[Chinese Keywords]

山丹丹开花红艳艳

Bianzhong | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/poorfish/2383542339/}poorfish{/link}

Name: Bianzhong (Bell Set) of Marquis Yi of Zeng | 中文名: 曾侯乙编钟
Date to: prior to 433 B.C. | Culture: State of Zeng, Warring States Period
Unearthed: 1978 @ Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng, Suizhou, Hubei | Current location: Hubei Provincial Museum
Dimension: Long rack: 7.48m, short rack: 3.35m, height: 2.73m, total weight: 4,400 kg, 65 bells (total weight: 2567 kg)

Bianzhong of Marquis Yi of Zeng is a relic heritage dated to early Warring States Period. It was successfully excavated at Shuizhou, Hubei in 1978. As a “huge” instrument set consisting of 65 bronze bells, it covers five and a half octave and can play all 12 semitones. Its superb casting technology and great musical performance rewrite the history of world music. It is crowned as “an unique treasure among the world wonders” and “Eighth Wonder of the Ancient World”.

Discovery and Excavation

September 1977, on a hill at the outskirts of Suizhou, Hubei, sleeping underground for more than 2,400 years, Bianzhong of Marquis Yi of Zeng was freed. This is an unprecedented discovery in the history of Chinese Cultural Relics Archaeology, the history of Chinese music and the history of Chinese metallurgy and casting.

Bianzhong Stands | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/fishywang/484954254/}fishywang{/link}

That day, in the process of a barracks expansion project, a garrison at suburban Suizhou stumbled upon the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng. This tomb has an area of 220 square meters, more than 6 times of Mawangdui Han Dynasty “super ancient tomb” found in Changsha.

When the investigation team arrived on the scene, the borehole for construction was only 80 cm from the top of the tomb. If the workers had fired one more time to deepen the borehole, those treasures of the tomb which has been hidden through the ages would have ceased to exist forever.

At 5:00am on May 22, 1978, after the water in the tomb drained, the magnificent Bianzhong revealed its true colors, all the people present were shocked by this exquisite bronze device: After two thousand and four hundred years, the 65 various sized bells weighing 2,567 kg still hung neatly on the wooden bell frame.

by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/poorfish/2383542959/}poorfish{/link}

Perfect combination of technology, science and music

1. Bells are not unique to China; but bell sets were made into music instruments ONLY in China. What’s so special?

Because the sound of regular round bells last too long to play any music. The bell sets made in China as instruments are ellipse shape, so the sound decays much faster. For the same reason, the bell can be sounded from two different directions (front or side) and produce two tones, especially for this one the two tones have harmonious three-degree interval between them. The tonal range of Zenghouyi Bells is from C2 to D7. In the middle area of the tonal range, it can play all twelve half tones. It is the earliest instrument in the world that could play all twelve half tones.

by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/poorfish/2384372982/}poorfish{/link}

2. On the body of the bells, there are 2,800+ inscription words about the instructions for playing Bianzhong and highly developed ancient Chinese music theory. Especially the contents about temperament on the bells shows that China gradually developed its own temperament theory independently, not like previously believed to be adapted from Greek culture.

3. The bells are really high-tech not only because of their shape. According to scientific analysis, the relative portions of copper, lead and tin are perfect for producing the best timbre while making a durable bell. What’s more, even the patterns and spines on the bells are specially designed for best sound effects.

In one word, these bells are a perfect combination of technology, science and music.

Only Played Three Times Sicne Excavation

The original Bianzhong was very strictly preserved and only sounded for three times after its excavation:

1. 1978

After excavation, the archeologists tried to sound the bells at a repair workshop in Suizhou. Later, musicians from Ministry of Culture arrived in Suizhou to carefully examine the sound of all 65 bells. Then in 8.1.1978, at a hall of local artillery division, after 2400 years of silence, Bianzhong sent the world its eternal romantic sound for the first time.

2. 1984

To celebrate the 35th anniversary of new China, the player team of Hubei Provincial Museum was invited to Beijing with the original Bianzhong. In front of many foreign diplomatic officials, they played many famous Chinese and foreign music pieces including “A Moonlit Night on the Spring River” and “Ode to Joy”, etc.

3. 1997

To celebrate the return of Hong Kong to China after 100 years of British rule, Bianzhong was specially approved to be played again for famous musician Tan Dun to compose the ceremonial symphony music “Heaven-Earth-Human”.

Hammer and Bianzhong | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/zhaoyong10865/4104876620/}zhao{/link}

An active envoy of culture exchange

As a symbol of Chinese culture, Bianzhong is very popular in important ceremonies and cultural exchanges. Of cause, since the use of original relics is so restricted, copies have been made to play in more occasions.

To enhance the bond within China and Chinese community, Bianzhong has been played for the Return of Hong Kong as mentioned previously, and exhibited in Taiwan in 1997/8. Taiwan Chang Foundation Museum together with Taiwan Council of Culture Affairs obtained a copy from Hubei Provincial Museum, and collected among its treasures in “Chinese National Music Center.”

As an well-known envoy of Chinese culture, Bianzhong is also busy touring overseas. So far, it has been to more than 20 countries and territories. About one tenth of the world population has listen to its charming sound by various means. Guests from more than 150 countries have heard its music in China, and some of them are lucky enough to play personally.

by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/poorfish/2383542651/}poorfish{/link}

Especially, in 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, Bianzhong was used in the logo music that resounded at the start of each event – 18,000 times, according to Composer Tan Dun (again) – and the award music that was played when each of the 6,000 Olympic medals was presented to winning athletes.

A Pride of China

The excavation of Bianzhong shocked the archaeologists around the world, because two thousand years ago, it is extremely rare in the history of world culture to have such a beautiful instrument, such a magnificent band. The successful casting of Bianzhong not only shows China’s great achievements in bronze casting technology, but also shows China’s level of development in ancient musical temperament. It is a crystallization of high wisdom of ancient Chinese people, and a pride of the Chinese nation.

[Forbidden Treasure of China Series]
This is the 27^th of 64 culture heritages that the government of China forbids to exhibit abroad. The complete list is here. In Chinese.

[Chinese Keywords]
国家一级文物 禁止出境

US Secretary of Treasury Timothy Geithner

Right now, it is a worldwide hot political and economic issue about the exchange rate of Chinese currency Renminbi (RMB, or yuan). Developed countries think yuan is significantly undervalued and they are pushing Beijing to appreciate yuan more rapidly.

United States is pushing the hardest among the developed countries, facing continuous high trade deficit against China. One of the approaches is whether to label China as one of currency “manipulating” countries. At most recent senate finance hearing on Sep 16th, 2010, US Secretary of Treasury Timothy Geithner stated “China’s Yuan ‘Undervalued,’ Not ‘Manipulated’.”

However, 20 months ago, when Geithner was testifying at the same place as “candidate” for the US Secretary of Treasury, he said, “Obama has strong evidence showing China IS manipulating the currency exchange rate.”

Why are his states inconsistent? I guess it must have something to do with his position then and now. It reminds me a popular Chinese idiom about such self-contradictory. It comes with a 2000+ years old story, told by Legalist Han Feizi.

His Spear Against His Shield

Spear and Shield | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/dunechaser/2623043223/}Dunechaser{/link}

One day, in the Era of Warring States, a man from the Chu State went to sell a spear and a shield. Both of these were ancient weapons in China. The spear had a long handle with a metal point on the end. The shield was a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks and protect oneself.

To attract customers and to sell his weapons as soon as possible, he would shout out loudly to all who were coming and going: “Come and see! My spear is the sharpest in the world. It is sharp enough to pierce through anything. Even if it just touches something, it will pierce all the way through it.” Hearing his words, many people came to inspect the spear.

Seeing he had an audience, the man held up his spear and loudly boasted to everyone: “My shield is the strongest in the world! However sharp the spears and arrows are, they cannot pierce through my shield!” As he spoke the boastful words, all the listeners were dumbfounded.

Then, a person stepped out of the crowd. He went and picked up the spear and then the shield. He asked, “If you pierce your shield with your spear, what will happen then?” When the man heard that, he had nothing to say. He blushed with shame. He gathered up his things and fled from the marketplace in embarrassment.

His Spear against his shield

Storyteller: So if one says something is like “his spear against his shield,” it means that someone has made two statements that are self-contradictory. It is impossible for the strongest shield to coexist with a spear that finds nothing impenetrable.

In our everyday life, you could notice countless examples how people make “his spear against his shield”, and not surprisingly you will find the most among politicians.

[Chinese Keywords]
自相矛盾

Feng Shui | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/annahape-gallery/2795265911/}Anna Hape{/link}

Welcome to the October 21, 2010 edition of china carnival. We have two posts today. One listed 40 books from which we could learn about “Feng Shui“. The other talked about China’s carbon emission and related environmental economics.

Please enjoy~

Culture

Sheryl Owen presents Change of Address: Top 40 Books About Feng Shui posted at Change of Address, saying, “Feng Shui, which started in China in ancient times, is now being used world wide by various people to improve their lives and attract positive energy. If you want to learn more about managing your house, your office, or even your own body, here are 40 great Feng Shui books that you can read to get you started with this Chinese art form.”

Other

Carbon emission | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/bearpark/64856579/}Menage a Moi{/link}

just4theplanet presents China’s Carbon Tax posted at Just 4 the Planet, saying, “Cheng Siwei, a renowned Chinese economist, stated in his research, that pollution costs 34.5% of the Gross Domestic Product in 2005. At the ongoing World Economic Forum’s annual Summer Davos meeting, in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin, Cheng former vice chairman of the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress, said that China is estimated to reduce the proportion of fossil fuel in the total energy mix from the current 91 percent to 85 percent in 2020.”

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of china carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Taiwania fluosiana | by {link:http://szlishunhua.blog.sohu.com/151346380.html}lishunhua{/link}

NO.5 Taiwania flousiana 秃杉 — wiki

Large evergreen cypress family trees. They are rare relict plants. They not only have important scientific value in the study of plant phylogeny, but also are important fast-growing afforestation tree species. They are one of the most famous building tree species. Their wood is light, soft and has dense & straight grain. They are mostly produced in Yunnan, Guizhou, and northern Burma, but very rare.

Parashorea chinensis | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/tangxing/4323946476/ }tangxing{/link}

NO.6 Parashorea chinensis 望天树 — wiki

Dipterocarpaceae evergreen tree, only found in some parts of Yunnan, Guangxi. They have straight trunks, board roots, are fine tropical timber species. They are also important in studying tropical flora of China. As their Chinese name (sky watching tree) implies, they are expected to watch the sky, can be up to 70 meters in height. They are the world’s best timber trees for ships and vehicles. They are only produced in the old-growth forests of Xishuangbanna.

Dove Tree | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/maxmaria/2475175421/}maxmaria{/link}

NO.7 Dove Tree 珙桐 (Davidia involucrata) — wiki

Nyssaceae deciduous trees, also known as “water pear”. Their exotic flowers have two sheets of white bracts, just like the wings of a dove, so they are called “the dove trees”. Endemic to China, they are relict species of Tertiary ancient tropical flora. They are world famous ornamental trees, found only in Xingshan County, Hubei Province. They are difficult to breed, their survival rate is low, and they are also difficult to transplant, so their total number is diminishing.

Camellia Nitidissima | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/guzhengman/2217527213/}guzhengman{/link}

NO.8 Camellia nitidissima 金花茶 — wiki

Theaceae evergreen shrub or small tree. located in Guangxi. Petals yellow with a waxy luster, they are China’s precious resources, known as the “Queen of Camellia”. One of our most precious ornamental plants. They not only have pleasing beautiful flowers, their leaves are premium grade tea and can be used as herbal medicine. They are found only in Yongning, Dongxing and other places of Guangxi province. They are not transplantable.

Name: Great Jade Ge Dagger-axe | 中文名: 大玉戈
Date to: 1600~1046 B.C. | Culture: Early Shang Dynasty
Unearthed: 1974@Tomb #3, Lijiazui, Panlongcheng, Huangpi, Hubei | Current location: Hubei Provincial Museum
Dimension: 94 x 14 x 1 cm

A Terracotta Army soldier holding a Ge

This is a ceremonial jade object in a dagger-axe shape. It is so big that it’s also known as the “King of Jade Ge (Dagger-axe)”

China had a large stone industry in Neolithic times. As early as 4500 BC, people on China’s east coast employed fine polished stone axes and knives. The working of jade was an extension of this. Jade was used for beautifully coloured and prestigious versions of everyday tools. Jade is scarce and very labour-intensive, and so these objects were fashioned for ceremonial, not utilitarian, purposes.

The dagger-axe (Ge, sometimes confusingly translated “halberd”) is a type of weapon that was in use from Shang dynasty until at least Han dynasty China. It consists of a dagger-shaped blade made of jade (ceremonial), bronze, or later iron, mounted by the tang of the dagger to a perpendicular wooden shaft with a spear point. There is a variant type with a divided two-part head, consisting of the usual straight blade and a scythe-like blade.

A typical Jade Ge Dagger-axe

Dagger-axes appear to have seen use in combat, though most examples are ceremonial jade weapons found in the tombs of aristocrats. These examples are often found within the coffins themselves, possibly meant to serve as emblems of authority and power, or in some other ritualistic capacity. Sometimes they are found in a pit dug beneath a coffin, with a victim who was sacrificed to guard the tomb, where they presumably are intended to keep the spirit-guard armed.

[Forbidden Treasure of China Series]
This is the 26^th of 64 culture heritages that the government of China forbids to exhibit abroad. The complete list is here. In Chinese.

[Chinese Keywords]
国家一级文物 禁止出境

“Fisherman’s Nocturne (渔舟唱晚)” is a Guzheng music that was adapted by Lou Shuhua from ancient piece “Returning Home (归去来)”, and it is also said to be adapted by Jing Zhuonan from traditional Guzheng music “Double Board (双板)” from Shandong province.

Fisherman's Nocturne | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/hb2/158379964/}addicted Eyes{/link}

The first half of current widespread Lou’s version is the same as Jing’s version, while the latter part of Lou’s version is its unique piece. This music is the most widely spread and the most influential Guzheng solo in China since 1930s.

Its title was taken from “Teng Wang Ge Xu” written by the Tang Dynasty poet Wang Bo. With graceful and elegant melody, soothing rhythm, this music depicts the lively scene that at the moment when lakes and mountains are beautiful under sunset, fishermen are full of the joy of harvest, paddling boat home. It shows the composer’s praise and love to the beautiful mountains and rivers of our motherland.

Because of its graceful melody and upbeat mood, it is adapted by many famous musicians for gaohu, erhu, violin, etc. and various forms of solo, chamber, ensemble. And it’s favored by the audience at home and abroad.

Guzheng solo abbreviated version

Flute version
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njoHRkJ5pJI
Violin & Piano version

Harmonica version

After listening to “Fisherman’s Nocturne” a foreign harp player appreciated it and said this song is a “world famous oriental flavor”, and he adapted it for harp.

The original Guzheng version of “Fisherman’s Nocturne” has a melodious tune. Those adapted stringed instruments versions have another kind of charm and beauty since they have a more coherent and clear melody.

CCTV Weather Forecast Background Music – “Fisherman’s Nocturne”

In 1984, China Central Television (CCTV) selected a section and made a seamless connection from 1’43” to 2’48” from Pu Qi-Zhang’s electronic music version “Fisherman’s Nocturne”. From then on, it became the background music in CCTV Weather Forecast, and has been loved by Chinese people ever since. As the most familiar music of 1.3 billion people and constant running for twenty-six years as background music, it is perhaps the world’s longest running TV program background music.

When then-well-known-in-Shanghai keyboard player Pu Qi-Zhang adapted and played the music with his “Yamaha” three-row concert keyboard, he never expected that this song would become the gold background music in prime-time TV program, not to mention it would affect so many people.

[Chinese keywords]
渔舟唱晚

Give a light gift | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/brandoncwarren/4164759025/}B.C.Warren{/link}

In Chinese culture, “nobody dislikes too many gifts”. Gift-giving is one of the best channels to maintain good relationships. This principle applies to personal as well as business relationships.

Gift-giving between family members and friends is necessary as a symbol of affection. Inappropriate gifts would be considered to be insulting, which is counter-productive. Giving unlucky items are hostile, such as “giving a clock” (means to handle the funeral affairs of the senior).

Giving something that’s too expensive or extravagant is not appropriate because the receiver will feel a big debt of gratitude. Gifts could also be non-material. A Chinese proverb says, “To walk a thousand li and present a swan feather; the gift is light but the friendship is solid”. It means the value of a gift lies in the giver’s good will and mind, rather than the value of the gift itself. This is especially true with love tokens.

The Story: To walk a thousand li and present a swan feather

The story was widely cited and recorded along the history by various scholars. There are many versions about where the swan and the messenger were from. The following version is recorded in the Road History by the Great Artist and Writer Xu Wei of Ming Dynasty.

Swan | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/fturmog/2108961914/}fturmog{/link}

During the Zhenguan Era of Tang dynasty, Uighur in the Xiyu was a vassal state of Tang Dynasty. It was customary for local officials to show their friendship and respect to the emperor of Tang by giving him wonderful presents. Once, Uighur sent a man named Mian Bogao to bring lots of rare jewelries and treasures to the emperor. Among these presents, the most precious were two swans.

On his way to the distant capital, Mian worried a lot about the two swans. He personally did the feeding and watering, dared not to neglect a moment.

One day, he came upon a lake. He had this brilliant idea to put the swans into the water for a swim. This way, they could rid themselves of the dirt and grime that have clung to them on their long trip. Besides, he was sure the emperor would appreciate two white swans more than the dirty ones he now had.

Give a feather | by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/teresaromano/4401016359/}T. Romano{/link}

But as soon as Mian set the birds down on the water, the ungrateful swans flew away and was soon lost from his sight. Only a few feathers remained on the shore. Mian was so distressed and wondered what he would now present to the emperor and how he could report to the Uighur King. After thinking, Mian decided to continue the mission to the east. He took out a clean white silk cloth and carefully wrapped the swan feather, and wrote a poet on the cloth:

Present swans to Tang Dynasty,
Mountains are high and roads are far.
Lost the treasure at Mianyang Lake,
The friendship of Uighur could never give up.
Your highness, the emperor of Tang,
please punish guilty Mian Bogao.
Gift is light, but the respect is genuine,
to walk a thousand li to present a swan feather.

When he arrived at the palace, he saw that the emperor was surrounded by messengers who were presenting him with gift after marvelous gift. When his turn came, Mian offered the cloth wrap with a single swan’s feather and his poem to the emperor.

The Emperor read the poem, and heard Mian’s story. He not only did not blame him, but also was impressed by Mian’s honesty and loyalty to fulfill his mission. So the Emperor rewarded him heavily.

From then on, this story spread and is passed on as a proverb that means: although a gift might be inexpensive or light, it means a deep thought that truly matters.

[Chinese Keywords]
千里送鹅毛 礼轻情意重