We’ve updated our Terms of Use to reflect our new entity name and address. You can review the changes here.
We’ve updated our Terms of Use. You can review the changes here.

《​鉤​》​古​箏​獨​奏 Hook (solo guzheng, Chen Yu​-​Han studio version)

by 陳宇涵, Chen Yu-Han

/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $3 USD  or more

     

about

(English translation below)
古箏獨奏作品《鉤》創作於2022年5至6月，總時長大約九分鐘半。
本作品的靈感取自南唐詩人李煜使用詞牌《相見歡》寫作的詞，「無言獨上西樓」。這首詩中有兩個形象對作曲家的創作特別有影響力。 首先，將月亮描述為“鉤子”的明喻，對作曲家而言，是被囚禁的詩人絕望狀態之有力象徵。 其次，提到深院裡的梧桐樹，作曲家認為在詩人的腦海中提示了以下隱喻：「剪不斷，理還亂，是離愁」。情緒，就像破敗的院子一樣，趨於混亂，心神寧靜轉瞬即逝。 總的來說，這部作品既是對庭院氛圍的喚起，也是對詩人精神狀態的喚起。
具體來說，這首曲子由三個循環組成。隱藏在每一個循環裡頭有完整詩詞的「無聲之歌曲」，此歌曲作為一種線索在貫穿整首曲子。三個循環另外可以再分為兩個部分，每個部分分別應用不同箏派特有的演奏方式來轉換，或轉錄（transcribe）上述歌曲的旋律。總共有六種箏派出現，即浙江、潮州、河南、陝西、山東和客家。
此外，藉由韋伯恩、卡特和盧托斯瓦夫斯基等作曲家所運用的「定位序列」之技術，每個詩行的音樂材料有固定使用一套不同的琴絃來定義此段落的「和聲空間」或「和聲色彩」。
謹將這部作品獻給我的第一位作曲老師大衛‧塞爾溫，以紀念他去世十週年。

"Hook" for guzheng solo was composed between May and June 2022, with a total duration of between nine and eleven minutes.

The inspiration for this work is taken from the poem written by Li Yu, a poet of the Southern Tang Dynasty, using the tune Xiang Jian Huan ("Joy of Meeting").

Two images in the poem were particularly influential.  Firstly, the simile describing the moon as a “hook” struck me as a potent indicator of the imprisoned poet’s state of despair.  Second, mention of the parasol tree in the deep courtyard, to the composer’s mind, prompted the metaphor that follows:  "Cut it, and it will not break; tidy it, and it returns to chaos; that is the pain of separation".  In other words, the poet's emotions, like the ill-kept courtyard, tend towards chaos, and blessed ataraxia is only a fleeting state. In general terms, the piece can be taken as an evocation of both the atmosphere of the courtyard, and of the poet’s mental state.

Specifically, the piece is tri-rotational, comprising three wordless settings of the poem, which run through the piece as a cantilena. Each of the three settings is divided into two sections, each section modified (transcribed) to varying degress by the application of playing styles from six different traditional schools of Guzheng playing, namely, Zhejiang, Chaozhou, Henan, Shaanxi, Shandong and Hakka.  In addition, the musical material for each line of the poem is characterised by limited utilisation of different sets of strings, which function like vertical sets in defining the harmonic “space” of each line, in the manner of Webern, Carter or Lutosławski.

I dedicate this piece to my first composition teacher, David Selwyn, in commemoration of the tenth anniversary of his passing away.

lyrics

(English translation below)
南唐後主李煜《相見歡》

無言獨上西樓。
月如鈎。
寂寞梧桐深院鎖清秋。

剪不斷，理還亂，
是離愁。
別是一般滋味在心頭。

Lyrics to the tune "Joy of Meeting"

Mute and alone I ascend the west tower.
The moon is like a hook.
The lonely parasol tree in the deep courtyard encapsulates the clear Autumn.

Cut it and it will not break, tidy it and chaos remains:
That's the pain of separation.
It's no ordinary taste in the heart.

Li Yu (last monarch of the late southern Tang, 937-978),
translation by the composer.

credits

released October 7, 2023
古箏：陳宇涵
錄音工程：盧長劍
Guzheng: Chen Yu-Han
Recording Engineer: George Holloway

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

George Holloway image

George Holloway West District, Taiwan

George Holloway’s music is rooted in the modernist tradition of Western art music, with specific affinities to New Complexity and British experimentalism. Parallel to these affinities, Holloway’s music also draws deeply upon the Anglican choral tradition and, increasingly over the last decade, to traditional musics of China and Taiwan. George composes for Western and Chinese instruments and voice. ... more

contact / help

Contact George Holloway

Streaming and
Download help

Report this track or account

If you like 《鉤》古箏獨奏 Hook (solo guzheng, Chen Yu-Han studio version), you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Featured guests are the golden-voiced Baby Rose and psyche soulsters Brainstory.
listen now