The History of Song Ci

Author: Qian Faping
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-07-01
Features: The Song Ci (a classical Chinese poetic form) reached the highest form of Chinese musical literature. The boldness and subtlety, the elegance and softness of Song Ci, as well as the mellow demeanor of Song Dynasty poets lounging among flowers, were unique spiritual trends during the Five Dynasties and the Southern and Northern Song periods. Song Ci again dressed the noble and dignified poetry in casual attire, creating a new genre between poetry and melody. It allowed poetry to permeate the hearts of people in red-painted doors and embroidered curtains, in secluded pavilions and taverns, accompanied by the rhythmic claps of red-toothed clappers and the harmonious sounds of court music. This was an era when everyone was lightly sipping and humming or drinking heartily and singing; it was an era lived in the tones of poetic meter and musical rhythms. Song Ci reached the highest form of Chinese musical literature. The boldness and subtlety, the elegance and softness of Song Ci, as well as the mellow demeanor of Song Dynasty poets lounging among flowers, were unique spiritual trends during the Five Dynasties and the Southern and Northern Song periods. Song Ci again dressed the noble and dignified poetry in casual attire, creating a new genre between poetry and melody. It allowed poetry to permeate the hearts of people in red-painted doors and embroidered curtains, in secluded pavilions and taverns, accompanied by the rhythmic claps of red-toothed clappers and the harmonious sounds of court music. This was an era when everyone was lightly sipping and humming or drinking heartily and singing; it was an era lived in the tones of poetic meter and musical rhythms. Ci is a literary form that lies between poetry and melody, a new musical form created by the fusion of foreign music and Han Chinese music. It first spread among folk artists and entered the popular scene; later, due to the involvement of scholars, it began to enter the imperial court. During the Song Dynasty, from the highest nobles to the commoners, everyone took pride in composing and singing Ci. In literary history, Song Ci is generally divided into three major schools: the school of lyrical refinement, represented by figures such as Liu Yong, Qin Guan, Zhou Bangyan, and Li Qingzhao; the school of heroic grandeur, represented by figures such as Su Shi, Xin Qiji, Zhang Xiaoxiang, and Zhang Yuangan; and the school of refined elegance, represented by figures such as Jiang Kui, Wu Wenying, and Zhang Yan. The prosperous urban life gave rise to the lyrical school of light singing and graceful dancing; while facing the threat of foreign invaders and border crises, the heroic school of bold and unrestrained expression also found many admirers. After the Southern Song Dynasty moved south, extravagant music spread throughout the court, leading to an unbroken trend of pursuing refined musical rhythms and elegant diction, which gave rise to the school of refined elegance. This book breaks the traditional model of Song Ci anthologies in its editorial format, adopting the "left history, right poetry" style, where the left page introduces the historical background of Song Ci, and the right page provides annotations and analyses of the works. This innovative editorial format offers readers two reading threads: one introduces the lives of nobles, scholars, and commoners during the 319 years of the Song Dynasty, as well as the customs and rituals of the time; the other thread focuses on the annotations and analyses of Song Ci works. This is also what distinguishes this book from other contemporary Song Ci anthologies. For many years, undergraduate students of Chinese literature in universities in China have generally studied about 40 poems of Song Ci, while graduate students of classical literature have studied about 70 to 80. This book selects works based on these standards and makes appropriate extensions. The appendix introduces the festivals of the Song Dynasty, along with biographies of the poets and explanations of related terms related to Song Ci. The book also includes over 400 exquisite illustrations. While readers savor the meaning of Song Ci, these beautiful images will surely bring them aesthetic pleasure.