A Performance Guide to Mandarin-Chinese Diction and Selected Art Songs
by Yiu-Kwong Chung
D.M.A. DOCUMENT
Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Musical
Arts in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University
By
Yung-Wei Sun
Graduate Program in Music
The Ohio State University
2012
D.M.A. Document Committee:
Robin Rice, Advisor
Marjorie K. M. Chan
Joseph Duchi
Jere Forsythe
Copyright by
Yung-Wei Sun
2012
Abstract
Over the past few decades, many social and cultural avenues from different countries
have opened up, creating an emergence of singers from new cultures. This has allowed
singers more opportunities to sing their national vocal repertoires in public concerts,
placing new talents and repertoire on international stages. Some languages in these
repertoires traditionally have been rare, such as Spanish, Russian, and Czech, and their
introduction began to catch audiences’ imaginations. Take American singers as an
example; they are excited to sing their new nationalistic repertoire for international
competitions or concerts. As the repertoire’s texts and libretti related to the diction of that
repertoire are published, the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) which is the
universally recognized tool for singers to learn how to pronounce languages is becoming
prevalent. This provides non-native speakers of those languages a more accurate and
clearer mechanism in which to sing in those languages, which in turn allows these new
vocal pieces to immediately become more popular.
The artistry found in Mandarin-Chinese art songs is just as high as the vocal works in
other languages, such as the French Mélodie or the German Lied. However, it is very
difficult for non-native speakers of Mandarin-Chinese to sing the Mandarin-Chinese art
songs because of their unfamiliarity with the language and the absence of literature
related to the diction of Mandarin-Chinese.
ii
This study uses a singer’s point of view to explain pronunciations of Mandarin-Chinese
IPA. By using the English, Italian, German, and French IPA systems, four of the most
familiar languages for singers, it describes the pronunciations of Mandarin-Chinese
which would give singers easier and accurate access to Mandarin-Chinese diction. It also
provides the IPA for ten songs by one of the most well-known composers in Asia, YiuKwong Chung. Each song provides not only the IPA translation of the texts of the
Mandarin-Chinese songs, but also a word-for-word translation, and a poetic translation.
The study offers a valuable bridge that provides countless non-native speakers of
Mandarin-Chinese singers a clear, understandable, and efficient way to learn and sing
Mandarin-Chinese diction, thereby opening a new world of repertoire.
iii
To my family
iv
Acknowledgments
This was a very long journey for me to reach this point in my life. I would not be able to
make it without so many amazing people around me. First, I thank my family for the
unconditional support. Although I am thousands of miles away, I do not feel alone,
because I know you are always there for me. Second, I would like to thank the professors
on my committee, Marjorie K. M. Chan, Joseph Duchi, Jere Forsythe. Having an openminded and passionate committee gave me more strength and confidence to complete my
goal. Third, I thank my old friends, Fion Lee, Chia-Ning Lee, Ya-Hsin Lin, Hsin-Yi
Chen, Pei-Han Chao, Hsin-Yi Lin, and special thanks to my undergraduate voice teacher,
Mewas Lin. I could not imagine making it this far without having you. Thank you for
listening to me, crying with me, being happy for me, and being such a wonderful friend
in my life. Fourth, I thank my new friends I made here, Ju-Ya Cheng, Ja-Ping Lin, Sarah
Khatcherian, Emily Holsclaw and Jaime Hartzell; and very special thanks to my coach,
Edward Bak. It was not easy going through so many things without having a family here.
Meeting you and becoming friends/family with you warms my hearts.
Last, I really want to thank my voice teacher/advisor, Dr. Robin Rice. People are always
impressed with how much I have grown vocally, mentally, and emotionally after I
v
studied with you. (Sometimes, I even wonder if you have magic!) Thank you for
believing in me since the first lesson. This means a lot to me. There were a lot of things I
do not think I could have done without your encouragement; for example, this document.
For me, this long journey does not only mean that I have completed this degree, but this
also means that I found myself. Thank you for supporting me to be who I am. Thank you,
thank you, and thank you.
vi
Vita
2003................................................................B.M. Voice Performance, National Taiwan
University of Arts, Taipei, Taiwan
2006................................................................M.M. Voice Performance, National Sun
Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Document: A Study of Edward Grieg’s
Sechs Lieder, Op. 48
2009................................................................M.M. Voice Performance, The Ohio State
University, Columbus, OH
2010................................................................Recipient, Irma Cooper Vocal Scholarship,
The Ohio State University.
2011................................................................Recipient, Graduate Research Small Grants
Program, The Ohio State University
Fields of Study
Major Field: Music
Studies in Applied Voice: J. Robin Rice, D.M.A. (2009-2012)
vii
Table of Contents
Abstract……………………………………………………………………………...........ii
Dedication……………………………………………………..……………………….....iv
Acknowledgments…………………………………………………………………………v
Vita……………………………………………………………………………..…….….vii
List of Tables……………………………………………………………………………...x
List of Examples………………………………………………………………………….xi
Chapter One: Introduction………………………………………………………………..1
Chapter Two: Mandarin-Chinese Art Songs in Taiwan…………………………………..6
The beginning of Mandarin-Chinese Art Songs ............................................................ 6
The Development of Mandarin-Chinese Art Songs....................................................... 7
The Development of Mandarin-Chinese Art Song in Taiwan ............................ …….10
Chapter Three: Introduction of Mandarin-Chinese Diction……………………………...15
Chapter Four: The Mandarin-Chinese Diction- Vowels and Glide……………………...21
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...21
Vowels and Glides: ㄚ [a], ㄛ [ɔ], ㄜ [ǝ], ㄜ [ǝ], ㄝ [ε], ㄦ [ɚ], ㄧ [i], ㄨ [u], ㄩ [y],
ㄢ [an], ㄣ [ǝn], ㄤ [aŋ], ㄥ [ǝŋ]………………………………22
viii
Diphthongs: ㄞ [ai], ㄟ [ei], ㄠ [ɑu], ㄡ [ou]………………………………………...31
Chapter Five: The Mandarin-Chinese Diction- Consonants……………………………..33
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...33
The Bilabial Stop: ㄅ [p], ㄆ [ph], ㄇ [m]……………………………………………36
The Labiodental Fricative: ㄈ [f]……………………………………………………..38
The Dental Stop: ㄉ [t], ㄊ [th], ㄋ [n]………………………………………………..38
The Dental Lateral: ㄌ [l]………………………………………………………….....40
The Velar Stop and Fricative: ㄍ [k], ㄎ [kh], ㄏ [x]………………………………....43
The Alveolar-palatal Fricative and Affricate: ㄐ [tɕ], ㄑ [tɕh], ㄒ [ɕ]………………..41
The Post-alveolar Affricates and Fricative: ㄓ [tʂ], ㄔ [tʂh], ㄕ [ʂ]…………………..45
The Post-alveolar Approximant: ㄖ [ɹ]………………………………………………48
The Dental Affricates and Fricative: ㄗ [ts], ㄘ [tsh], ㄙ [s]………………………....49
Chapter Six: Chung Yiu-Kwong- The Composer………………………………………..52
Biography……………………………………………………………………………..52
Style…………………………………………………………………………………..56
Chapter Seven: Zhimo Xu- The Poet…………………………………………………….61
Biography…………………………………………….………………….……………61
Love Life……………………………………………….……………………………..67
Writing Style………………………………………………………………………….71
Chapter Eight: Three Sets of Mandarin Chinese Art Songs by Yiu-Kwong Chung…….76
Three Poems by Xu Zhimu……………………………………………………………77
ix
Four Poems by Xu Zhimu…………………………………………………………….89
Three Chinese Folk Song…………………………………………………..………..101
Chapter Nine: Conclusion………………………………………………………………108
Appendix A……………………………………………………………………………..112
Appendix B……………………………………………………………………………..113
Bibliography……………………………………………………………………………115
x
List of Tables
Table 1: The Traditional Analysis of the Chinese Syllable………………………….…..16
Table 2: Thirty-Seven Symbols of Zhuyin Fuhao and IPA……………………………...19
Table 3: The Vowel Space Diagram………………………………………………...…...23
xi
List of Examples
Example 1: The First Sentence of the Poem, "Ouran", by Zhimo Xu………...…..………5
Example 2: Location of the Tonal Mark in IPA Transcription……. ....................... …….20
xii
Chpater One:
Introduction
Over the past few decades, Italian, German, French, and English have been the main
languages sung in traditional vocal repertoire. However, now that many social and
cultural avenues from different countries have opened up to the world, more and more
singers from new and various cultures have had more opportunities to sing their national
vocal pieces in public concerts, placing new talents and repertoire on international stages.
Some languages in this new international repertoire traditionally have been rare, such as
Spanish, Russian, and Czech, and their introduction began to catch audiences’
imaginations. Some examples include, the very famous soprano aria, “Měsíčku na nebi
hlubokém” (“Song to the Moon”) from Antonin Dvorak’s opera, Rusalka, which is in
Czech. Or, the baritone aria, “Ya vas lyublyu” (“I love you beyond all measure”) from
Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s opera, Pikovaya Dama (The Queen of Spades), which is in
Russian. Because these new vocal selections revealed and attracted singers’ attention,
singers were encouraged to explore them, even though they were non-native speakers of
those languages. However, for those singers who are not familiar with those languages,
the primary challenge for them would be how to sing the words/texts.
1
Besides learning to speak the languages, the “International Phonetic Alphabet” (IPA) 1 is
the universally recognized tool for singers to help them correctly pronounce song lyrics
from these languages, otherwise known as "Lyric Diction." Using the IPA system enables
singers to sing/pronounce correct foreign language diction without knowing the language.
Therefore, to encourage singers to sing new foreign repertoire, many scholars began
publishing literature that provided the IPA transcription of the languages, such as Natalia
Challis’ The Singer’s Rachmaninoff2 and Tmothy Cheek’s Singing in Czech: A Guide to
Czech Lyric Diction and Vocal Repertoire3. Natalia Challis’ indispensable book collected
all of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Russian art songs. In it, she provides the background, IPA
translation of the text, a word-for-word translation, and a poetic translation for each song.
This book has become a valuable handbook for singers who are not familiar with Russian
songs and serves as the primary source for any information about this famous composer's
songs.
Sound in traditional Chinese music has always been mystical to Western musicians.
Unlike Western music, there are many traditional Chinese elements that are not as
1
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) was devised by the International Phonetic Association.
It is an alphabet system of phonetic notation based on the Latin alphabet which is considered to represent
the sounds of the spoken languages. For example, the IPA of the English word, “international,” would be
[ɪntə’næʃənəɫ].
2
Natalia Challis. The Singer’s Rachmaninoff. New York: Pelion Press, 1989.
3
Timothy Cheek. Singing in Czech: A Guide to Czech Lyric Diction and Vocal Repertoire. Lanham:
Scarecrow Press, 2001.
2
prevalent in Western music, such as the “pentatonic scale.” 4 Because Western-trained
Taiwanese/Chinese composers have tried to fuse Western musical sounds and techniques
with traditional Chinese elements, they have fashioned a new compositional style which
combines Western and Chinese musical methods. The new development of Chinese
music became increasingly attractive to Western musicians, leading them to become
interested in playing and performing Chinese music. However, because of the language
barrier, Mandarin-Chinese vocal works are still performed less often than any other
instrumental works by non-Taiwanese/Chinese musicians. At the same time, the lack of
language and pronunciation-related references has limited the possibility of access to
Mandarin-Chinese art songs for non-native speakers.
There are several kinds of systems to transcribe the sound of Standard Chinese (SC); for
instance, Zhuyin Fuhao (注音符號, Phonetic Symbols), Hanyu Pinyin system (漢語拼音,
Chinese Phonetic Alphabet), Yale Romanizationand IPA. In addition, Dr. Mei-Fung
Agnes Kang Chi from Columbia University created another system which is called
“Singer’s International Phonetic Alphabet” in her dissertation, A Performance Guide for
Contemporary Chinese Art Songs from Taiwan 5 . However, in providing for a more
universal and professional pronunciation guide of SC, this study uses the IPA which is
provided by the International Phonetic Association, which singers are accustomed to
4
The “pentatonic scale” is do-re-mi-sol-la. Chinese composers would base on the relationship of
these five notes to compose their works.
5
Mei-Fung Agnes Kang Chi. A Performance Guide for Contemporary Chinese Art Songs from
Taiwan. (PhD diss., Columbia University, 1996).
3
using for learning foreign language diction. Her study describes and explaines the IPA of
thirty seven Mandarin Phonetic Symbols which were devised by the International
Phonetic Association.
Because there are some unfamiliar IPA symbols of Mandarin Phonetic Symbols, the
explanation of those sounds is from a singer’s point of view, and uses similar sounds
found in Italian, German, French, and English to approach the concepts of the thirtyseven Mandarin Phonetic Symbols in the study. It was apparently assumed that this
would be the most efficient way for singers to understand and pursue these unfamiliar
sounds by using the sounds they already know how to pronounce.
The current study will also introduce ten Mandarin-Chinese art songs which were
composed by one of the most well-known composers in Asia, Yiu-Kwong Chung. The
repertoire that will be provided in the study is three sets of Mandarin Chinese art songs,
Xu Zhimo Shi Sanshou (《徐志摩詩三首》, Three Poems by Xu Zhimu), Xu Zhimo Shi
Cishou (《徐志摩詩四首》, Four Poems by Xu Zhimu)6, Zhongguo Minyao Sanshou
(《中國民謠三首》, Three Chinese Folk Song). Except Zhongguo Minyao Sanshou, the
texts of the songs are from Zhimo Xu (徐志摩), the very famous twentieth century
Chinese poet. This study provides the IPA translation of the texts of these Mandarin6
There are several ways to transcribe Mandarin-Chinese sounds with Hanyu Pinyin system. Unlike
Romanization system, Hanyu Pinyin system is not standared or systemetic in The People's Republic of
China. For example, the transcription of the very common Chinese last name 「李」([li]214) is “Lee” in
Taiwan, but” Li” in China. Here, the composer, Chung, titled his set as Zhimu instead of Zhimo. Therefore,
the name of the set will use the name which posted on his official website
(http://www.cykusic.com/Eworklist.htm) in the study.
4
Chinese songs, but also a word-for-word translation, and a poetic translation. The format
for editing the information used will be the format found in Natalia Challis’s The Singer’s
Rachmaninoff (Example 1).
IPA:
wɔ
ȿɹ thjan khwəŋ li ti
Poem in Chinese:
我
是 天
空
裡 的
Word-for-word Translation: I
am in the sky
Poetic Translation:
I am a cloud in the sky.
ji phjan
ㄧ 片
a
ɥyən
雲
cloud
Example 1: The first sentence of the poem, “Ouran” (〈偶然〉, “Chance”),
by Zhimo Xu.
The artistry found in Mandarin-Chinese art songs is just as high as the vocal works in
other languages, such as the French Mélodie or the German Lied. However, it is very
difficult for non-native speakers of Mandarin-Chinese to sing the Mandarin-Chinese art
songs because of their unfamiliarity with the language. Therefore, overcoming the
language barrier is the most important thing for singers who are non-native speakers of
Mandarin-Chinese. This study offers a more accurate and efficient performance guide of
Mandarin-Chinese diction. It will also give the IPA and translation of three sets of
contemporary songs. Hopfully, this study will solve the primary obstacle for non-native
speakers to access Mandarin-Chinese songs and will serve as a valuable reference for
future research on Mandarin-Chinese art songs.
5
Chapter Two:
Mandarin-Chinese Art Songs in Taiwan
The Mandarin-Chinese art song was established one hundred year later than the first
German Lieder, “Gretchen am Spinnrade.” 7 According to Dr. Hao-Ming Chao’s
dissertation, Twentieth century Chinese vocal music with particular reference to its
development and nationalistic characteristics from the May Fourth Movement (1919) to
1945, “Dajian Dongqu” (〈大江東去〉, “The Great River Flows Fat” ,1920) by Qing
Zhu (青主), “Wen” (〈問〉, “The Question”, 1922) by Youmei Xiao (蕭友梅), Maibu
Yao (〈賣布謠〉, “The Cloth-selling Song”, 1922) by Yuenren Zhao (趙元任) were
considered as the earliest Mandarin-Chinese art songs.8
The beginning of Mandarin-Chinese Art Songs
The Mandarin-Chinese art song is descended from “school song” which first appeared in
the late nineteenth century. When Christian missionaries came to China in the early
nineteenth century, they not only preached the gospel, but also founded church schools in
7
“The birthday of the Lied is said to be October 14, 1814. It was the day that Schubert composed
“Gretchen am Shpinnrade.” Carol Kimball. Song: A Guide to Art Song Style and Literature. Milwaukee:
Hal Leonard Corporation, 2005.
8
Hao-Ming Nancy Chao. Twentieth century Chinese vocal music with particular reference to its
development and nationalistic characteristics from the May Fourth Movement (1919) to 1945. (Ph.D diss.,
University of California, 1995), 59.
6
China. Teaching psalms in the music class at the church schools was the beginning of
introducing Western music to China. In 1905, because of the suggestion by Youwei Kang
(康有為), the modern schools, which were based on Western models, were broadly
founded during the late period of Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and of course, the music
curricula were kept to be part of the education. The notation, theory, and concepts of
Western music were officially introduced into Chinese music. The songs which were
taught and used in class were called “school song”.
The “school song” was considered as a beginning of the development of Mandarin
Chinese art song. It was the very first time for Chinese to hear and sing foreign tunes, and
also to have a chance to learn the methods of Western music. However, the purpose of
their inclusion was focused more on the text than the music of “school song”. It was used
more as a tool for the government to teach people new thoughts. It was divided into four
categories, and they are patriotic songs, women’s songs, children’s songs and social
songs.9
The Development of Mandarin-Chinese Art Songs
After the May Fourth Movement, the development of Mandarin-Chinese art song was
gradually evolved. The music education was not limited to the classroom experiences in
public schools. There were many Western-trained musicians who returned to China, such
as Yuanpei Cai (蔡元培), Zi Huang (黃自), and Youmei Xiao, and they led teachers and
9
Ibid., 21.
7
students to establish music associations, such as the Beijing Daxue Yinyue Yanjiuhui (北
京 大 學 音 樂 研 究 會 , Peking University Music Research Association), Zhonghua
Meiyushe (中華美育社, China Art Education Association), and Guoyue Gaijinshe (國樂
改進社, Chinese Music Improvement Association). Additionally, in 1920, the Western
educational music department system began to take place at universities by leading
Chinese intellectuals in China, and the first formal Western-like music institution,
Shanghai Conservatory of Music,10 was founded on November 27, 1927 as well.
The Western-trained musician not only brought the latest music theory back to China, but
they also used the techniques they had learned to compose Mandarin-Chinese songs. For
example, Zi Huang went to Oberlin College and Yale University for his bachelor degree
in music. When he went back to China, Huang was invited to Shanghai Conservatory of
Music as a director of teaching affairs and chair of the composition area. 11 He taught
Western theory, composition and music appreciation. At the same time, he did not stop
composing new Chinese music which combined the Western and Chinese musical styles.
As Huang said, “Western music is not all of the best quality. We should be careful in
choosing the works that suit us and exclude what we don’t need. In a word, we should
learn what is good in Western music and use this technique to rearrange Chinese ancient
music and folk song; thus, it will not be difficult for us to have a new music of our own
10
It was called Shanghai National Conservatory of Music.
11
Hao-Ming Nancy Chao. Twentieth century Chinese vocal music with particular reference to its
development and nationalistic characteristics from the May Fourth Movement (1919) to 1945. (Ph.D diss.,
University of California, 1995), 106.
8
nationalistic style.”12 Huang had composed over a hundred works, and most were vocal
works. “Si Xiang” (〈思鄉〉, “Longing for home”), “Chunsi Qü” (〈春思曲〉, “Spring
Yearning”), and Meigui Sanyuan (〈玫瑰三願〉, “The Three Wishes of Rose”) are three
of his most famous Mandarin Chinese songs.
Unfortunately, as the development of Mandarin Chinese art songs was gaining strength,
the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945) began. The war started from the northern
provinces of China, and it broadened the scope to the whole mainland China. Because of
the war, many patriotic songs were composed, including, “Jiu Yi Ba” (〈九一八〉,
“September Eighteenth”) by Huang, “Changcheng Iao” (〈長城謠〉, “A Ballade of the
Great Wall”) by Xueyan Liu (劉雪庵), and “Dujue Hua” (杜鵑花, “Azaleas in Bloom”)
by Youdi Huang (黃友棣). During this time, many music institutions were moved to
remote provinces to be away from the war, and this hindered the development of music
education. 13 However, it also brought an unexpected benefit to the development of
Mandarin Chinese art song. The musicians noticed various kinds of folk songs from the
areas in which they stayed, and they used their musical knowledge to write the tunes in
Western musical notation that were published later. The collections of the folk songs did
not only save and introduce these valuable folk songs to more people, but it also
encouraged the composers to explore the new compositions other than Western art songs.
For instance, composers started to arrange Chinese folk songs with Western musical style,
12
Ibid, 127.
13
Jaan-Ay Tyan. A Performer’s Guide to Selected Chinese Art Songs by Twentieth-Century Chinese
Composers. (DMA diss.. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2003), 14.
9
either arranged (adapting) the melody of the song or by adding a completely different
accompaniment.
The Development of Mandarin-Chinese Art Song in Taiwan
After the end of the Second Sino-Japanese War, China was still lingering in the turmoil
of war. The Communist Party of China started the civil war in 1947, and the primary
party, the Chinese Nationalist Party, known as Guomindang (國民黨), had to retreat from
Republic of China to Taiwan in 1949. Following the establishment of the People's
Republic of China by the Communist Party of China in Mainland China on October 1,
1949, China was officially divided into two governments. This change did not only
change the political territories, but also made the Mandarin-Chinese art songs have
different developments in the areas.
The development of Mandarin-Chinese art song was limited in Mainland China, because
Communism was implemented by the Communist Party of China. During the time that
people in Mainland China were under control by the government in almost every way,
the Mandarin Chinese art song was gradually being developed in Taiwan.
Before 1949, Western musical style had already been introduced into Taiwan through
Taiwanese composers such as, Si-Zhi Chen (陳泗治), Quan-Sheng Lü (呂泉生), and ZhiÜan Guo (郭芝苑). In addition, because of the Second Sino-Japanese War, many Chinese
musicians immigrated to Taiwan, and they established the first music department in the
10
National Normal College in Taiwan in 1946. 14 This was the very beginning of
professional music education being provided to Taiwanese musicians.
The contributions from the Taiwanese and Chinese musicians and educators provided a
very nice environment for the second generation of musicians in Taiwan. The musicians
were able to not only have more advanced musical knowledge and technique, but also to
establish a more world view of musical concepts. Furthermore, the development of music
in Taiwan has never stopped. After studying abroad, many musicians like Chang-Hui Xu
(許常惠), De-Yi Liu (劉德義), Tai-Xiang Lee (李泰祥) and Shui-Long Ma (馬水龍)
brought the newest music concepts from all over the world back to Taiwan, and of course,
these concepts were also reflected in the Mandarin-Chinese art songs. Take Changhui Xu
as an example. After graduating from the National Taiwan Normal University, he went to
Ecole Cesar Franco and Institut de musicologie, Universite de Paris in France in 1954.
During the time he was in France, Musical Impressionism was the mainstream there. His
first composition, Gequ Sishou (《歌曲四首》, Four Songs) was finished in 1956. This
was also his first attempt at composing a work in the Musical Impressionism style. Later,
his fifth work, Liangshou Shiyueshi- Zuo Zi Haishang Lai. (《兩首室樂詩-昨自海上
來》, I Came from the Sea Yesterday of Two Chamber Music Poems) which was a set for
14
Jaan-Ay Tyan. A Performer’s Guide to Selected Chinese Art Songs by Twentieth-Century Chinese
Composers. (DMA diss.. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2003), 19.
11
soprano, was awareded as a piece of fine work by the Italy International Modern Music.15
No doubt, he brought the new musical style back to Taiwan when he returned in 1959. He
not only taught Musical Impressionism style at the music institutes, but also composed
much of his musical works with it. He especially dedicated himself to Mandarin Chinese
art songs. He composed many Mandarin Chinese art songs, including Nü Guanzi (〈女冠
子〉, “Lady's Headwear”), Qiao (〈橋〉, “The Bridge”). He also arranged various
Chinese folk songs into the new style. He held a concert, “Xu Changhui BianquZhongguo minyao Yanchanghui” (「許常惠編曲：中國民謠演唱會」“Chinese Folk
Songs Concert- Music Arranged by Xu Changhui”) in 1965 to present his works. His
teaching and works brought the Mandarin Chinese art songs to an advanced level quite
successfully. Moreover, he founded several associations and published articles and books
which promoted music in Taiwan.
Because of the contributions from these types of musicians, the development of music in
Taiwan began to mature. Not only did Taiwanese musicians begin to gain international
recognition, but also the works by Taiwanese composers were performed on global stages.
However, the development of the Mandarin-Chinese art songs has become somewhat
stalled, because most composers have become more attentive to composing in larger
musical forms and genres. 16 The Association of Vocal Artists of R.O.C. noticed this
15
Rui-Kun Xu and Mei-Wen Li. One Hundred Eastern Music Masters- Recent Asian Composers.
Kaohsiung: Center for the Humanities at National Sun Yat-sen University. Site address:
http://humanitiescenter.nsysu.edu.tw/webplan_person03.php
16
Jaan-Ay Tyan. A Performer’s Guide to Selected Chinese Art Songs by Twentieth-Century Chinese
Composers. (DMA diss.. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2003), 18.
12
stalling in Mainland China and Hong Kong. Since 1994, they held several Mandarin
Chinese art songs concerts; for example, “Jiaowo Ruhe Buxiang Ta- Zhao Yuenren
Jinian Xilie” (「教我如何不想他-趙元任紀念系列」, “How Can I not Think of HimIn Memory of Yuenren Zhao”, 1994), “Na Yike Xing Zai Dongfang- Xu Changhui Ge
Yuezhan” (「那一顆星在東方-許常惠歌樂展」, “The Star is in the Eastern- The
Performance of Songs by Changhui Xu” 1995), “Baiyun Guxiang- Lin Shengxi Ge
Yuezhan” (「白雲故鄉-林聲翕歌樂展」, “The Hometown of White Clouds- The
Performance of Songs by Shengxi Lin”, 1996). Furthermore, the association
commissioned outstanding Taiwanese composers to compose Mandarin Chinese art
songs, and held a series of “Taiwan Dangdai Zuoqujia Ge Yuelianzhan” (「台灣當代作
曲家歌樂聯展」, “The Performance of Songs by Contemporary Taiwanese Composers”,
1997), and “Chuangzuo Gequ Fabiaohui” (「創作歌曲發表會」, “The Presentation of
Songs” 2000) to present almost one hundred Mandarin Chinese art songs written by
thirty-two modern Taiwanese composers. In 2003, the association collected and
published some of the songs from the concerts in Dangdai Zhongwen Yishu Gequji (《當
代中文藝術歌曲集》, Contemporary Chinese Art Songs). Later, it commissioned four
Taiwanese poets and composers to cooperate to compose seventeen songs which were
published in Dangdai Zhongwen Yishu Gequji 2 ( 《 當 代 中 文 藝 術 歌 曲 集 2 》 ,
Contemporary Chinese Art Songs, Volume 2) in 2005. In addition, the Association of
Vocal Artists of Republic of China (R.O.C.) held competitions and concerts of MandarinChinese art songs every year to encourage not only composers to compose more
13
Mandarin-Chinese art songs, but to also encourage the singers of the latest generation to
know the repertoire. As the former president of the Association of Vocal Artists of
R.O.C., Xue-Yong Shen (申學庸), said, “One of the most important goals for founding
the association is to promote the vocal works wrriten by Taiwanese composers. It is a
long-term plan.”17 Undoubtly, its efforts have rekindled the development of MandarinChinese art songs.
17
Xueyong Shen, Ed. Dangdai Zhongwen Yishu Gequji (《當代中文藝術歌曲集》, Contemporary
Chinese Art Songs ). Taipei: Mercury Publishing House, 2003, 3.
14
Chapter Three:
Introduction of Mandarin-Chinese Diction
Chinese is one of the oldest languages that have been used continuously; it was the native
language of the Han people18. There are seven mutually unintelligible dialect families of
Chinese. They are the Mandarin dialects, the Wu dialects, the Yue dialects, the Min
dialects, the Hakka dialects, the Xiang dialects, and the Gan dialects, and they are
considered as regional dialects. 19 Because the different pronunciations between each
dialect caused communication problems, the Republic of China decided to establish
Standard Chinese (SC) as a national language in the early twentieth century.
The pronunciation of SC is based on the Beijing dialect, one of the Mandarin dialects,
which is considered as the main language used in Mandrin-Chinese art songs. In 1949,
SC became the official language in China and Taiwan. It is called Putonghua (普通話,
common language) in China and Guoyu (國語, national language) in Taiwan.20 SC is
taught in schools and used in broadcasts in China and Taiwan. However, there are
subdialectal differences between regions. For example, the most obvious difference of SC
18
The name, Han, originally came from the Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE). Now, Chinese refers
“Han people” to them.
19
Yen-Hwei Lin. The Sounds of Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, 2.
20
It is called Huayu (華語, Chinese language) in Singapore.
15
between Putonghua and Guoyu is that there are more retroflex sounds in Putonghua than
Guoyu.
For composing a sound of SC, the pronounciation combines three important parts. They
are an initial, a final and a tone mark. First, a consonant is used as an initial which is the
beginning of a syllable, and it must be followed by a vowel. Second, a final means the
rest of the syllable after the initial, and they are a vowel and a vowel with a glide.
However, an initial can be empty in SC. When an initial is empty, a vowel is the only
segment of the syllable. (Table 1)
Syllable
Initial
Final
Medial
Rime
Nucleus
Consonant
Glide Vowel
Ending
Consonant or
the second half of a diphthong
Table 1: The Traditional Analysis of the Chinese Syllable21
21
Ibid, 107.
16
Last, Chinese is considered as a tone language. Excpet the neural tone is changed based
on the tone of the syllable preceeding it, and does not have specific pitch. There are four
tones in SC which have different pitch values and pitch patterns. They are the first tone,
second tone, third tone, and fourth tone. The pitch value can be classified to high, mid
and low level. Based on the scale of 1 to 5, 5 indicate the highest pitch and 1 is the lowest
pitch. The pitch pattern can be rising, falling, rising-falling, or falling-rising. 22 The
concept of the pitch value and pitch pattern is relative. It would be different from a
person to a person. The first tone is high and without rising or falling (55, ); the second
tone is mid and rising (35, ); the third tone is low and falling-rising (214, ); and the
foruth tone is high and falling (51, ). As an important part of syllable in SC, the
different tones present different meanings. For instance, the vowel /ai/ in different tones
has different meanings: [ai] in first tone is ‘哀’ (sad), in second tone is ‘癌’ (cancer), in
third tone is ‘矮’ (short), and in fourth tone is ‘愛’ (love).
There are two major systems used for transcribing the sounds of SC for native speakers.
The first one was created in 1913 by the Conference on Unification of Pronunciation, led
by Jinheng Wu (吳敬恆) and it is called Zhuyin Fuhao (注音符號, Phonetic Symbols)
which originally was called Zhuyin Zimu (注音字母, Phonetic Alphabet). The system
started to be officially promoted in 1928. The symbols of Zhuyin Fuhao were based on
the forms of ancient Chinese characters and created by Zhang Binglin (章太炎). The
system now is used for teaching SC in schools and it is also a Chinese computer input
22
Yen-Hwei Lin. The Sounds of Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, 92.
17
method in Taiwan. Another system is Hanyu Pinyin ( 漢 語 拼 音 , Chinese Phonetic
Alphabet) which was created by Youguang Zhou (周有光) and published by the Chinese
government in 1958. The system is a Romanization system to transcribe SC into the
Roman alphabet. Hanyu Pinyin was revised several times and adopted as the international
standard in 1982 by the International Organization for Standardization. It is used in China,
Malaysia, Singapore, and Taiwan.
In order to avoid the confusion of the Roman symbols in IPA and Hanyu Pinyin, the
classification of the SC vowels and consonants in the study is based on Zhuyin Fuhao.
(Table 2) In addition, “Standard Chinese” or “Chinese” is used as “Mandarin-Chinese” in
this study. The discussion of the pronunciations of Mandarin-Chinese in the following
chapters is from a singer’s point of view, and use similar sounds found in Italian, German,
French, or English words to approach the concepts of the sound in Mandarin-Chinese in
the study. For each sound, it will be given a symbol of the Zhuyin Fuhao, a symbol of the
IPA, an explanation of the sound, and three Mandarin-Chinese words as examples. In
addition, there are several rules for changing the pronunciation of words in MandarinChinese as other foreign languages. However, Mandarin Chinese words do not consist of
English or Latin alphabets but in a number of strokes. It is difficult to recognize the
pronunciation of the words for non-native speakers of Mandarin-Chinese. For example,
the word ‘Love’ in Chinese is ‘愛’, and the word ‘hate’ is ‘恨’. It is not like European
languages where people can pronounce a word once they know the pronunciation of the
English alphabets and the rules. Therefore, the study concentrates on the pronunciations
18
of the Mandarin Chinese IPA, and only discusses the rules for the exception of the
syllable itself.
Zhuyin Fuhao
ㄅ
ㄆ
ㄇ
ㄈ
ㄉ
ㄊ
ㄋ
ㄌ
ㄍ
ㄎ
IPA
p
ph
m
f
t
th
n
l
k
kh
Zhuyin Fuhao
ㄏ
ㄐ
ㄑ
ㄒ
ㄓ
ㄔ
ㄕ
ㄖ
ㄗ
ㄘ
IPA
x
tɕ
tɕh
ɕ
tʂ
tʂh
ʂ
ɹ
ts
tsh
Zhuyin Fuhao
ㄙ
ㄚ
ㄛ
ㄜ
ㄝ
ㄞ
ㄟ
ㄠ
ㄡ
ㄢ
IPA
s
a
ɔ
ǝ
ε
ai
ei
ɑu
ou
an
Zhuyin Fuhao
ㄣ
ㄤ
ㄥ
ㄦ
ㄧ
ㄨ
ㄩ
IPA
ǝn
ɑŋ
ǝŋ
ɚ
i
u
y
Table 2: Thirty-Seven Symbols of Zhuyin Fuhao and IPA
Pronouncing the correct tone in SC is very difficult for non-native speakers, especially
for people whose native language is a non-tone language. However, it is less problematic
to sing in Mandarin-Chinese, because the pitch value and pitch contour will be covered
by musical tones in songs. Therefore, there is no further discussion about tones in this
19
study. Only the examples of the Chinese words for each sound have a tonal mark based
on IPA transcription in the example below. (Example 2)
Tone Value
Pitch Pattern
IPA
Transcription
Word
Meaning
First Tone
High Level
[ai]55
哀
sad
Second Tone
Mid-Rising
[ai]35
癌
cancer
Third Tone
Low-Falling-Rising
[ai]214
矮
short
Fourth Tone
Hihg-Falling
[ai]51
愛
love
Example 2: The Tonal Mark in IPA Transcription
20
Chapter Four:
The Mandarin-Chinese Diction- Vowels and Glides
Introduction
A vowel is made when the air goes through the vocal tract and makes the vocal folds
vibrate. In addition, every vowel has its particular position of the tongue and the lips.
Generally, there are three classifications of vowels. They are the degree of openness, the
place of articulation, and the lip position.23
First, the degree of openness is related to the degree of sonority. The openness of the jaw
and the low position of the tongue root are two factors that affect the degree of openness.
Based on the degree of openness, the vowel can be divided into a high vowel, mid vowel,
and low vowel. Compare the English vowels [ɑ] in park and [i] in leave. The vowel [ɑ]
has the position of the more open jaw and the lower tongue root than [i]. Therefore, the
vowel [ɑ] is called a low vowel, and the [i] is called a high vowel.
Second, a vowel can be classified as a front, central, and back vowel by the placement of
the articulated front tongue. Take the sounds of French low vowels [a] in la (there) and [ɑ]
passer (pass) as examples, the difference between [a] and [ɑ] is that [a] is produced when
23
Yen-Hwei Lin. The Sounds of Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, 63.
21
the front part of the tongue is raised, and the front part of the tongue moves backward for
producing [ɑ]. The Table 3 is the vowel space diagram which illustrates the differences
between vowels.
front
high i
mid
central
e
back
u
ǝ
o
ɑ
low a
Table 3: The Vowel Space Diagram24
Last, in addition to the differences of the degree of openness and the place of articulation,
the lip position is another classification for vowels. This position is used especially for
distinguishing presence or absensce of lip-rounded. It divides the high vowels [i] and [u],
and the mid vowels [e] and [o]. The vowel [i] and [e] are in a lip-unrounded position, and
[u] and [o] are in a lip-rounded position.
24
Ibid, 65.
22
Vowels and Glides
* Vowel: ㄚ [a]
The vowel ㄚ [a] is a low, front vowel which is considered as a bright [a]. The sound of
ㄚ [a] is made with the tongue moving toward the tongue position of [ɛ] as the facial
muscles slightly lift as in the act of smiling. The sound is the same as the French [a] in
table (table) and femme (woman), the Italian [a] in bacio (kiss) and donna (woman).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
法 (ㄈㄚˋ, fà)
[fa]51
France
八 (ㄅㄚ, ba)
[pa]55
eight
拿 (ㄋㄚˊ, ná)
[na]35
to take
* Vowel: ㄛ [ɔ]
The vowel ㄛ [ɔ] is a mid and back vowel with lip-rounding. When the lips are rounded,
the tongue is flat and low in the mouth and the tongue tip is behind the front lower teeth,
the sound of ㄛ is produced. Its sound is close to the “aw” in English saw and law, or in
[ɔ] French mort (dead) and Noël (Christmas), or in Italian poco (little) and Tosca (Tosca),
or in German sonne (sun) and Gott (God).
23
Exception:
When the ㄛ is preceded by a labial consonant25, the vowel ㄛ is pronounced [wɔ].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
[xwɔ]214
fire
破 (ㄆㄛˋ, pò)
[phwɔ]51
broken
佛 (ㄈㄛˊ, fó)
[fwɔ]35
Buddha
火 (ㄏㄨㄛˇ, huŏ)
* Vowel: ㄜ [ǝ]
The vowel ㄜ [ǝ] is mid and central vowel. The vowel ㄜ is produced with the tongue in
a neutral position. The sound is close to the “a” in English abroad and allure.
Exception:
1) When the vowel ㄜ is the only segment in the syllable, it involves a retroflex sound [ɹ]
involved. Therefore, the IPA of the vowel ㄜ would be [ǝɹ]. However, the nuclear
vowel is still [ǝ].
2) When the vowel ㄜ is in the final position in the syllable preceeded by a consonant (a
consonant+ㄜ), the IPA of the vowel would be [ɤ]. The sound of [ɤ] is similar to the
vowel [o] without lip-rounding.
25
There are two kinds of labial consonants. They are bilabial and labio-dental consonants. In SC, the
consonant ㄅ [p], ㄆ [ph], ㄇ [m], and ㄈ [f] are labial consonants.
24
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
餓 (ㄜˋ, è)
[ǝ]51
hungry
樂 (ㄌㄜˋ, lè)
[lɤ]51
happy
色 (ㄙㄜˋ, sè)
[sɤ]51
color
* Vowel: ㄝ [ε]
The vowel ㄝ [ε] is mid, front vowel. The sound is close to the Italian [e] in e (and), velo
(veil), and sè (himself/herself).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
別 (ㄅㄧㄝˊ, bié)
[pjε]35
to leave
略 (ㄌㄩㄝˋ, luè)
[lɥε]51
to leave out
滅 (ㄇㄧㄝˋ, miè)
[mjε]51
to exterminate
* Vowel: ㄦ [ɚ]
The vowel ㄦ [ɚ] is called a retroflexed vowel. The sound of ㄦ [ɚ] is close to an English
schwa with the tip of tongue raising toward the post-alveolar region; for example, English
[ɚ] in leader and reader.
25
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
二 (ㄦˋ , èr)
[ɚ]51
two
兒(ㄦˊ, ér)
[ɚ]35
son
耳 (ㄦˇ, ĕr)
[ɚ]214
ear
*Vowel: ㄧ [i]
The vowel ㄧ [i] is a high and front vowel. The sound is similar to the Italian [i] in Mimì
(Mimi), venti (twenty), and pietà (pity).
Exception:
There are two exceptions when the sound of ㄧ [i] becomes a glide [j]:
1) When there is no consonant before the vowel ㄧ, the glide [j] would be sounded before
the vowel ㄧ. The vowel becomes [ji].
2) When the vowel ㄧ is followed by the mid and low vowels26, the vowel ㄧ becomes a
glide [j].
The sound of [j] is similar to the English [j] in yes, yard, and yellow.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
ㄧ (一, yi)
[ji]51
one
也 (ㄧㄝˇ, yĕ)
[je]214
also
鼻 (ㄅㄧˊ, bí)
[pi]35
a nose
26
The mid and low vowels are [e], [ǝ], [o], [a], and [ɑ].
26
* Vowel: ㄨ [u]
The Vowel ㄨ [u] is high, back, and rounded vowel. To pronounce the vowel ㄨ [u], the
lips are rounded and protruded forward, the tongue tip is behind the lower front teeth, and
the back of the tongue rises toward the soft palate. The sound is similar to the English [u]
in blue and Luke, and the Italian [u] in tu (you) and giù (down).
Exception:
There are two exceptions of when the sound of ㄨ becomes a glide [w]:
1) When there is no consonant before the vowel ㄨ, the glide [w] would be sounded
before the vowel ㄨ. The vowel becomes [wu].
2) When the vowel ㄨ is followed by the mid and low vowels, the vowel ㄨ becomes
glide [w].
The sound of [w] is similar to the English [w] in window and watch.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
五 (ㄨˇ, wŭ)
[wu]214
five
婦 (ㄈㄨˋ, fù)
[fu]51
a woman
譜 (ㄆㄨˇ, pŭ)
[phu]213
scores
27
* Vowel: ㄩ [y]
The Vowel ㄩ [y] is the high, front and rounded vowel. The sound of ㄩ [y] is made with
the tongue placed as [i] and then round the lips as an open [ɔ] to produce [y]. It is as same
as the French [y] in flute (flute) and sur (on), the German ü in für (for) and Blüte
(blossom).
Exception:
There are two exceptions of when the sound of ㄩ becomes a glide [ɥ]:
1) When there is no consonant before the vowel ㄩ, the glide [ɥ] would be sounded
before the vowel ㄩ. The vowel becomes [ɥy].
2) When the vowel ㄩ is followed by the mid and low vowels, the vowel ㄧ becomes
glide [ɥ].
The sound of [ɥ] is similar to the French [ɥ] in nuit (night) and lui (it).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
女 (ㄋㄩˇ, nŭ)
[ny]214
female
綠 (ㄌㄩˋ, lù)
[ly]51
green
魚 (ㄩˊ, yú)
[ɥy]35
a fish
28
* Vowel: ㄢ [an]
To pronounce the vowel ㄢ [an], practice the English [æn] in pan and plan first and the
back part of the tongue slightly moves down. Therefore, when the vowel [æ] is changed
to [a], the vowel ㄢ [an] is made.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
安 (ㄢ, ān)
[an]55
peaceful
半 (ㄅㄢˋ, bàn)
[pan]51
half
懶 (ㄌㄢˇ, lăn)
[lan]214
lazy
* Vowel: ㄣ [ǝn]
The vowel ㄣ [ǝn] is close to the German [ǝn] in ihnen (them) and geblieben (remained).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
笨 (ㄅㄣˋ, bèn)
[pǝn]51
stupid
門 (ㄇㄣˊ, mén)
[mǝn]35
a door
[fǝn]55
to separate
分 (ㄈㄣ, fēn)
29
* Vowel: ㄤ [aŋ]
To pronounce the vowel ㄤ [aŋ], practice the English [ʌŋ] in sung, and lung first and
raise the soft palate slightly. Therefore, when the vowel [ʌ] is changed to [a], the sound
of ㄤ [aŋ] is made.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
昂 (ㄤˊ, áng)
[aŋ]35
to raise
幫 (ㄅㄤ, bang)
[paŋ]55
to help
浪 (ㄌㄤˋ, làng)
[laŋ]51
waves
* Vowel: ㄥ [ǝŋ]
The vowel ㄥ [ǝŋ] is similar to the English [oŋ] in song and long without lip-rounding.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
蹦 (ㄅㄥˋ, bèng)
[pǝŋ]51
to leap
瞪 (ㄉㄥˋ, dèng)
[tǝŋ]51
to stare
能 (ㄋㄥˊ, néng)
[nǝŋ]35
capable
30
Diphthongs: ㄞ [ai], ㄟ [ei], ㄠ [ɑu], ㄡ [ou]
A vowel consisting of two vowel qualities within a syllable is called a diphthong. For
example, the English [ai] in fly includes the vowel qualities of [a] and [i]. In SC, there are
four diphthongs. They are ㄞ [ai], ㄟ [ei], ㄠ [ɑu], ㄡ [ou]. The duration of the two
vowels in SC diphthongs is that the first vowel is longer and the second vowel is shorter.
* Vowel: ㄞ [ai]
The vowel ㄞ [ai] is as same as the English [ai] in lie and bye.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
拜 (ㄅㄞˋ, bài)
[pai]51
to worship
來 (ㄌㄞˊ, lái)
[lai]35
to come
買 (ㄇㄞˇ, măi)
[mai]214
to buy
* Vowel: ㄟ [ei]
The vowel ㄟ [ei] is as same as the English [ei] in lay and pay, and the Italian [ei] in lei
(she) and sei (six).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
[pei]55
a cup
美 (ㄇㄟˇ, mĕi)
[mei]214
beautiful
累 (ㄌㄟˋ, lèi)
[lei]51
tired
杯 (ㄅㄟ, bēi)
31
* Vowel: ㄠ [ɑu]
The vowel of ㄠ [ɑu] is similar to the English [ɑu] in cow and loud, the Italian [au] in
aura (aura) and Laura (Laura).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
[ɑu]51
proud
老 (ㄌㄠˇ, lăo)
[lɑu]214
old
抱 (ㄅㄠˋ, bào)
[pɑu]51
to hug
傲 (ㄠˋ, ào)
* Vowel: ㄡ [ou]
The vowel ㄡ [ou] is close to the English [oʊ] in soul, sew, and load.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
嘔 (ㄡˋ, òu)
[ou]51
to vomit
樓 (ㄌㄡˊ, lóu)
[lou]35
a building
嗽 (ㄙㄡˋ, sòu)
[sou]51
to cough
32
Chapter Five:
The Mandarin-Chinese Diction- Consonants
Introduction
In SC, there are twenty-one consonants and there are several major different characters
among the consonants. The characters are divided into four catalogies. They are the state
of the glottis, place of articulation, manner of articulation, and aspirated/unaspirated.27
Understanding the differences between characters can help the students not only to have a
better idea of the phonetic description of a sound in Chinese, but also to know how to
pronounce the exact sound physically.
First, the state of the glottis, which is the opening between the vocal folds, affects the
consonants to be either voiced or voiceless. A voiced sound is produced when the air
from the lung could not be pushed though the glottis and make the vocal folds vibrate. On
the other hand, when the air could be easily pushed through the glottis, the vocal folds do
not vibrate, and a voiceless sound is produced. In English as an example, the b in bee is a
voiced consonant and p in pee is a voiceless consonant. The only different between these
two sounds is the state of the glottis which makes one is voiced and the other is voiceless.
In SC, there are only four voiced consonants which are sonorants: nasals and
27
Yen-Hwei Lin. The Sounds of Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007, 19.
33
approximents. They are ㄇ [m], ㄋ [n], ㄌ [l], and ㄖ [ɹ]. Other than these four
consonants, all the consonants in SC are voiceless consonanats, and they are obstruents.
Hence, in SC, sonorants are voiced sounds and obstruents are voicless.
Subsequently, a consonant is produced when the air cannot flow through the vocal tract,
and the location of the obstruction is the place of articulation. There are three main places
of articulation and they are a labial articulation, coronal articulation, and dorsal
articulation. A labial sound that is made by the lips and it includes two types of labial
sounds: bilabial and labiodental. For example, the English “m” in mother and “f” in
father are both labial sounds. A sound that is made by using the tip or blade of tongue as
an articulator is called a coronal sound. Based on where the tip or blade of tongue forms a
constriction, there are three types of coronal sounds. They are dental, alveolar and postalveolar. The English “th” in thin, “n” in nine, and “r” in ride are examples of coronal
sounds. A dorsal sound is produced by the body (back) of the tongue and the velum. It is
also called a velar sound. The English “k” in key and “g” in glee are velar consonants.
The third category among consonants in SC is the manner of articulation. The manner of
articulation is how to describe the different ways of forming obstructions by articulators.
They can be divided into a stop, fricative, affricate, approximant, and lateral. First, the
different degrees of the constriction make a stop, fricative and approximant. A stop is
made when the articulators completely block the air to escape through the mouth. There
are two types of stops- oral stops and nasal stops. The English “t” in tea and “m” in meat
34
are the examples of stops. When the articulators do not completely block the air and
allow the air escape from a very small opening, the friction is happened, and it is called a
fricative. The pair of voiced and voiceless consonants, “f” in fan and “v” in vain, are
examples of fricatives. An approximant is the highest degree of opening when the
articulators are close to each other. Take the English r in road and l in long as examples,
there is no friction when saying these words. Second, an affricate has characteristics of
both a stop and fricative. The sound [tʃ] in cheap is an example of an affricate. When
saying the first consonant [tʃ] of the word cheap, there is a very short complete closure
followed by a friction. It is not like [t] in tea which does not have a friction followed by.
Last, a lateral sound is made when the tongue tip or blade touches the alveolar, and the
air escapes from the sides of the tongue.
Last, the difference between an aspirated and unaspirated consonant is the voice onset
time. The voice onset time is the very short period of time between a voiceless consonant
and the following voiced sound. Consonants which have longer voice onset time are
aspirated consonants, and there is a sound like [h] during the voice onset time. Compare
the English words pin and spin. The time between the consonant p and the vowel i in two
words is different. The voice onset time of the word pin is longer than spin. The
consonant p in pin has [h]-like sound, as a result of aspiration.
After understanding the different characters among consonants, each consonant can be
easily given a more accurate phonetic description of a sound. For example, the sound [m]
35
is classified as voiced, bilabial, and nasal consonant. In addition, it will be also easier for
students to have a better picture of the pronunciation of each consonant in the following
discussion.
The Bilabial Stop: ㄅ [p], ㄆ [ph], ㄇ [m]
The bilabial is one type of labial sounds. The sound is made by both lips touching each
other. There is no tongue movement. All three of these consonants are classified as a stop.
The consonants ㄅ [p] and ㄆ [ph] are oral stops which occur when articulators (both lips)
completely block the air through the oral cavity and nasal cavity. The consonant ㄇ [m] is
a nasal stop, and it occurs when the air is only blocked in the oral cavity.
* Consonant: ㄅ [p], voiceless, unaspirated, bilabial, oral stop.
Although the consonant ㄅ [p] was classified as “b” in Pinyin system, singers should be
aware that ㄅ [p] is voiceless, unaspirated sound, and not mispronounce it as a voiced
sound. The sound of ㄅ [p] is like the English “p” in spoon and spa. In addition, the
Italian [p] and French [p] are both similar to the sound of ㄅ [p], for example; the Italian
[p] in pace (peace) and Puritani (Puritan), and the French [p] in Paris (Paris) and
Poulenc.
36
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
爸 (ㄅㄚˋ, bà)
[pa]51
father
拜 (ㄅㄞˋ, bài)
[pai]55
bye
不 (ㄅㄨˋ, bù)
[pu]51
no
* Consonant: ㄆ [ph], voiceless, aspirated, bilabial, oral stop.
The sound ㄆ [ph] is made with the same way as ㄅ [p], except ㄆ [ph] is aspirated. The
sound of ㄆ [ph] is like the English “p” in park, pea, and put.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
怕 (ㄆㄚˋ, pà)
[pha]51
to be afraid
媲 (ㄆㄧˋ, pì)
[phi]51
to be equal to
撲 (ㄆㄨ, pū)
[phu]55
to throw oneself on
* Consonant: ㄇ [m], voiced, bilabial, nasal stop.
The sound of ㄇ [m] is the same as the English “m” in mother, meat, and mood. It is also
as same as the Italian, French, and German [m].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
媽 (ㄇㄚ, mā)
[ma]55
mother
米 (ㄇㄧˇ, mĭ)
[mi]214
rice
木 (ㄇㄨˋ, mù)
[mu]51
wood
37
The Labiodental Fricative: ㄈ [f]
A labiodental sound is made with the lower lip closed to the upper front teeth. In addition,
for making a fricative, there is a narrow gap between the lower lip and the upper front
teeth, and the air escapes.
* Consonant: ㄈ [f], voiceless, labiodental fricative.
The sound of ㄈ [f] is the same as the English “f” in far, fair, and full. It is also the same
as the Italian, French, and German [f].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
罰 (ㄈㄚˊ, fá)
[fa]35
to punish
飛 (ㄈㄟ, fēi)
[fei]55
to fly
富 (ㄈㄨˋ, fù)
[fu]51
rich
The Dental Stop: ㄉ [t], ㄊ [th], ㄋ [n]
Unlike the English sounds [t] and [n] are alveolar stops, the [t], [th], [n] in SC are
classified as dental stops. The sound is made with the tongue tip or blade close to the
upper front teeth so that the air cannot escape through the mouth. However, there are
many native speakers of Mandarin-Chinese making this sound with the tongue tip or
blade close to the alveolar.
38
* Consonant: ㄉ [t], voiceless, unaspirated, dental, oral stop.
It is easy for people to confuse the sound of ㄉ [t] in SC, especially since it is spelled as d
in the pinyin system. However, there is no [d] in SC. The Sound of ㄉ [t] is the same as
the English “t” in stunning. In addition, the same sound also occurs in Italian. The Italian
[t] is unaspirated, for example, tu (you) and dito (finger).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
大 (ㄉㄚˋ, dà )
[ta]51
big
地 (ㄉㄧˋ, dì )
[ti]51
a floor
讀 (ㄉㄨˊ, dú )
[tu]35
to read
* Consonant: ㄊ [th], voiceless, aspirated, dental, oral stop.
The only difference between the consonants ㄉ [t] and ㄊ [th] is that the latter is aspirated.
It means that there is more air coming out when saying the consonant ㄊ [th]. The sound
of [th] can be found in English, such as the “t” in tango and telephone; it is also similar to
French [t], such as tu (you), and tout (all).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
他 (ㄊㄚ, tā)
[tha]55
he
踢 (ㄊㄧ, tī)
[thi]55
to kick
兔 (ㄊㄨˋ, tù)
[thu]51
a rabbit
39
* Consonant: ㄋ [n], voiced, dental, nasal stop.
The consonant ㄋ [n] is a dental nasal stop which is made with the tongue tip or blade
close to the upper front teeth. The sound is like the Italian [n] in nome (name) and buona
notte (good night). However, as mentioned before, the consonant ㄋ [n] can be
pronounced as a dental stop or alveolar stop in SC. Therefore, there are some native
speakers of Chinese that pronounce ㄋ [n] as an alveolar stop, in which the sound is the
same as the English “n” in no and not.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
哪 (ㄋㄚˇ, nă)
[na]214
where
內 (ㄋㄟˋ, nèi)
[nei]51
inside
你 (ㄋㄧˇ, nĭ)
[ni]214
you
The Dental Lateral: ㄌ [l]
There is only one type of lateral sound in SC, and it is a dental lateral. The dental lateral
is produced by the tongue tip or blade touching the upper front teeth. The air can flow
through the mouth along the sides of the tongue. Although the sound is classified as a
dental sound, there are some native speakers of SC pronouncing the sound with the
tongue tip or blade close to the center of alveolar ridge.
40
* Consonant: ㄌ [l], voiced dental lateral (approximant).
The sound of ㄌ [l] is like the Italian [l] in largo (wide) and leggero (light). In addition,
as mentioned earlier, the ㄌ can be considered as an alveolar ridge, and the sound is close
to the English “l” in lure and lay.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
辣 (ㄌㄚˋ, là)
[la]51
spicy
累 (ㄌㄟˋ, lèi)
[lei]51
tired
路 (ㄌㄨˋ, lù)
[lu]51
a path
The Velar Stop and Fricative: ㄍ [k], ㄎ [kh], ㄏ [x]
The velar sound is made when the back/root of the tongue touches the velum.
* Consonant: ㄍ [k], voiceless, unaspirated, velar stop.
Unlike the sound [k] in Italian, French and German which is a palatal sound, the
consonant ㄍ is pronounced when the back of the tongue touches the velar which is
behind the hard and soft palatal. It is as same as the English “k” in sky, ski, and score.
41
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
蓋 (ㄍㄞˋ, gài)
[kai]51
to cover
過 (ㄍㄨㄛˋ, guò)
[kuΩ]51
to pass
[kr]55
a song
歌 (ㄍㄜ, gē)
* Consonant: ㄎ [kh], voiceless, aspirated, velar stop.
The sound of ㄎ [kh] is an aspirated sound of ㄍ [k]. The consonant ㄎ sounds like the
English “k” in card, core, and cool.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
卡 (ㄎㄚˇ, kă)
[kha]214
a card
口 (ㄎㄡˇ, kŏu)
[kou]214
a mouth
褲 (ㄎㄨˋ , kù)
[ku]51
pants
* Consonant: ㄏ [x], voiceless, velar fricative.
It is easy to be confused with the sound of ㄏ [x] in SC, especially since it is spelled as
“h” in Pinyin system. However, the sound of [h], for example, in English is a glottal
sound, but ㄏ [x] is not. The consonant ㄏ is a velar sound. In addition, it is confusing to
singers, especially, the ㄏ with the German “ch” in lich, and ach which is a uvular sound,
not a velar sound as well.
42
Because the only different between the consonant ㄏ and ㄍ is the manner of articulation,
the consonant ㄏ is a fricative and ㄍ is a stop. To pronounce the consonant ㄏ, speak the
English [k] which is voiceless velar stop first, and move the tongue down slightly from
the velar. The voiceless velar fricative sound, ㄏ, is made.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
畫 (ㄏㄨㄚˋ, huà)
[xua]51
to draw
灰 (ㄏㄨㄟ, hueī)
[xuei]55
gray
[xu]35
a lake
湖 (ㄏㄨˊ, hú)
The Alveolar-palatal Fricative and Affricate: ㄐ [tɕ], ㄑ [tɕh], ㄒ [ɕ]
There are two kinds of post-alveolar sounds. One is called (apical) post alveolar, and
another is alveolar-palatal. The three consonants, ㄐ [tɕ], ㄑ [tɕh], ㄒ [ɕ], are the alveolarpalatal. The alveolar-palatal is one kind of post alveolar. The alveolar-palatal sound is
made when the tongue blade is close to the region between the alveolar and the hard
palate. Note that the alveolar-palatal sound is only made with the tongue blade, not the
tongue tip.
43
* Consonant: ㄐ [tɕ], voiceless, unaspirated, alveolar-palatal affricate.
To produce the sound of ㄐ [tɕ], speak the English [dʒ] which is a post-alveolar affricate
as in jeep and jaw, or the Italian [dʒ] in giaccio (ice) and leggiero (slightly) first, and
slightly move the tongue tip forward and down. When the tongue tip is behind the lower
front teeth, and the tongue blade close to the region between the alveolar and the hard
palate without lip-rounding, the sound of ㄐ is produced. The sound of ㄐ should be more
forward and flat than the sound of [dʒ].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
[tɕi]55
a chicken
叫 (ㄐㄧㄠˋ, jiào)
[tɕiau]51
to shout
舊 (ㄐㄧㄡˋ, jiù)
[tɕiou]51
old
雞 (ㄐㄧ, jī)
* Consonant: ㄑ[tɕh], voiceless, aspirated, alveolar-palatal affricate.
The sound of ㄑ [tɕh] is an aspirated sound of ㄐ [tɕ]. To produce the sound of ㄑ [tɕh],
speak the English [tʃ] in cheap and chair, or the Italian [tʃ] in ciò (that) and ciao first, and
slightly move the tongue tip forward and down. When the tongue tip is behind the lower
front teeth, and the tongue blade is close to the region between the alveolar and the hard
palate, the sound of ㄑ is produced. Note that the lips are not rounded. The sound of ㄑ
should be more forward and flat than the sound of [tʃ].
44
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
氣 (ㄑㄧˋ, qì)
[tɕhi]51
angry
切 (ㄑㄧㄝ, qiē)
[tɕhie]55
to cut
橋 (ㄑㄧㄠˊ, qiáo)
[tɕhiao]35
a bridge
* Consonant: ㄒ [ɕ], voiceless, unaspirated, alveolar-palatal fricative.
Speak the French [ʃ] which is voiceless alveolar-palatal stop in chose (thing) and
chercher (to look for) first, and then move the lips to be unrounded. In addition, have a
slight space between the tongue blade and the region between alveolar and palate to make
the fricative sound. The consonant ㄒ is close to the Russian щ in щapф (scarf).
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
蝦 (ㄒㄧㄚ, xiā)
[ɕia]55
a shrimp
謝 (ㄒㄧㄝˋ, xiè)
[ɕie]51
to thank
秀 (ㄒㄧㄡˋ, xiù)
[ɕiou]51
to show
The Post-alveolar Affricates and Fricative: ㄓ [tʂ], ㄔ [tʂh], ㄕ [ʂ]
The three consonants, ㄓ [tʂ], ㄔ [tʂh], ㄕ [ʂ], are specifically classified as apical postalveolar.
45
The apical post alveolar is made when the tongue tip close to the post-alveolar region
which is between the alveolar and the hard palate. Be careful that the difference between
the apical post-alveolar sound and the alveolar-palatal sound is that the former is made
with the tongue tip, and the latter is made with the tongue blade. There would be a slice
of air coming through the tiny space between the tongue tip and the post alveolar region
when pronouncing the affricates and fricatives.
* Consonant: ㄓ [tʂ], voiceless, unaspirated, post-alveolar affricate.
The sound of ㄓ [tʂ] is close to the English “j” in jerk and jeer, or the Italian [dʒ] in giara
(jar) and regie (royal).
When the consonant ㄓ is the only segment of the syllable, there would be a retroflex
sound [ɹ] involved. 28 The IPA would be [tʂɹ]. The sounds ㄓ [tʂɹ] is made when
prolonging [dʒ] and raise the tongue tip toward the back of the alveolar ridge. The sound
of [tʂɹ] is like ㄓ [[tʂ] + schwa [ǝ].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
眨 (ㄓㄚˇ, zhă)
[tʂa]214
to blink
週 (ㄓㄡ, zhōu)
[tʂou]55
a week
紙 (ㄓˇ, zhĭ)
[tʂɹ]214
paper
28
The retroflex sound [ɹ] is considered as an apical vowel when it proceeds by an apical consonant.
46
* Consonant: ㄔ [tʂh], voiceless, aspirated, post-alveolar affricate.
The ㄔ [tʂh] sound is made when prolonging the English “ts” in pets, and raises the
tongue tip toward the back of the alveolar ridge.
When the consonant ㄔ is the only segment of the syllable, there would be a retroflex
sound [ɹ] involved. The IPA would be [tʂhɹ]. The sound of [tʂhɹ] is like ㄔ [tʂh] + schwa
[ǝ].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
茶 (ㄔㄚˊ, chá)
[tʂha]35
tea
處 (ㄔㄨˋ, chù)
[tʂhu]51
a place
吃 (ㄔ, chī)
[tʂhɹ]55
to eat
* Consonant: ㄕ [ʂ], voiceless, post-alveolar fricative.
The ㄕ [ʂ] sound is made when prolonging the English “s” in mouse, and raise the tongue
tip toward the back of the alveolar ridge.
When the consonant ㄕ is the only segment of the syllable, there would be a retroflex
sound [ɹ] involved. The IPA would be [ʂɹ]. The sound of [ʂɹ] is like ㄕ [ʂ] + schwa [ǝ].
47
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
殺 (ㄕㄚ, shā)
[ʂa]55
to kill
瘦 (ㄕㄡˋ, shòu)
[ʂou]51
thin
十 (ㄕˊ, shí)
[ʂɹ]35
ten
The Post-alveolar Approximant: ㄖ [ɹ]
The consonant ㄖ [ɹ] is post-alveolar which is made when the tongue tip close to the postalveolar region which is between the alveolar and the hard palate. It is especially
classified as an apical post-alveolar. The sound of ㄖ [ɹ] is close to the English “r” in
road, rude, and rock without lip-rounding.
To pronounce the consonant ㄖ, prolong the English “z” in zoo, and curl the tongue tip
back and close to the post-alveolar region. In addition, because the sound of ㄖ [ɹ] is
approximant, there is a space between the tongue tip and the post-alveolar region.
When the consonant ㄖ is the only syllable in a word, there would be a retroflex sound [ɹ]
involved. The IPA would be [ɹɹ]. The sound of [ɹɹ] is like ㄖ [ɹ] + schwa [ǝ].
48
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
肉 (ㄖㄡˋ, ròu)
[ɹou]51
meat
入 (ㄖㄨˋ, rù)
[ɹu]51
to enter
日 (ㄖˋ, rì)
[ɹɹ]51
day
The Dental Affricates and Fricative: ㄗ [ts], ㄘ [tsh], ㄙ [s]
The sound of the dental affricates or fricative is made by two steps. First, make the upper
and lower front teeth very close to each other, and then, articulate the sound with the
tongue tip or blade closer to the upper or lower front teeth, or in the middle of the upper
and lower front teeth. There would be a slice air coming through the tiny space between
the upper and the lower teeth when pronounce the affricates and fricative sounds.
* Consonant: ㄗ [ts], voiceless, unaspirated, dental affricate.
The sound of ㄗ [ts] is close to the English “ds” in sounds and birds. The sound is also
similar to the Italian voiced [z] in zelo (zeal) and pranzo (lunch). However, singers
should be careful that ㄗ [ts] is voiceless, and the English “ds” and Italian [z] are
classified as voiced consonants.
49
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
再 (ㄗㄞˋ, zài)
[tsai]51
again
走 (ㄗㄡˇ, zŏu)
[tsou]214
to go
組 (ㄗㄨˇ, zŭ)
[tsu]214
to organize
* Consonant: ㄘ [tsh], voiceless, aspirated, dental affricate.
The sound of ㄘ [tsh] is an aspirated sound of ㄗ [ts]. The sound of Italian voiceless “z” is
as same as ㄘ [tsh]. For example, the Italian [z] in danza (dance), azione (action), and
zoppo (lame). The ㄘ [tsh] is also similar to the English “ts” in bits, bats, or tsunami.
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
擦 (ㄘㄚ, cā)
[tsha]55
to wipe
湊 (ㄘㄡˋ, còu)
[tshou]51
to collect
菜 (ㄘㄞˋ, cài)
[tshai]51
vegetables
* Consonant: ㄙ [s], voiceless, dental fricative.
The consonant ㄙ is close to the English “s” in sub, soup, and sad. However, the English
[s] is voiceless alveolar fricative. Therefore, to pronounce the consonant ㄙ correctly,
prolong the English “s”, and move the tongue tip from the alveolar region to the back of
the front teeth.
50
When the consonant ㄙ is the only syllable in a word, there would be a retroflex sound [ɹ]
involved. The IPA would be [ʂɹ]. The sound of [ʂɹ] is like ㄙ [ʂ] + schwa [ǝ].
Chinese Word
IPA
Meaning
灑 (ㄙㄚˇ, să)
[sa]214
to spray
素 (ㄙㄨˋ, sù)
[su]51
plain
四 (ㄙˋ, sì)
[sɹ]51
four
51
Chapter Six:
Chung Yiu-Kwong- The Composer
Biography
Yiu-Kwong Chung (鍾耀光), was born in Hong-Kong in 1956. Chung came from a small
family, and was the only child. Before he went to elementary school, Chung had no
musical background. His first music class at school was an eye-opening experience for
him. At that point, his favorite thing to do was to stand beside the music teachers and
watch them play the piano. Chung’s parents, of course, noticed his desire for music.
However, because of their financial difficulties, they were not able to provide him with
any private music lessons. This did not stop Chung who had already fallen in love with
music and who strongly wanted to learn more and more about the world of music. Chung
not only started listening to classical music program from a Hong-Kong Commercial
Radio station every night, but he also joined the school wind band when he went to Pui
Ching Middle School (培正中學). He was a trumpeter and percussionist in the band.
Chung studied music with the director of the band, Yi-Guang Pan (潘裔光). Because of
the good quality of the musical environment at Pui Ching Middle School, Chung
developed his music techniques as a percussionist, and set his heart on pursuing his
studies as a musician.
52
Chung went to Hong Kong Baptist University as a music major and started his
professional music training as a percussionist. However, Chung was frustrated that there
were not enough percussion teachers in Hong-Kong. So it was difficult for him to get
more advanced training. Therefore, he decided to go to the U.S. during his junior year.
He received his Bachelor and Master degrees at the Philadelphia College of the
Performing Arts and Brooklyn College respectively. He studied with Nicolas D'Amico
and Morris Lang. In addition, he also studied marimba with Leigh Howard Stevens and
Keiko Abe.
In 1980, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra was searching for instrumentalists and
held auditions all over the world. Chung went to the audition in New York, and was
accepted. Therefore, after graduating, he went back to Hong Kong and joined the Hong
Kong Philharmonic Orchestra as the Assistant Principal Percussionist.
Chung was already well-known as a percussionist at the age of twenty-four in Hong
Kong, but his talent as a composer was not noticed till 1986. His work, Chariots Ballad
for Solo Marimba and Seven Percussionists, 29 won the first prize at the Thirteenth
Percussive Arts Society Composition Competition in the U.S. Winning the competition
encouraged Chung to study composition formally. At the same time, he had grown tired
of the routine of his job at the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. Therefore, he gave up
his liberal salary and went to City University of New York to further his study in
29
It had performed by the Prague Percussion Ensemble and other renowned percussion ensembles in
Asia and the U.S. It is now a popular repertoire for a percussion ensemble.
53
percussion and composition. He received his doctoral degree in percussion in 1991 and
composition in 1995. His Doctor of Music Arts (D.M.A) dissertation, Hans Werner
Henze's Five Scenes from the Snow Country: An Analysis, won the Barry Brook
Dissertation Award.
When he was at City University of New York, Chung studied composition with Robert
Starer and David Olan. This was the very first time Chung had professional training in
composition. His PhD dissertation was I-Ching Compositional System: The Symbolism,
Structures, and Orderly Sequence of the Sixty-Four Hexagrams as Compositional
Determinants. I-Ching was the theory people used for divination. It has sixty-four
hexagrams in orderly sequence. Chung combined the ideas and theories from the Chinese
Yin-Yang Philosophy and Western contemporary music and invented I-Ching
Compositional System (ICCS).
Chung decided to move to Taiwan after he finished his doctoral degree in percussion in
1991. The reason why he moved to Taiwan instead of going back to Hong Kong was
because he liked the musical environment in Taiwan where composers could have more
opportunities and support there.
After moving to Taiwan, Chung’s compositions received a wider international
recognition very quickly. His compositions for Chinese orchestra, The Eternal City for
Chinese Orchestra, won the first prize of the Twenty-first Century International
54
Composition Competition in 2000. Moreover, his works have been heard in many major
international festivals, such as the Prague Spring Festival, the International Society for
Contemporary Music (ISCM) World Music Days, the Shanghai Music Festival, the
Festival of the Asian Composers' League, and The World Association for Symphonic
Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) International Band Festival.
Commissions from international artists increased along with his reputation. For example,
cellists Yo Yo Ma, Mischa Maisky, and Anssi Karttunen; flutists Sharon Bezaly and
Pierre Yes Artaud; saxophonists Christian Wirth and Claude Delangle; the guitarist Eva
Fampas percussionists Evelyn Glennie, Keiko Abe, and PercaDu trombonists Christian
Lindberg, the Quatuor Emphasis, the Berlin Philharmonic Twelve Cellists, the Elsner
String Quartet, and the Kronos Quartet have all commissioned works. In addition, his
compositions are not only performed in traditional concerts, but also in the Peking Opera
and Taiwanese Opera houses.
Chung now is a full time proforessor of composition and percussion at the National
Taiwan University of Arts and serves as a general director for the Taipei Chinese
Orchestra.
55
Style
Chung did not have any professional composition training until he won the first prize at
the Thirteenth Percussive Arts Society Composition Competition in1986 and had a
chance to go to City University of New York for his doctorate in composition. Chung
said he learned all of his compositional techniques from reading orchestral scores by
himself. His first teacher was too ill to have time to teach him, and when he changed to
the second teacher, he was about to graduate; therefore, Chung did not really study with
either of these teachers. However, because of this independent study, Chung gained a lot
of personal freedom to develop his own style, as well as the ability to compose in many
genres of compositions. For example, Chung had composed not only for the western
orchestral, chamber, solo instrument, solo voice, chorus, and opera styles, but also
commercial, Chinese orchestra, Peking Opera, Taiwanese Opera and pop music styles.
One of the main ideas in Chung’s compositions is to emotionally move audiences. Chung
said in his interview, “There are two kinds of compositions. One is very avant-garde,
very modern music. The other kind is understandable music for everyone. And, the latter
can touch more people’s hearts. Therefore, I will still focus on the later style of
compositions in the future years.”30 For Chung, there is no easier kind of music to write,
because the most difficult part of composing is to let audiences understand, and be moved
30
「創作有兩種，一種是很前衛、很現代的音樂，一種是普羅大眾能夠了解的，而 後者能接
觸的面寬廣的多，因此未來幾年我的創作重心仍然會放在後者。」“ZuoqujiaChung Yiu-Kwong:
Renhe Yinyue Dou Ying Wanquan Jiayu” (〈作曲家鍾耀光：任何音樂語言都應完全駕馭〉, “The
Composer, Chung Yiu-Kwong: All kinds of Music Languages should be Managed”) (25 November,
2005), Site address: http://blog.yam.com/nocturnes/article/732177
56
by the works that he spent so much time to compose or it would be wasted. Because of
these beliefs, he never feels antipathy toward writing any kind of work, even though
some commissions are for commercial purpose.
Because of his background as percussionist, Chung is not afraid to use a lot of percussion
color in his works. For example, the percussion has a very important role in his famous
work, Festive Celebration.31 He also wrote many works for percussion, such as Drum
Flames (Concerto for 6 Percussionists and Orchestra), Concerto for Timpani and Strings,
Multi-vector (Chamber for 10 Percussionists), Pestle Song (Chamber for Alto Saxophone
and Percussion), and Concerto for Solo Drum set, (Concerto for solo drum set, piano,
electric bass, and saxophone ensemble, and Naowu (for Solo Percussion and Solo
Dancer).
As an Asian composer who had Western music training, Chung combines Chinese music
styles with the Western music styles. For example, he added gongs and drums, Chinese
traditional percussion, to his Western orchestral works, such as Festive Celebration; he
composed concertos for Western instruments and Chinese orchestra, such as Huxuan
Dance (Concerto for flute and a Chinese orchestra) and Cursing General Caocao
(Concerto for trombone and a Chinese orchestra); and he used some motifs from the
major Peking opera, Farewell My Concubine and The Drunken Beauty to compose the
Symphonic poem, Changxi (Opera Singing).
31
Festive Celebration was for nine percussionists originally. In 1992, Chung arranged it for a wind
band, and a year later, he arranged again it for an orchestra. He arranged it for a Chinese orchestra in 2007.
The edition for wind band was published in 1998 by Musikverlag Johann Kliment.
57
Chung not only integrates the Chinese musical style with the Western musical style, but
he also uses Western musical concepts to create a new Chinese musical style. He used the
Western orchestra to compose the Taiwanese Opera, Who Is My Bride, which was
traditionally performed with a Chinese orchestra. Besides composing for instruments and
vocal ensembles, Chung has written for solo voice as well. He has composed twenty-one
songs, and there are seven songs which were arranged from Chinese folk songs.
Chung maintains his integration of the Western and Eastern music style in his songs. He
ingeniously used the Chinese Pentatonic Scale in either the vocal line or the
accompaniment. He placed the fusion of the traditional Chinese melodic pattern and the
modern Western compositional techniques that make his works have a unique beauty of
conflicting elements.
The preparation for using certain texts for Chung’s art songs can be traced back to his
early schooling at Pui Ching Middle School where Chinese was a very important subject.
During his six years there, Chung not only established his music techniques as a
percussionist, but also advanced his attainment in Chinese poetry. Except for seven folk
songs, in his art songs, Chung has used seven ancient poems by Qingzhao Li (李清照),
Kui Jiang (姜夔), Shi Su (蘇軾), Bai Li (李白), Haoran Meng (孟浩然), and seven
modern poems by Zhimo Xu (徐志摩).
58
Chung has an intuitive melodic talent and the ability to uncover the essence of the poetry
and transform it into musical expression. He produced songs in which the style is
conditioned not only by the content of the poetry, but also by the rhythm of the poetry
and the background of the poet. For example, for expressing the romantic feelings during
the May Fourth Movement, Chung used symmetrical structures of melody to compose “I
Have a Love” (我有一個戀愛), “Building a Love Wall” (起造一座牆), “I cannot Tell
Where the Wind Blows” (我不知道風是在哪一個方向吹).
The treatment of Chung’s accompanying figures is to unify stanzas and set the scene. For
instance, he changed the rhythm pattern to sixteen notes to create the atmosphere of water
flowing in “Saying Good-bye to Cambridge Again” (再別康橋), and “The Rhythm of the
Sea” (海韻). The piano plays an active supportive role for the voice in his songs. Some
are orchestral in texture. His vocal lines have more tonal color than many modern
Mandarin-Chinese songs. Chung is very careful and detailed in marking his scores. He
would note tempi, dynamics and sound for both the vocal line and accompaniment in his
scores.
Chung claims that a composer needs to have his own brand and language first, and then
people will accept you as an international composer. 32 Chung believes that it is very
important to be diversified as a composer. As an Asian composer, his strength is to
32
Yujing Chang (張玉菁). Chung Yiu-KwongWushou Gequ Yanchang Quanshi (《鍾耀光五首藝術
歌曲演唱詮釋》, The Interpretation of Yiu-Kwong Chung’s Five Art Songs.) (Master’s thesis, National
Taipei University of Education, 2008), 8.
59
integrate. He not only utilizes the Western composing techniques to compose, but he also
uses traditional Asian music culture to decorate his works. This integration makes his
works unique. In addition, at the same time, he broke away from dividing his works
between the Western or Eastern sound, and instead, his only focus is on serving the
purpose of the composition. This gives him more freedom to write his music. As he said
in an interview, “I have a new thought in these two years. It is when I compose a new
piece; I would only consider the piece is for what kind of environment, what kind of need,
and what kind of commission. I do not care about any kind of style, and of course, there
is no difference between the Eastern and Western. I have the blood from both of them. I
only need to care if my music is thoughtful and persuasive.”33 This is the reason why he
is one of the most well-known composers in Asia, and the commissions from
international artists have never stopped.
33
「我這兩年有個全新的領悟，就是生活在什麼樣的 環境，有什麼樣的需要，受什麼委託，
就創作什麼音樂，不再拘泥於任何型式，當然也不在意所謂東方與西方。我本來就流著東西方音樂
的血液，我只在乎我的音樂 是否有內涵與說服力而已。」__________. “ZuoqujiaChung YiuKwong: Renhe Yinyue Dou Ying Wanquan Jiayu” (〈作曲家鍾耀光：任何音樂語言都應完全駕馭〉,
The Composer, Chung Yiu-Kwong: All kinds of Music Languages should be Managed”) (25 November,
2005), Site address: http://blog.yam.com/nocturnes/article/732177
60
Chapter Seven:
Zhimo Xu- The Poet
Biography
Zhimo Xu (徐志摩) is a twentieth century Chinese poet who was born in Zhejiang, China,
on January 15, 1897. His given name was Zhangxu (章垿), and the courtesy name34 was
Yousen (槱森). When Xu was little, a Buddhist monk, whose name was Zhihui (志恢)
caressed his head and praised him so that he will become very successful. Therefore,
Xu’s father was happy hearing that and decided to change his courtesy name to Zhimo
before he went to study abroad. Therefore, Zhimo is the name people became most
familiar with later.
Xu’s father, Shenru Xu (徐申如), was a successful businessman, and he owned a power
station, a plum jam factory, a silk factory, and a bank. He was also president of Shensi
Stone Commercial Association. Xu’s mother was a concubine, and knew only a little
writing. No one in Xu’s entire family had ever written a poem.
34
A courtesy name, also known as Zì (字), is a given name by parents or teachers. For male, a
courtesy name would start to use at the age of twenty, and for female, it usually used after married.
61
Xu was nearsighted which made him see everything fuzzy; therefore, he began wearing
glasses when he was a child.35 However, this did not stop his interest of reading literature.
He showed his talent early in his childhood. Xu was good at everything, especially
writing. His writings were impressive and he called them “liangjiao shugui” (兩腳書櫃, a
bookcase with two legs) at the age of twelve. He went to a very famous high school,
Hangzhou High School, and there, he published several articles in the school journal,
YouShang ( 《 友 聲 》 , Voice from Friends), such as “ Xiaoshuo Yu Shiehui Zhi
Guanxi” (〈小說與社會之關係〉, “The Relationship of a Novel and Society”).
In 1915, he went to Shanghai Baptist College, and the next year, he transferred to
Beiyang University. A year later, Beiyang University was merged into Peking University
where he majored in Political Science. The same year, he was married to Youyi Zhang
(張幼儀), his first wife. In 1918, Xu was introduced to Qichao Liang (梁啟超) who was a
very important Chinese political reformist, and Xu officially became his apprentice.
Xu did not finish his degree at Peking University. He went to the U.S. to study history at
Clark University, and then went to Columbia University for his Masters degree in
Economics. He attended many political science classes there, and was introduced to the
works of famous political philosophers such as Karl Heinrich Marx, Robert Owen and
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche. He especially admired Bertrand Arthur William Russell. It
was then that his goal was to study with Russell. In 1920, after he finished his dissertation,
35
Wearing glasses has become a special character of his look later.
62
Zhongguo Funy De Diuei (《中國婦女的地位》, The Place of Chinese Women), he gave
up pursuing a doctorate at Columbia University and he went to England to study with
Russell. However, Russell was dismissed from Trinity College at the University of
Cambridge because he was convicted under the Defence of the Realm Act, in 1916.
Therefore, Xu missed the chance to study with him.
Although Xu did not study with Russell, his time in Cambridge was the most important
period of Xu’s life. There, he was introduced to Galsworthy Lowes Dickinson, an English
Scholar, who later recommended him to Kings College of the University of Cambridge as
a special auditor which allowed him to audit any class in Kings College. There, Xu also
met Herbert George Wells, and Kathleen Mansfield Beauchamp Murry who were both
famous English writers. He mentioned in a letter to his parents, “After coming to London,
my insight is developed by good friends and have more and more desire of learning… I
especially like hanging out with English celebrities and got a lot from them. There is
endless smart to learn.” 36 Cambridge was like a new world to him. Xu was inspired not
only by the celebrities who were around him, but also by the English culture and
nineteenth century poetry. Xu who was also an Economics student had found a real
literary interest and began writing poems at the age of twenty-four. As he said later,
“Cambridge taught me how to open my eyes. Cambridge encouraged my thirst for
36
「兒到倫敦以來，頓覺性隨益友發展，求學性味益…兒尤喜與英國名士交接，得易倍蓰，真
所謂學不完的聰明」 Agang, Lin Minghua, and Xiaoquan. Xu Zhimo Zuopin Xinshang. (《徐志摩作品
欣賞》, The Appreciation of Xu Zhimo’s Works.) Nanning Shi : Guangxi Jiaoyu Chubanshe, 1991, 259.
63
knowledge. Cambridge cultivated my self-awareness.”37 He considered Cambridge as his
intimate friend who knew him deeply, who he could emotionally rely on, and who was
the springhead of his life. He wrote the poem, “Kanggiao Zaihui Ba” (〈康橋再會吧〉,
“Cambridge, Farewell”) to express his emotion about Cambridge before he went back to
China in 1922.
Xu was very active after returning to China and put a lot of efforts toward the
development of Chinese literature. He organized a Chinese literary society, Xinyue She
(新月社, Crescent Moon Society), in 1923. At first, it was a social dinner meeting which
later became an eclusive club. The Crescent Moon Society advocated Xin Shi (新詩,
Modern Chinese poems) which abandoned any prescribed patterns, and concentrated on
the internal rhythm of a poem. In 1928, Xinyue She published its first magazine, Xinyue
Yuekan (《新月月刊》, Crescent Moon Magazine). The organization dissolved after the
death of Xu in 1931. Shi Hu (胡適), Shihchiu Liang (梁啟超), and Changming Lin (林長
民) were members of Xinyue She.
Xu not only advocated the new form of Chinese poems, but he also translated many
English works into Chinese. He was responsible for introducing wonderful English
literature to Chinese culture. In 1924, Xu wrote an article, “Zheng Yishi Qi” (〈徵譯詩
啓〉, “An Announcement of Soliciting Translated Poems”). He also translated various
37
「我的眼是康橋教我睜的，我的求知慾是康橋給我發動的，我的自我意識是康橋給我胚胎的
。｣ Agang, Lin Minghua, and Xiaoquan. Xu Zhimo Zuopin Xinshang. (《徐志摩作品欣賞》, The
Appreciation of Xu Zhimo’s Works.) Nanning Shi : Guangxi Jiaoyu Chubanshe, 1991, 18.
64
literatures, such as “An Ideal Family” from the novel, The Garden Party, by Mansfield, A
Charwoman’s Daughter 38 by James Stephens, and various works by Percy Bysshe
Shelley, John Keats, and Thomas Hardy. Shi Hu had translated Mansfield’s novel with
Xu, and said about his skill of translation, “His quality of a translation was very lively
and beautiful. He kept the flavor from the original text, even though there were some
very difficult parts. It was a very rare translation.”39
There was another important event in 1924 in China. The Indian poet/writer/artist,
Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), was invited to China. Xu was one of the people who
organized the trip, and was Tagore’s traveling companion as well. Tagore gave several
speeches in Shanghai, Hangchow and Beijing (Peking). Xu was not only Tagore’s
translator for his speeches, but he also translated his lecture notes and published them in
the Xiaoshuo Yuekan (《小說月刊》, Novel Magazine) later. He also accompanied
Tagore later for his trip to Japan and Hong Kong. Xu wrote Shayounala Shibashiou
(《莎喲娜拉十八首》, Goodbye, Eighteen Poems) during the trip. Before he left China,
Tagore gave Xu an Indian name, Susima. They remained very good friends till Tagore
died.
38
The title of the novel was changed to Mali Mali (《瑪莉瑪麗》, Mary Mary) in Chinese version.
39
「他的譯筆很生動，很漂亮，有許多困難的地方很能委曲的保存原書的風味，可算是很難得
的譯本。」 Congzhou Chen , ed. Xu Zhimo Nianpu. (《徐志摩年譜》, The Yearbook of Zhimo Xu.)
Shanghai: Shanghai Shudian, 1981, 34.
65
Xu decided to quit his teaching job at Peking University and traveled to Europe in 1925.
During this trip, he met a daughter of Leo Nikolayevich Tolstoy in Siberia and Thomas
Hardy in England and visited the tombs of his second son in Berlin and Mansfield in
Avon. He recorded this trip and published as a collection which was titled as Ouyou
Manlu (《歐遊漫錄》, A Record of European Trip) in supplement of Chen Bao (《晨
報》, Morning Newspaper). The same year, Xu’s first collection of poems, Zhimo de Shi
(《志摩的詩》, Zhimo’s Poems) was published.
Xu had always wanted to have a literature magazine which could introduce Xin Shi and
more wonderful works to the people. Therefore, after he came back from Europe, he took
a job as the chief editor of a supplement of Chen Bao. The content of the supplement
included lectures, translations, treatises and poems. Because it would be difficult to
collect manuscripts since many people left Beijing during summer, the original
supplement took a break and the supplement of drama replaced it. However, the
supplement of drama ended three months later and Xu quit the job.
In 1927, Xu and his friends opened a bookstore called Xinyue Shudian (新月書店,
Crescent Moon Bookstore) in Shanghai. Xu’s works, such as Bali de Linzhua (《巴黎的
鱗 爪》 , Scales and Nails of Paris), Zi Pou (《自剖》 , Self-analysis), and all his
collections of poems were published in it.
66
Xu took another trip to Japan, England, U.S., France and India for six months during
1928. On the way back, he wrote the poem, “Zaibie Kangxiao” (〈再別康橋, “Second
Farewell to Cambridge”), which is one of his most famous works. His time in Cambridge
was always the most important period in his life. He found his real ideal which was a life
of love, freedom, and beauty there six years ago. However, he had tried very hard to
pursue his ideal after leaving Cambridge, but he failed. He was very disappointed, and
wrote this poem to mourn about his pain for this failure.
Xu taught at Peking University, Guanghua University, Soochow University, Daxia
University, and National Central University (now is Nanjing University), and travel a lot
having lectures at several cities. He died on November 19, 1931 at the age of thirty-four.
Love Life
Xu is not only famous for his wonderful works, but also for his love life. He was a man
full of adventure in his love life. As he said, “The real life needs to be fought and
requested by ourselves. The real happiness needs to be fought and requested by ourselves.
The real love needs to be fought and requested by ourselves.”40 He had three important
women in his life. They are Youyi Zhang (張幼儀), Huiyin Lin (林徽音), and Xiaoman
Lu (陸小曼).
40
「真生命必自奮鬥自求得來，真幸福亦必自奮鬥自求得來，真戀愛亦必自奮鬥自求得來！」
Zhimo Xu. Xu Zhimo Zizhuan. (《徐志摩自傳》, An Autobiography of Zhimo Xu.) Nanjing : Jiangsu
Wenyi Chubanshe , 1997, 22.
67
Youyi Zhang was Xu’s first wife. In the early part of the eighteenth century, all marriages
were arranged by parents in China. Parents would consider if the financial and social
status of both families were compatible in making a decision to marry. There was no
dating before the marriage. Zhang was from a wealthy family which was more open
about the traditional moralities for a female; for example, her family did not force Zhang
to bind her feet while she was little, and they let her have education. Yet, Xu’s first
marriage with Zhang in 1915 was not exceptional. Zhang only saw Xu’s picture before
they married.
Their marriage was not happy. Zhang felt that Xu was a cold husband who never looked
at her, even though she was trying to be a good wife, a good mom, and a good daughter
in law. On the other hand, Xu felt the marriage was without love. He was dying to end his
marriage with Zhang. Their first son was born in 1918. The same year, Xu went to
Columbia University for further study, and two years later, he went to England where he
met Huiyin Lin.
Xu met Changmin Lin (林長民), Huiyin Lin’s father, in England, and they became
friends. He introduced Xu to his daughter. Huiyin Lin was full of talent. They talked
about music, literature, architecture etc. Xu found that he and Huiyin Lin had a lot of
things in common. They admired each other, and fell in love with each other. However,
Xu was married to Zhang. Zhang went to England to accompany Xu and take care of him
in 1920. Xu was just falling love with Lin. Lin left London to try and stop her feelings
68
toward Xu, and Zhang became pregnant again. There was nothing that could stop Xu
from divorcing Zhang. He ended up asking Zhang to have an abortion and to grant him a
divorce.
This was the only time Zhang did not obey her husband. Zhang did not have an abortion
and refused to divorce him. After Xu ran away from home for months, she went to stay
with her brother in Berlin, and her second son was born in 1922 there. Later, their
marriage ended in divorce in Berlin. The divorce was the very first divorce which
happened in China and it had a huge negative effect on his family.
After Xu went back to China, he wrote an announcement of his divorce with Zhang and
published it in a newspaper to clarify that his marriage had ended. He did all that for Lin.
He wanted Lin to believe that he truly loved her and wanted to be with her. However, Lin
chose to obey her morality instead of her love to him. Lin went to study architecture with
her fiancée, Sicheng Liang (梁思成) in the U.S. and they married in 1928.
In 1924, Xu met the third woman in his life, Xiaoman Lu. Lu was married to Geng Wang
(王賡) who was Xu’s friend. Wang was a captain and had to travel a lot for business. He
wanted Lu to hang out with his friends from Xinyue She, who were more serious about
life. Therefore, he asked Xu to take care of Lu while he was away from home. Because
Xu and Lu had more time to be together, he was attracted to Lu who was lively and
unconventional. Xu fell in love again with Lu who was a married woman. Their
69
relationship soon was discovered by their family, and there was no doubt that no one
accepted their relationship. Nevertheless, there was nothing that could stop them. While
Xu went away for his European trip in 1925, Lu tried to divorce Wang. During his trip,
he mailed Lu about his strong and continual feelings for her and asked her to be strong.
Their insistence finally helped Lu to get out from her marriage with Wang in 1925. Xu
started writing a diary about their love from August to September the same year, and this
diary was named Ai Mei Xiaozha (《愛眉小札》, Little Notes of Loving Mei.) Xu gave
this as a gift to Lu.
Xu and Lu married in 1926. His teacher who was also his best friends, Qichao Liang, was
their wedding witness, and he admonished and warned both of them not to have a third
marriage. After they were married, they had a wonderful time for a while. He and Lu
performed at the Beijing opera, Yu Tang Chun, Sanchun Huishen (《玉堂春．三春會
審》, The Story of Sue San) in Shanghai, and wrote a libretto of five acts for the Beijing
opera, Ka Kungang (《卡昆崗》, Ka Kungang). But, Lu liked gambling, dancing, and
shopping, and she was addicted to smoking opium. She was used to a very luxurious
lifestyle which cost Xu so much that he needed to have more than three jobs to afford her
lifestyle. Xu was exhausted. Xu asked Lu to leave Shanghai with him but Lu was
addicted to opium and refused. Later in their marriage, they hardly saw each other. Xu
was busy to traveling to teach and Lu spent most of her time gambling, dancing and
smoking opium.
70
That was the most difficult time for Xu in his life. His friends told him to divorce Lu, but
Xu refused. He thought he could not leave Lu because he was the person who encouraged
her to get out of her first marriage and marry him. He needed to take responsibility for
her. He said, “I will look for my only partner in the sea of humanity. If I found her, it
would be my luck. If I could not find her, it would be my fate. That is it.” 41 Although
Xu’s life was in worse situation, there was still one wonderful thing in his life. Xu
remained friends with Zhang and Lin, and both of them offered him financial and
emotional support.
In 1931, Xu was going to Beijing to see Huiyin Lin (林徽音) who was going to give a
speech about Chinese architecture. He had a free ticket for taking a postal airplane.
However, because of a heavy mist, the plane crashed into a mountain and exploded.
Writing Style
As described earlier, in 1920, Xu went to Cambridge to study Economics, but
“Cambridge” changed the plan of his life. He was inspired by the beautiful environment
and celebrities of Cambridge, He wrote his first poem, “Caoshang de Luzhur” (〈草上的
露珠兒〉, “Dewdrops on the grass.”), in 1921, and started his life as a poet/writer. Xu’s
writing period was only for ten years (1921-1931). He believed that he could use his
41
「我將於茫茫人海中訪我唯一之伴侶，得之，我幸；不得，我命，如此而已。｣ 」 Agang,
Lin Minghua, and Xiaoquan. Xu Zhimo Zuopin Xinshang. (《徐志摩作品欣賞》, The Appreciation of Xu
Zhimo’s Works.) Nanning Shi : Guangxi jiao yu chu ban she, 1991, 260.
71
poems to express his ideal and faith to the world. As he said, “We believe a poem is a
tool of expressing human creation. It has the same character as music and art.”42
In the beginning of Xu’s writing period, he was just inspired by the colorful world. In
addition, he found his first love, Lin, at the same time. He felt his life was new and
exciting. He was very passionate and aspirant. He wrote “Xu Zhimo Zhang Youyi Lihun
Tonggao” (〈徐志摩張幼儀離婚通告〉, “A Divorce Announcement of Zhimo Xu and
Youyi Zhang”) to officially express his desire of the freedom to the public. At the same
time, he wrote “Qingsi” (〈情死〉,”Love Dead”), “Xiaoshi” (〈小詩〉, “A Little
Poem”), “Qingfeng Chuiduan Chunzhaomeng” (〈清風吹斷春朝夢〉, “The Wind Blow
off the Spring Morning Dream”), “Yuezhao Xihu” (〈月照西湖〉, “Moonlight Shines
on West Lake”) to show his love and endless devotion to Lin.
In 1923, when he heard that Lin was engaged to Liang, he was sad and angry. He wrote
“Xiwang de Maizang” (〈希望的埋葬〉, “A Tomb of Hope”) and “Yige Emeng” (〈一
個噩夢〉, “A Bad Dream”) and blamed Lin for many bad things. Although Xu was
disappointed, he still loved Lin very much, and eventually, he reluctantly decided to
remain friends with her. However, because Lin knew of his hurt feelings, she tried to
avoid seeing Xu. Once, Lin did not show up to one of their meetings, Xu wrote “Yuexia
Dai Dujuan Bulai” (〈月下待杜鵑不來〉, “Waiting in Vain for the Cuckoo under the
42
「我們信詩是表現人類創造力的ㄧ個工具，與音樂與美術是同等同性質的｣ Zhimo Xu. Xu
Zhimo zi zhuan. (《徐志摩自傳》, An Autobiography of Zhimo Xu.) Nanjing: Jiangsu wen yi chu ban she,
1997, 248.
72
Moonlight”), which was a poem to describe his depressions of not being able to see her
anymore.
In his poems, Xu was never shy in his expression of his emotions. For example, he wrote
to Lin, “Please accept this undisguised heart, my love.” 43 in “Yige Qidao” (〈一個祈
禱〉, A prayer) and “You go without worries….Do not be anxious about me….I have
plenty of gut….Still more there is a lively bright pearl will always shines my deepest
heart. I love you.”44 in “Niqü” (〈你去〉, “You Go”).
Xu’s first collection of poems, Zhimo de Shi, was published in 1925. He later criticized
this collection, “The quality of surging in the beginning was eliminated, but most poems
still had overabundance of emotions. There was nothing closed to the art of a poem or a
technique…My pen was a runaway horse. I just realized how wildness I was after reading
the strict works by Yiduo (聞一多, Yiduo Wen).”45
43
「這顆赤裸裸的心，請收了吧，我的愛神。」Xu Zhimo. Xu Zhimo Quanji, Vol. 1 (《徐志摩
全集 1》, The Complete Collection of Zhimo Xu’s works, Vol. 1.) Shangwu Yinshuquan Ed, Hong Kong:
Shangwu Yingshuquan, 1983, 176.
44
「你放心走，…你不必為我憂慮，…我有的是膽，…更何況永遠照砌我的心底，有那顆不夜
的明珠，我愛你。」Xu Zhimo. Xu Zhimo Quanji, Vol. 1 (《徐志摩全集 1》, The Complete Collection
of Zhimo Xu’s works, Vol. 1.) Shangwu Yinshuquan Ed, Hong Kong: Shangwu Yingshuquan, 1983, 386.
45
「在這集子裡初期的洶湧性雖已消滅，但大部分還是情感的無關闌的氾濫，什麼詩的藝術或
技巧都談不到。… 我的筆本來是最不受羈勒的ㄧ匹野馬，看到了一多的謹嚴的作品我方才憬悟到
我自己的野性。」 Zhimo Xu. Xu Zhimo zi zhuan. (《徐志摩自傳》, An Autobiography of Zhimo Xu.)
Nanjing: Jiangsu wen yi chu ban she, 1997, 309.
73
Meeting Lu gave Xu even more inspiration in his later life. Because Lu was married, no
one accepted their relationship. Xu, therefore, wrote “Zheshi Yige Nuoque de Shijie”
(〈這是一個懦怯的世界〉, “This is A Cowardly World.”) showing his brave and
uncompromising spirituality. After Lu became Xu’s inspiration for writing, his writing
style was not as dark as before and he returned to a colorful and more alive character. As
he wrote in Ai Mei Xiaozha, “The nourishment of my poetic soul relies on you. You
should hold my poetic soul as a mother holds her child. You should clothe him if he feels
cold. You should feed him if he feels hungry - He does not worry about being hungry and
clod because of your love. He is alive because of your love.”46
Besides Ai Mei Xiaozha, there were a multitude of works he specifically wrote for Lu,
such as “Xuehua de Kuaile” (〈雪花的快樂〉, “The Happiness of Snowflakes”), Woyou
Yige Lianai” (〈我有一個戀愛〉, “I am in Love”), “Ta Shi Shuizhaole” (〈她是睡著
了〉, “She is Asleep”). In addition, he used Lu’s tone of speech to write a long poem,
“Feilengcui de Yiye” (〈翡冷翠的ㄧ夜〉, A Night of Florence) to express their endless
love and their anxiety about the future.
The differences in life styles between Xu and Lu affected their marriage very soon. Xu
realized that the ideal he had pursued for years was completely broken. His life was a
46
「我的詩魂的滋養全得靠你，你得抱著我的詩魂像母親抱孩子似的，他冷了你得給他穿，
他餓了你得餵他食－有你的愛他就不愁餓不怕凍，有你的愛他就有命。｣ Xu Zhimo. Xu Zhimo
Quanji, Vol. 4 (《徐志摩全集 4》, The Complete Collection of Zhimo Xu’s works, Vol. 4.) Shangwu
Yinshuquan Ed, Hong Kong: Shangwu Yingshuquan, 1983, 296.
74
mess. His works began to decrease in his later life. These works show his inharmonious
love life with Lu. Such works would include: “Canchun” (〈殘春〉, “Late Spring”),
Ganzhaoji (〈乾著急〉, “In Impotent Fury”), and Wo Buzhidao Feng Shi Wang Nage
fangxiang Chui (〈我不知道風是往哪個方向吹〉, “I Do not Know Where the Wind
Blows).
After Xu died, Lu collected and edited his letters, diaries, and unpublished works. She
named the collection, Zhimo Quanji (《志摩全集》, The Whole Collection of Zhimo.),
and they were published in 1983. Although there were many people who did not agree
with his alternative lifestyle, Xu was one of the most important writer/poets in the history
of the development of Chinese literature. He not only advocated Xin Shi, but also brought
a vast amount of foreign literature to China. His passionate and unconstrained mind
inspired him to become a creative and free writer. His innocent and unique style of works
opened Chinese writers/poets’ eyes and successfully brought Chinese literature to a new
and higher level.
75
Chapter Eight:
Three Sets of Mandarin Chinese Art Songs by Yiu-Kwong Chung
Yiu-Kwong Chung has composed twenty-one songs, and except for seven songs arranged
from the traditional Chinese folk songs, he chose both ancient Chinese poems and
modern Chinese poems for his solo vocal works. The ancient Chinese poems he used
were by Haoren Meng (孟浩然), Bei Li (李白), Shih Su (蘇軾), Kuei Jian (姜夔),
Qingzhao Li (李清照). The modern Chinese poems are solely based on Zhimo Xu’s
works.
Xu’s works had become quite popular in modern Chinese poetry. Perhaps another reason
why Chung used his poems for much of his solo works is because Xu’s poems touched
and spoked Chung’s mind and spirit. Chung and Xu have similar backgrounds. Both of
them studied abroad, and their minds were never limited by the world or culture. They
have desires for real freedom of expression and true love. Both men through their works
explore all the possibilities for life.
In this discussion of a set of the traditional Chinese folk songs, and two sets of Xu’s
poems, for each song, I will include a brief introduction of historical background of the
76
poem and the song, Mandarin Chinese text, IPA transcription, a word by word translation,
and a poetic translation.
徐志摩詩三首 [ɕy]35 [tʂɹ]51 [mwo]35 [ȿɹ]55 [san]55 [ȿou]214
/ Three Poems by Xu Zhimu47
The songs of Three Poems by Xu Zhimu are “Ourian” (〈偶然〉, “Chance”), “Zaibie
Kangxiao” (〈再別康橋〉, “Second Farewell to Cambridge”), “Haiüen” (〈海韻〉,
“The Rhythm of the Sea”). This was the first set in which Chung used Xu’s poem for his
solo vocal work. The premiere of the set was sung by Jingmei Li (李靜美) on March 31,
1998 at the National Theatre Recital Hall. The pianist was Huiying Lin ( 林慧 英 ).
However, the poems are not related to each other, and can be performed individually.
偶然 [ou]214 [ɹan]35
/ Chance
“Chance” was written on May, 1926 and published on May 27 in Chen Bao. The text is
of the blind senior in Act 5 of the Beijing opera, Ka Kungang, which was written by Xu
and Lu. It is found in his collection, Feilengcui de Yiye, in 1927. The poem expresses the
free and easy attitude approach to life. The student of Xu’s, Zhilin Ka ( 卡 之 琳 ),
47
There are several ways to romanize Mandarin Chinese. Chung titled the set as Zhimu instead of
Zhimo. Therefore, the name of the set will use the name which posted on his official website
(http://www.cykusic.com/Eworklist.htm) in the study.
77
described the poem, “This poem has the most perfect form than any other of Xu’s
poems.”48
Many composers have set this poem, such as Wei-Ning Lee (李惟寧), De-Ju Xu (許德
舉), Bi-Guang Lian (連壁光).
wɔ
ȿɹ thjan khwəŋ li ti ji
我
是 天
空
裡 的 ㄧ
I
am in the sky
a
I am a cloud in the sky.
phjan
片
ɥən
雲
cloud
ou ɚ
thou jəŋ tsai
ni ti pwɔ ɕjən
偶 而
投
影
在
你 的 波
心
By chance shadow
on
your
wave of the heart
By chance a shadow on the wave of your heart
ni
pu pi
ja ji
你 不 必
訝 異
You do not need to be surprised
No need to be surprised,
kəŋ
wu
更
無
Moreover not
Or too elated.
ɕy
須
xwan ɕi
歡
喜
elated
tsai tȿwan ȿwən tɕjan ɕjɑu mje ljɑu tswəŋ
jəŋ
在
轉
瞬
間
消
滅
了
蹤
影
In an instant
vanishes
the trace
In an instant the shadow shall vanish without a trace
48
“這首詩在作者詩中是在形式上最完 美的一首。” Zhilin Ka, ed. Xu Zhimo Shiji. (《徐志摩詩
集》, The Collection of Zhimo Xu’s poetry.) 94.
78
ni
wɔ ɕjɑŋ fəŋ tsai xei
je ti xai ȿɑŋ
你 我
相
逢
在
黑
夜 的 海
上
You I
met
the dark night
on the sea
You and I met on the sea of the dark night.
ni
jou
ni ti wɔ
jou
wɔ
你 有
你 的 我
有
我
You had your
I
had
my
You have your direction, I have mine.
ti
的
fɑŋ ɕjɑŋ
方
向
direction
ni
tɕi tɤ
je xɑu
你
記 得
也 好
You remember it is ok
Remember if you will
tswei xɑu ni wuɑŋ tjɑu
最
好
你 忘
掉
It is better
you forget
Or, better still, forget.
tsai tȿɤ tɕjɑu xwei ȿɹ xu fɑŋ ti
在
這
交
會
時 互 放 的
In this encounter
exchanged
The light exchanged in this encounter
kwɑŋ
光
light
ljɑŋ
亮
再別康橋 [tsai]51 [pje]35 [khɑŋ]55 [tɕhjɑu]35
/ Second Farewell to Cambridge
“Second Farewell to Cambridge” is one of Xu’s most famous poems. The poem was
written on November 6, 1928, and it was first published on December 10 in Xinyue
Yuekan. In 1920, Xu went to England for further study and his time in Cambridge, which
changed his goal to become a poet. As he said later, “Cambridge taught me how to open
my eyes. Cambridge encouraged my thirst for knowledge. Cambridge cultivated my self-
79
awareness.”49 The first time he left, he wrote “Farewell, Cambridge”. He was confident,
hopeful, and looked forward to his happy return. However, he failed to accomplish his
ideal. He wrote this poem when he was on the way back from Cambridge. There were a
hundred feelings simultaneously knocking around in his brain during his second visit to
Cambridge. His poem, “Quietly I am leaving, as I quietly came” expresses his personal
embrassment at his return to Cambridge. “Second Farewell to Cambridge” appeared in
Menghu Ji (《猛虎集》, The Collection of Violent Tiger).
tɕhjəŋ tɕhjəŋ ti wɔ
輕
輕
的 我
Quietly
I
Quietly I am leaving
tsou ljɑu
走
了
am leaving
tȿən ɹu wɔ tɕhjəŋ tɕhjəŋ
正
如 我
輕
輕
As
I
quietly
As I quietly came
ti lai
的 來
came
wɔ xuei ji
xuei ji
ɕjou
我
揮
一
揮
衣 袖
I
wave
sleeves
I wave my sleeves
tswo pje ɕi thjan ti
ɥyən tshai
作
別 西 天
的 雲
彩
Farewell
the western sky clouuds
a farewell to the clouds in the western sky.
49
「我的眼是康橋教我睜的，我的求知慾是康橋給我發動的，我的自我意識是康橋給我胚胎的
。｣ Agang, Lin Minghua, and Xiaoquan. Xu Zhimo Zuopin Xinshang. (《徐志摩作品欣賞》, The
Appreciation of Xu Zhimo’s Works.) Nanning Shi : Guangxi jiao yu chu ban she, 1991, 18.
80
na xɤ phan ti
tɕjən ljou
那 河 畔
的 金
柳
On the riverside
the golden willow
The golden willow on the riverside
ȿɹ ɕi jɑŋ tȿwəŋ
是 夕 陽
中
Is in the sunset
is a bride in the sunset
ti ɕjən njɑŋ
的 新
娘
a bride
pwɔ kwɑŋ li ti
jan
jəŋ
波
光
裡 的
豔
影
On the shimmering waves the colorful reflection
Her colorful reflection on the shimmering waves
tsai wɔ
ti ɕjən thou
在
我
的 心
頭
In
my heart
is rippling in my heart
tɑŋ jɑŋ
蕩
漾
rippling
ɹwan ni ȿɑŋ ti tɕhjəŋ ɕjəŋ
軟
泥 上
的 青
荇
On the soft mud (slime) verdant grass
The verdant grass on the soft mud
jou
jou
ti tsai ȿwei ti tȿɑu jɑu
油
油
的 在
水
底 招
搖
Glossily
under the water sways
glossily sway under the water
tsai khɑŋ xɤ ti ɹou pwɔ li
在
康
河 的 柔
波
裡
In the River Cam
gentle waves
In the gentle waves of the River Cam
wɔ kan ɕjən
tswɔ ji thjɑu
我
甘
心
做
一 條
I
would rather to be a
I would rather to be a water plant
ȿwei tshɑu
水
草
water plant
81
na ɥy jən ɕja ti
ji than
那 榆 蔭
下 的
一 潭
Under the shade of the elm the pool
The pool under the shade of the elms
pu ȿɹ tɕhjəŋ tɕhɥan ȿɹ thjan ȿɑŋ xwəŋ
不 是 清
泉
是 天
上
虹
It is not crystal water
it is in the sky
the rainbow
is not a crystal water but the rainbow in the sky
ɹou swei tsai
fu tsɑu
揉
碎
在
浮 藻
Crushed
among the algae
Crushed among the algae
tɕjan
間
tȿhən tjan tȿə tshai xwəŋ sɹ
沉
澱
著
彩
虹
似
Settling into
rainbow-like
settling into the rainbow-like dream
ɕɥən məŋ
尋
夢
To seek a dream
To seek a dream?
ti məŋ
的 夢
the dreams
tȿhən ji tȿɹ tȿhɑŋ
撐
一 支 長
pull
a
long
To pull a long pole
kɑu
篙
pole
ɕjɑŋ
tɕhjəŋ tshɑu kəŋ tɕhjəŋ tȿhu
man
向
青
草
更
青
處
漫
Toward the grass
the greener
sail
to sail toward where the grass is even greener
man tsai
ji tȿhwan ɕjəŋ xwei
滿
載
一 船
星
輝
Fully loaded a boat
starlight
To have the boat fully loaded with starlight
tsai ɕjəŋ xwei pan lan li
在
星
輝
斑
斕 裡
In the splendor of starlight
To troll in the splendor of starlight
fɑŋ kɤ
放
歌
to troll
82
swɔ
溯
tan wɔ
pu nəŋ
但
我
不
能
But I
cannot
But I cannot troll
fɑŋ
放
troll
kɤ
歌
tɕhjɑu tɕhjɑu ȿɹ pje li ti
悄
悄
是 別 離 的
Silence
is
farewell
Silence is the music of the farewell
ȿəŋ ɕjɑu
笙
簫
music
ɕja tȿhwəŋ
je
wei
wɔ
夏
蟲
也
為
我
The summer insects are also for me
Even the summer insects are silent for me
tȿhən mwɔ ȿɹ tɕjən wan
沉
默
是 今
晚
Silence
is
tonight’s
Cambridge is silent tonight
tɕhjɑu tɕhjɑu ti wɔ
悄
悄
的 我
Quietly
I
Quietly I am leaving
tȿhən mwɔ
沉
默
silence
ti kɑŋ tɕhjɑu
的 康
橋
Cambridge
tsou ljɑu
走
了
am leaving
tȿən ɹu wɔ tɕhjɑu tɕhjɑu
正
如 我
悄
悄
As
I
quietly
as I quietly came
ti
的
lai
來
came
wɔ
xwei ji xwei ji ɕjou
我
揮
一 揮
衣 袖
I
flicked
the sleeves
I flicked my sleeves
pu tai tsou
ji phjan
不 帶 走
一 片
Not taking away a
without taking a cloud away
ɥən
tshai
雲
彩
cloud
83
海韻 [xai]214 [ɥyən]51
/ The Rhythm of the Sea
“The Rhythm of the Sea” was published on August 17, 1925 in Chen Bao. Xu used the
dialogue between a boy and a girl in the poem, and each verse has its individual
expression. The Hong Kong director, Xing Lee (李行) used this idea from the poem to
direct a movie called, “The Rhythm of the Sea”.
ny
lɑŋ tan ȿən
「女 郎
單
身
Girl
single
“Girl, single girl,
ti ny lɑŋ
的 女 郎
girl
ni
wei
ȿɤ mɤ
ljou ljan tȿɤ xwɑŋ xwən
你
為
什 麼
留
戀
這
黃
昏
You why
wander
the at dusk
Why do you wander at the seashore at dusk?
ny lɑŋ xwei tɕja pa
女 郎
回
家
吧
Girl
go
home
Girl, go home, girl.”
ti xai pjan
的 海
邊
at the seashore
ny lɑŋ
女 郎」
girl
a
pu xwei tɕja wɔ
pu xwei
wɔ
ai
tȿə
「啊 不
回
家
我
不 回
我
愛
這
Ah
not going home I
am not going
I
love the
“Ah, no, I am not going home, I love the evening breeze.”
wan
fəŋ tȿhwei
晚
風
吹」
evening breeze
tsai ȿa than ȿɑŋ tsai mu ai li
在
沙 灘
上
在
暮
靄 裡
On the sandy beach
in the evening mist
On the sandy beach, in the evening mist,
jou
ji kɤ san fa ti
ny lɑŋ phai xwei
有
一 個 散
髮 的
女 郎 徘
徊
There is a
with hair disheveled
girl
wandering
There is a girl with hair disheveled wandering, wandering.
84
phai xwei
徘
徊
wandering
ny
lɑŋ tan ȿən
「女 郎 單
身
Girl
single
“Girl, single girl,
ti ny lɑŋ
的 女 郎
girl
ni
wei
ȿɤ mɤ phɑŋ xwɑŋ tsai tȿə ləŋ tɕhjəŋ ti
你
為
什 麼
彷
徨
在
這 冷
清
的
You why
hover
by
the desolate
Why do you hover by the desolated sea?
ny lɑŋ xwei tɕja pa
女 郎
回
家
吧
Girl
go
home
Girl, go home, girl.”
xai
海
sea
ȿɑŋ
上
ny lɑŋ
女
郎」
girl
a
pu ni thjəŋ wɔ
tȿhɑŋ kɤ ta xai wɔ
tȿhɑŋ ni lai xɤ
「啊 不 你 聽
我
唱
歌 大 海 我
唱
你 來 和」
Ah
no you listen me singing
wild sea
I
sing
you accompany
“Ah, no, you listen to my singing. The wild sea, I sing, and you accompany.”
tsai ɕjəŋ kwɑŋ ɕja tsai ljɑŋ fəŋ li
在
星
光
下 在
涼
風 裡
Under the starlight
in the cool breeze
Under the starlight, in the cool breeze,
tɕhjəŋ tɑŋ tȿɤ ȿɑu ny ti tɕhjəŋ jəŋ
kɑu jəŋ ti
輕
盪
著
少
女 的 清
音
高
吟 低
Lightly repeat
the girl’s
clear voice
high and low
There is the girl’s clear voice lightly repeating, high and low.
ny
lɑŋ tan ta
「女 郎
膽 大
Girl
daring
“Girl, daring girl,
ti
的
ny lɑŋ
女 郎
girl
na thjan pjan tȿhə tɕhi lɤ xei mu
那 天
邊
扯
起
了 黑
幕
The sky
is pulling
the black curtain
The black curtain is pulling in the sky.
85
ɔ
哦
tȿə tɕhjəŋ khɤ tɕjan jou
ǝ
fəŋ phwɔ
這
頃
刻
間
有
惡
風
波
Shortly
there will be a bad tempest
There will be a tempest shortly.
ny lɑŋ xwei tɕja pa
女 郎
回
家
吧
Girl
go
home
Girl, go home, girl.”
ny lɑŋ
女
郎」
girl
a
pu ni khan
wɔ
ljəŋ khwəŋ wu
「啊 不 你 看
我
凌
空
舞
Ah
no you look at me dancing in the sky
“Ah, no, you look at me dancing in the sky,
ɕɥe ji kɤ xai ou mwɔ xai phwɔ
學 一 個 海
鷗 沒
海 波」
Like a
seagull
disappearing among waves
Like a seagull disappearing among waves.”
tsai je sɤ li tsai ȿa than ȿɑŋ
在
夜 色 裡 在
沙 灘
上
In the dim light
on the sandy beach
In the dim light, on the sandy beach,
tɕi ɕɥan tȿə ji kɤ jɑu
thjɑu ti ȿən jəŋ phwɔ swɔ phwɔ swɔ
急 旋
著 一 個 窈
窕
的 身
影
婆
娑
婆
娑
Swiftly whirling a
gentle and graceful figure
dancing
dacning
There is a gentle and graceful figure swiftly whirling, dancing, and dancing.
thjəŋ ja na ta xai ti tȿən nu
「聽 呀 那 大 海 的 震
怒
Hark
the wild sea’s
rage
“Hark, the rage of the wild sea,
ny lɑŋ xwei tɕja pa
女 郎
回
家
吧
Girl
go
home
Girl, go home, girl,
ny lɑŋ
女
郎
girl
86
khan
ja na məŋ ȿou sɹ ti xai pwɔ
看
呀 那 猛
獸
似 的 海
波
Look
the fierce beasts liked
waves
Look, the fierce beasts liked waves,
ny lɑŋ xwei tɕja pa
女 郎
回
家
吧
Girl
go
home
Girl, go home, girl.”
ny lɑŋ
女
郎」
girl
a
pu xai pwɔ
ta pu lai
「啊 不 海
波
他 不 來
Ah
no the wave
it is not coming to
“Ah, no, the wave is not coming to engulf me.
thwən wɔ
吞
我
engulf me
wɔ
ai
tȿɤ ta xai ti tjan pwɔ
我
愛
這 大 海 的 顛
簸」
I
love the wild sea’s
tossing
I love the tossing of the wild sea.”
tsai tȿhɑu ȿəŋ li tsai pwɔ kwɑŋ
在
潮
聲 裡 在
波
光
In the sound of the tide In the light of waves
In the sound of the tide, in the light of waves,
li
裡
jou ji kə xwɑŋ tȿɑŋ ti ȿɑu nɥ tsai xai mwɔ li tshwɔ thwɔ
有 一 個 慌
張 的 少
女 在
海
沫
裡 蹉
跎
There is a
nervous
girl
in the forming waves
wasting
There is a nervous girl in the forming waves, wasting time.
ny
lɑŋ tsai na li ny
「女 郎
在
那 裡 女
Girl
where are you
“Girl, where are you, girl,
lɑŋ
郎
girl
tsai na li ni
ljɑu ljɑŋ ti
在
那 裡 你
嘹
亮
的
Where is it
your clear
Where is it, your clear voice?
kɤ ȿəŋ
歌 聲
voice
87
tsai na li ni
jɑu thjɑu ti ȿən jəŋ
在
那 裡 你
窈
窕
的 身
影
Where is it
your gentle and graceful figure
Where is it, your gentle and graceful figure?
tsai na li a ɥəŋ
kan
ti
在
那 裡 啊 勇
敢
的
Where are you
the brave girl
Where are you, the brave girl?”
ny
女
xei
je
thwən mwɔ ljɑu
黑
夜
吞
沒
了
The dark night engulfed
The dark night engulfed the earth.
ta
ti
大
地
the earth
lɑŋ
郎」
tȿə xai pjan tsai mei jou
這 海
邊
再
沒
有
By the sea
there is no more
There is not more shines by the sea.
kwɑŋ mɑŋ
光
芒
shines
xai tȿhɑu thwən mwɔ ljɑu
海
潮
吞
沒
了
The tide
engulfed
The tide engulfed the sandy beach.
ȿa than
沙 灘
the sandy beach
ȿa than ȿɑŋ
tsai
pu tɕjan
ny lɑŋ
沙 灘
上
再
不
見
女
郎
On the sandy beach again have not seen the girl
Never see the girl on the sandy beach.
tsai
pu tɕjan
ny lɑŋ
再
不
見
女 郎
Again have not seen the girl
Never see the girl, again.
88
徐志摩詩四首 [ɕy]35 [tʂɹ]51 [mwo]35 [ȿɹ]55 [sɹ]51 [ȿou]214
/ Four Poems by Xu Zhimu
The songs of Four Poems by Xh Zhimu are “Qyzao Yizuo Qiang” (〈起造一座牆〉,
“Building a Wall”), “Woiou Yige Lianai” (〈我有一個戀愛〉, “I Have a Love”),
“Banye Shenxiang Pipa” (〈半夜深巷琵琶〉, “The Pipa in the Deep Lane in the Dark
Night”), and “Wo Buzhidao Feng Shi Wang Nage fangxiang Chui” (〈我不知道風是在
那一個方向吹〉, “I Do Not Know Where the Wind Blows”). Again, the poems are not
related to each other and can be performed individually. The four songs were
commissioned by the Association of Vocal Artist of R.O.C.
起造一座牆 [tɕhi]214 [tsɑu]51 [ji]35 [tswo]51 [tɕjɑu]35
/ Building a Wall
“Building a wall” was written in August 1925 and published on September 5. When Xu
wrote the poem, he was deeply in love with Lu. However, because Lu was still a married
woman, their relationship was unacceptable to their family, friends and society. Xu was
frustrated and afraid that Lu would leave him because of this. In this poem, Xu expresses
his strong desire that Lu would love him as strong as he was, and wished they could
escape from life’s reality to Xanadu.
89
The premiere of Chung’s version was sung by Yan-Ling Chen (陳妍陵) on December 10,
2000 at the National Theatre Recital Hall. The pianist was Zhang Cheng (程彰).
ni
wɔ
tɕhjan wan pu khɤ ɕje tu
na ji
你 我
千
萬
不 可
褻 瀆
那 一
You I
must never
blaspheme that a
You and I must never blaspheme the word
pje
wɑŋ ljɑu tsai ȿɑŋ
ti
別
忘
了
在
上
帝
Do not forget
before God
Do not forget the oath before God
tɕhjan
前
kən
跟
wɔ
pu tɕjən jɑu
ni
tswei ɹou
我
不 僅
要
你
最
柔
I
not only
want your softest
I not only want your sofest tender
tɕjɑu ji sɹ ti
ɥəŋ
ɥan
蕉
衣 似 的
永
遠
As the peel of the banana
forever
to wrap my heart as the peel of the banana
ɹwan
軟
tsai tȿə ljou twəŋ ti ȿəŋ li
在
這
流
動
的 生 裡
In this flux of
life
to build a wall in the flux of the life
sɹ
似
tsɹ
字
word
ti ɕɹ
的 誓
oath
ɹou tɕhjəŋ
柔
情
tender
ti
的
kwɔ
tȿə
裹
著
wraps
wɔ jɑu ni ti ai
jou tȿhwən kɑŋ
我
要
你 的 愛
有
純
鋼
I
want your
love as
the pure steel
I also want your love as strong as the pure steel
kɤ
個
wɔ
我
my
ti
的
tɕhi tsɑu ji
起
造
一
to build
a
ti ɕjən
的 心
heart
tɕhjɑŋ
強
strong
tswɔ
座
tɕhjɑŋ
牆
wall
ɹən phjəŋ tɕhjou fəŋ
tȿhwei tɕjən man ɥan
ti xwɑŋ
je
任
憑
秋
風
吹
進
滿
園
的 黃
葉
Even though the autumn wind blew in
a full yard of
yellow leaves
Even though the autumn wind covered the yard with yellow leaves
90
ɹən phjəŋ pai ji
tȿu lan tɕhjan njan ti
xwa pi
任
憑
白 蟻
蛀 爛
千
年
的
畫
壁
Even though the termites ate away a thousand years of
wall paintings
Even though the termites ate away a thousand years of wall paintings
tɕjou ȿɹ jou
ji thjan phi li
tȿən fan ljɑu
就
使 有
一 天
霹 靂
震
翻
了
Even
one day
thunderclaps shaked
Even if there is one day the thunderclaps shake the universe
ɥy tȿou
宇 宙
the universe
je
tȿən pu fan ni wɔ
ai tɕhjɑŋ nei ti tsɹ jou
也
震
不
翻 你 我 「愛 牆」
內 的 自 由
Could not shake
you me in the “love wall”
the freedom
It could not shake our freedom behind the “love wall”.
我有一個戀愛 [wuo]35 [jiou]214 [ji]35 [kə]35 [ljan]51 [ai]51
/ I Have a Love
“I Have a Love” was written in March 1995 and is in the collecttion of Zhimo de Shi. In
the poem, Xu characterize “the bright stars” as a “soul mate” which is far away from the
world. He expresses his strong desire to chase the birght stars.
The premiere was sung by Yan-Ling Chen (陳妍陵) on December 10, 2000 at the
National Theatre Recital Hall. The pianist was Zhang Cheng (程彰).
wɔ
jou
ji
我
有
一
I
have a
I have a love
kɤ
個
ljan ai
戀
愛
love
91
wɔ
ai
thjan ȿɑŋ
ti mjəŋ
ɕjəŋ
我
愛
天
上
的 明
星
I
love in the sky
the bright stars
I love the bright stars in the sky
wɔ
ai
tha mən
我
愛
他 們
I
love their
I love their brilliance
ti tɕjəŋ jiəŋ
的 晶
瑩
brilliance
ɹən tɕjan mei jou
tȿə ji jiɑŋ ti
人
間
沒
有
這 異 樣
的
In the world
there is no this peculiar
There is no the peculiar spirits in the world
ȿən mjəŋ
神
明
spirits
tsai ləŋ tɕhjɑu ti mu twəŋ ti xwɑŋ
在
冷
峭
的 暮
冬
的 黃
At the chilly
late winter
dusk
At the chilly and late winter dusk
tsai
tɕi mwɔ ti xwei sə ti
在
寂 寞
的 灰
色 的
In the lonely
gray
In the lonely and gray morning
xwən
昏
tɕhjəŋ tȿhən
清
晨
morning
tsai xai ȿɑŋ tsai fəŋ ɥy xou ti ȿan tjəŋ
在
海
上
在
風 雨
後
的 山
頂
At the sea
a storm
after
mountaintops
At the sea, at the mountaintops after the storm
ɥəŋ
ɥan
jou
ji khɤ wan
khɤ ti mjəŋ ɕjəŋ
永
遠
有
一 顆
萬
顆
的 明
星
Always
there is one
ten thousand
bright stars
There is always one, ten thousands of bright stars
ȿan tɕjan pjan
ɕjɑu tshɑu xwa ti tȿɹ ɕjən
山
澗
邊
小
草
花
的 知 心
By a mountain stream little grass flowers’
bosom friend
The bosom friends of the little grass flower by a mountain stream
92
kɑu lou ȿɑŋ ɕjɑu xai thwəŋ
高
樓
上
小
孩
童
In tall buildings
children’s
The joy of children in tall buildings
ti xwan
的 歡
joy
ɕiən
欣
ly ɕjəŋ ɹən ti təŋ ljɑŋ ɥy nan tȿən
旅 行
人
的 燈
亮
與 南
針
The travelers’
lamp light and compass
The lamp light and compass of the travelers
wan
wan
li
wai ȿan ȿwo ti tɕjəŋ ljəŋ
萬
萬
里
外
閃
爍
的 精
靈
Millions
miles
twinkling
spirits
The twinkling spirits in millions of miles
wɔ
jou ji
kɤ
我
有
一 個
I
have a
I have a broken soul
phwɔ swei
破
碎
broken
ti
的
xwəŋ ljəŋ
魂
靈
soul
ɕjɑŋ ji twei phwɔ swei ti ȿwei tɕjəŋ
像
一 堆
破
碎
的 水
晶
Like a spike of broken
crystal
It is like a spike of broken crystal
san pu
tsai xwɑŋ je ti
ku tshɑu li
散
布
在
荒
野 的 枯 草
裡
Scattering in the wilderness’
withered grass
Scattering in the withered grass in the wilderness
pɑu tȿhwɔ ni ji ȿwən ȿwən
飽
啜
你 一 瞬
瞬
Imbibing
your incessant
Imbibing your incessant hospitality
jən tɕhjən
殷
勤
hospitality
ti
的
ɹən ȿəŋ ti ləŋ
tɕi
ɥy ɹou tɕhjəŋ
人
生
的 冷
激
與 柔
情
Life
Coldness passions and tenderness
The coldness passions and tenderness of life
93
wɔ
je tshəŋ tȿhɑŋ wei
wɔ
我
也
曾
嚐
味
我
I
have
tasted
I
I have tasted and also have tolerated
je tshəŋ ɹwəŋ
ɹən
也 曾
容
忍
also have tolerated
jou
ȿɹ
tɕje tɕhi ɕja
ɕi ȿwai ti tɕhjou
有
時
階
砌
下
蟋 蟀
的 秋
Sometimes stairs
under crickets’
fall
Sometimes the fall recites of the crickets under the stairs
jən
tɕhi wɔ ɕjən
ɕɑŋ
引
起
我
心
傷
Making
me
sad
Making me sad, making me cry
wɔ
than lou wɔ
我
袒
露
我
I
show
my
I show my open bosom
ti
的
pi phwɔ
逼 迫
making
wɔ
我
me
than pai ti
坦
白
的
frank
ɕjan
ai ɥy ji thjan ti mjəŋ
獻
愛 與 一 天
的 明
To offer to love and a day’s
bright
To offer to love and the bright stars of a day
jən
吟
recites
lei ljəŋ
淚
零
cry
ɕɥəŋ tɕjən
胸
襟
bosom
ɕjəŋ
星
stars
ɹən phjəŋ ɹən ȿəŋ ȿɹ xan
ȿɹ tȿən
任
憑
人
生 是 幻
是 真
Whether
life
is unreal is real
Whether life is unreal or real,
ti tɕhjou tshwən tsai xwɔ
地 球
存
在
或
The earth
exists
or
The earth exists or extinguishes
ȿɹ
是
ɕjɑu mjən
消
泯
extinguishes
da
khwəŋ tȿwəŋ ɥəŋ
ɥan
jou
pu mei ti mjəŋ ɕjəŋ
大
空
中
永
遠
有
不 昧
的 明
星
In the sky
forever
there are imperishable
bright stars
There are imperishable and bright stars in the sky forever.
94
半夜深巷琵琶 [pan]51 [jie]51 [ȿən]55 [ɕjɑŋ]51 [phi]35 [pha]35
/ The Pipa in the Deep Lane in the Dark Night
“The Pipa in the Deep Lane in the Dark Night” was published on May 20, 1925 in Chen
Bao. 1925 was a tulmultuous year for Xu. His outcast relationship with Lu was hard on
him, but visiting his son’s grave in Europe completely frustrated him. Xu used the sound
of pipa in the dark night to bring out the gloomy atmosphere. It was rare for Xu to have
this much darkness in his work. He used symbolic techniques to draw the picture of the
poem. For example, the “exploded hat” and the “iron chain” are symbolic of the
sufferings of life, and “she” symbolizes “death”. The poem was included in Feilengcui de
Yiye (《翡冷翠的ㄧ夜》, A Night of Florence) in 1928.
Chung combined the traditional Chinese musical style and American Jazz style to create
the dispirited and gloomy sound for this song. The premiere was sung by Mei-Yang Ji
(紀美仰) on December 10, 2000 at the National Theatre Recital Hall. The pianist was
Zhang Cheng (程彰).
jou
pei tha tshwəŋ ȿwei məŋ tȿwəŋ
又
被
它 從
睡
夢
中
Again let
it
from
the dream
Let it awake from the dream again
ȿən je li
ti
phi pha
深
夜 裡
的 琵 琶
In he deep night of pipa
The sound of pipa in the deep night
95
tɕjəŋ ɕjəŋ
驚
醒
awake
ȿɹ ȿwei
ti pei sɹ
是 誰
的 悲 思
Whose
sad thought
Is whose sad thought
ȿɹ ȿwei ti ȿou tȿɹ
是 誰
的 手
指
Whose
fingers
Is whose fingers
ɕjɑŋ ji tȿən tɕhi
fəŋ
像
一 陣
凄
風
Like a burst of chilly winds
It is like a brust of chilly winds
ɕjɑŋ ji tȿən tshan
ɥy
像
一 陣
慘
雨
Like a burst of miserable rains
It is like a brust of miserable rains
ɕjɑŋ ji tȿən lwɔ xwa
像
一 陣
落
花
Like a burst of falling flowers
It is like a burst of falling flowers
tsai tȿə je
ȿən ȿən
在
這 夜
深
深
At the night deep
At the deep night
ȿɹ
時
tsai tȿə ȿwei xwən xwən
在
這
睡
昏
昏
When the sleep comatose
At the comatose sleep
ȿɹ
時
thjɑu twəŋ tȿə tɕjən tshu
挑
動
著 緊
促
Plucking
pressing
Plucking the pressing strings
ti ɕjan swɔ
的 弦
索
string
96
lwan than tȿɤ kwəŋ ȿɑŋ
tɕjɑu tȿɹ
亂
彈
著
宮
商
角
徵
Strumming
palace business angle drafts (The Chinese pentatonic scale)
Strumming the Chinese pentatonic scale
xwo tsɤ tsɤ ȿən
je
xwɑŋ tɕje
和
著
這
深
夜
荒
街
With
the deep night desolate street
By the desolate street in the deep night
ljou
ȿɑu thou
jou
tshan
ɥe
kwa
柳
梢
頭
有
殘
月
掛
Willow treetop
there is waning crescent moon hanging
There is waning crescent moon haning on willow treetop
a
pan lwən ti tshan
ɥe
啊 半
輪
的 殘
月
Ah dichotomous
waning crescent moon
Ah! The dichotomously waning crescent moon
ɕjɑŋ ȿɹ phwo swei
像
是 破
碎
Is like
broken
Is like broken hope, he
ti ɕi wɑŋ
的 希 望
hope
th a
他
he
thou
tai
ji tjəŋ khai xwa
頭
戴
一 頂
開
花
a head wearing an
exploded
He is wearing an exploded hat
mɑu
帽
hat
ȿən ȿɑŋ tai tȿɤ thje ljan thjɑu
身
上
帶 著 鐵
鏈
條
Body
wearing iron chain
He is wearing an iron chain
tsai kwɑŋ jən
ti tɑu ȿɑŋ fəŋ ljɑu sɹ ti thjɑu
在
光
陰
的 道
上
瘋 了
似 的 跳
On
time
the road
like a crazy
jumping
Jumping like a crazy on the road of time.
97
fəŋ ljɑu sɹ ti ɕjɑu
瘋 了
似 的 笑
Like crazy
laughing
Laughing like crazy
wan ljɑu tha ȿwɔ tȿhwei xu
ni ti təŋ
完
了
他
說
吹
糊
你 的 燈
Finished
he said blow
faint your
light
Finished, he said. Blowing your light
tha tsai
fən mu ti na ji pjan
她
在
墳
墓
的 那 一 邊
She is
the grave
the other side
She is waiting at the other side of the grave
təŋ
ni tɕhy
等
你 去
Waiting for you to
Waiting for your kiss
tɕhjən
親
kiss
təŋ
等
waiting
wən
吻
我不知道風是在哪一個方向吹 [wo]214 [pu]51 [tȿɹ]55 [tɑu]51 [fəŋ]55 [ȿɹ]51 [tsai]51
[na]214 [ji]35 [kə]51 [fɑŋ]55 [ɕjɑŋ]51 [tȿhquei]55
/ I Do Not Know Where the Wind Blows
“I Do not Know Where the Wind Blows” was written in 1928 and published on March 10,
1928 in (新月). In the poem, the phrase, “I do not know where the wind blows. I was in
the dream.” is repeated six times and becomes the main idea throughout the poem. It
expresses Xu’s confusion and disappointment. Indeed, when Xu wrote this poem, he was
on his way back to China. After his second farewell to Cambridge, Xu realized his life
was a failure, and it was difficult for him to find the balamce between the reality and his
dreams for his life. His dream became a visionary dream. It was collected in Menghu Ji.
98
Chung composed this song for baritone. The premiere was sung by Jia-Huang Chang (張
嘉煌) on December 10, 2000 at the National Theatre Recital Hall. The pianist was Zhang
Cheng (程彰).
wɔ
pu tȿɹ tɑu fəŋ
ȿɹ
tsai na ji
kɤ fɑŋ
我
不 知 道
風
是
在
哪 一 個 方
I
don’t know
the wind is
which direction
I don’t know which direction the wind blows
ɕjɑŋ
向
tȿhwei
吹
to blow
ɕjɑŋ
向
tȿhwei
吹
to blow
ɕjɑŋ
向
tȿhwei
吹
to blow
wɔ
ȿɹ tsai məŋ tȿwəŋ
我
是 在
夢
中
I
was in the dream
I was in the dream
tsai məŋ ti
tɕhjəŋ
pwɔ
li ji xwei
在
夢
的 輕
波
裡 依 洄
On the dream of
light waves
lingering
Lingering on the light waves of the dream
wɔ
pu tȿɹ tɑu fəŋ
ȿɹ
tsai na ji
kɤ fɑŋ
我
不 知 道
風
是
在
哪 一 個 方
I
don’t know
the wind is
which direction
I don’t know which direction the wind blows
wɔ
ȿɹ tsai məŋ tȿwəŋ
我
是 在
夢
中
I
was in the dream
I was in the dream
tha ti wən tshwən wɔ
她 的 溫
存
我
Her
gentle
my
Her gentle and my intoxication
ti
的
mi tsuei
迷
醉
intoxication
wɔ
pu tȿɹ tɑu fəŋ
ȿɹ
tsai na ji
kɤ fɑŋ
我
不 知 道
風
是
在
哪 一 個 方
I
don’t know
the wind is
which direction
I don’t know which direction the wind blows
99
wɔ
ȿɹ tsai məŋ tȿwəŋ
我
是 在
夢
中
I
was in the dream
I was in the dream
thjan mei ȿɹ məŋ tȿwəŋ ti
kwɑŋ xwei
甜
美
是 夢
中
的 光
輝
Sweetness
is the dream of
glorious
Sweetness is the gloriousness of the dream
wɔ
pu tȿɹ tɑu fəŋ
ȿɹ
tsai na ji
kɤ fɑŋ
我
不 知 道
風
是
在
哪 一 個 方
I
don’t know
the wind is
which direction
I don’t know which direction the wind blows
ɕjɑŋ
向
tȿhwei
吹
to blow
ɕjɑŋ
向
tȿhwei
吹
to blow
wɔ
ȿɹ tsai məŋ tȿwəŋ
我
是 在
夢
中
I
was in the dream
I was in the dream
ta ti fu ɕjən
wɔ ti ȿɑŋ pei
她 的 負 心
我 的 傷
悲
Her
betraying my
sorrow
Her betraying, my sorrow
wɔ
pu tȿɹ tɑu fəŋ
ȿɹ
tsai na ji
kɤ fɑŋ
我
不 知 道
風
是
在
哪 一 個 方
I
don’t know
the wind is
which direction
I don’t know which direction the wind blows
wɔ
ȿɹ tsai məŋ tȿwəŋ
我
是 在
夢
中
I
was in the dream
I was in the dream
tsai məŋ ti pei
ai
li ɕjən swei
在
夢
的 悲
哀 裡 心
碎
In the dream of
sorrow
heart breaking
My heart is breaking in the sowrrow of the dream
100
wɔ
pu tȿɹ tɑu fəŋ
ȿɹ
tsai na ji
kɤ fɑŋ
我
不 知 道
風
是
在
哪 一 個 方
I
don’t know
the wind is
which direction
I don’t know which direction the wind blows
ɕjɑŋ
向
tȿhwei
吹
to blow
wɔ
ȿɹ tsai məŋ tȿwəŋ
我
是 在
夢
中
I
was in the dream
I was in the dream
an tan ȿɹ məŋ li ti
kwɑŋ xwei
黯 淡 是 夢
裡 的 光
輝
Gloom
is in the dream
glorious
Gloom is the gloriousness of the dream
中國民謠三首 [tʂ]55 [kwo]35 [mjǝn]35 [jiɑu]35 [san]55 [ʂou]214
/ Three Chinese Folk Song
This is Chung’s very first solo vocal work. He arranged three Chinese folk songs,
“Xiaolu” (小路, Little Path), “Muolihua” (茉莉花, Jasmine Flower), and “Alamuhan”
(阿拉木汗, Alamuhan). There is no connection between the poems and they can be
performed individually. The premiere of the set was sung by Yong-Xiu Xin (辛永秀) on
Septemnber, 20, 1996 at the National Theatre Recital Hall. The pianist was Xuang-Tiang
Zhu (朱象泰).
小路 [ɕjɑu]214 [lu]51
/ Little Path
This is a folk song from Inner Mongolia. The content of the song is about a young couple
who wants to meet each other secretly; therefore, they have to meet behind the house.
101
The term, 卿卿([tɕhjən]55 [tɕhjən]55) is the diminutive form used between husband and
wife. Now it also used as an affectionate form of addressing another person.
fɑŋ tɕhjan ti
ta
lu
房
前
的
大
路
In front of the house broad road
The broad road in front of the house
ai tɕhjən tɕhjən ni
mɔ tsou
哎 卿
卿
你
莫
走
Ah dear
you don’t go
Ah, my dear, don’t choose to go there.
fɑŋ xou pjan tsou ɕja
房
後
邊
走
下
Behind the house
walk through
Come from the lane behind the house.
ai tɕhjən tɕhjən ji thjɑu
哎 卿
卿
一 條
Ah dear
a
Ah, my dear, that little path.
ɕjɑu
小
little
lu
路
path
a
啊
Ah
茉莉花 [mwo]51 [li]51 [xwa]55
/ Jasmine Flower
“Jasmine” is a Chinese folk song created in the eighteenth century. It was originally
called, “The Tune of the Fresh Flower” (Xianhua Diao, 鮮花調). There are several
regional versions. The basic melodies of the regional versions are similar, but the poems
102
are different. “Jasmine Flower” was the first Chinese folk song that became well known
outside China. It appeared in Turandot by G. Puccini and in the Hollywood movie, The
Good Earth. In Chung’s version, he used the concepts of playing the zheng to arrange the
piano accompaniment.
xɑu ji
two mei li
ti
好
一 朵
美
麗
的
Such a
beautiful
What a beautiful jasmine flower
mwɔ li
茉
莉
jasmine
xwa
花
flower
xɑu ji
two mei li
ti
好
一 朵
美
麗
的
Such a
beautiful
What a beautiful jasmine flower
mwɔ li
茉
莉
jasmine
xwa
花
flower
fən fɑŋ mei li
man tȿɹ ja
芬
芳
美
麗
滿
枝 椏
Balmy
beautiful
full of branches
It is balmy, beautiful, and full of branches.
jou
ɕjɑŋ
jou pai
ɹən ɹən khwa
又
香
又
白
人
人
誇
And fragrant and white everyone praises
It is also fragrant and white that everyone praises.
ɹɑŋ wɔ lai
讓
我
來
Let
me come
Let me pluck you
tɕjɑŋ ni
將
你
get
you
tȿai ɕja
摘
下
pluck
swəŋ kei pje
ɹən tɕja
送
給
別
人
家
Give to
other family
and give to other family
103
mwɔ li
xwa
mwɔ li
xwa
茉
莉
花
茉
莉
花
Jasmine
flower Jasmine
flower
Jasmine flower, jasmine flower.
阿拉木汗 [a]55 [la]55 [mu]51 [xan]51
/ Alamuhan
“Almuhan” is a Xinjiang Uigur folk song which is a contredanse. The poem uses
question-and-answer style to praise how beautiful the girl, Almuhan, is.
a la mu xan ȿɤ mɤ jɑŋ
阿 拉 木 汗
什 麼 樣
Alamuhan
how look like
How Alamuhan looks like
ȿən twan pu fei jei pu
身 段
不 肥 也 不
The figure not fat and not
Her figure is not fat or thin
ȿou
瘦
thin
a la mu xan ȿɤ mɤ jɑŋ
阿 拉 木 汗
什 麼 樣
Alamuhan
what look like
How Alamuhan looks like
ȿən twan pu fei jei
身 段
不 肥 也
The figure not fat and
Her figure is not fat or thin
pu ȿou
不 瘦
not thin
tha ti mei mɑu ɕjɑŋ
wan ɥε
她 的 眉
毛
像
彎
月
Her
eyebrow
is like
a crescent moon
Her eyebrow is like a crescent moon
104
tha ti ȿən
jɑu
ɕjɑŋ
mjan ljou
她 的 身
腰
像
棉
柳
Her
waist
is like a willow
Her waist is like a willow
tha ti ɕjɑu tsuei xən
twɔ
tɕhjəŋ
她 的 小
嘴
很
多
情
Her
small mouth
very passionate
Her small mouth is very passionate
jan tɕjəŋ nəŋ ȿɹ
ni
fa tou
眼
睛
能
使
你 發 抖
Eyes
could make you shivering
Her eyes could make you shiver
a la mu xan ȿɤ mɤ jɑŋ
阿 拉 木 汗
什 麼 樣
Alamuhan
How look like
How Alamuhan looks like
ȿən twan pu fei jei pu
身 段
不 肥 也 不
The figure not fat and not
Her figure is not fat or thin
ȿou
瘦
thin
a la mu xan ȿɤ mɤ jɑŋ
阿 拉 木 汗
什 麼 樣
Alamuhan
what look like
How Alamuhan looks like
ȿən twan pu fei jei
身 段
不 肥 也
The figure not fat and
Her figure is not fat or thin
pu ȿou
不 瘦
not thin
a la mu xan tȿu tsai na li
阿 拉 木
汗 住
在
那 裏
Alamuhan
where she lives
Where Alamuhan lives
105
thu lu fan ɕi
san pai ljou
吐 魯 番 西
三
百
六
Turpan
western
three hundred and sixty
She lives three hundred and sixty miles away from Turpan due West
a la mu xan tȿu tsai na li
阿 拉 木
汗 住
在
那 裏
Alamuhan
where she lives
Where Almauhan lives
thu lu fan ɕi
san pai ljou
吐 魯 番 西
三
百
六
Turpan
western
three hundred and sixty
She lives three hundred and sixty miles away from Turpan due West
wei
tha xei
jε mei ȿwei
tɕjɑu
為
她 黑
夜
沒
睡
覺
For
her dark night not
to sleep
Have not slept in the dark night for her
wei
tha pai thjan tȿhɑŋ khə sou
為
她
白 天
常
咳
嗽
For
her daytime
often to cough
Have coughed a lot in the daytime for her
wei
tha pɑu tɕjəŋ
fəŋ
xɤ ɕɥe
為
她 飽
經
風
和 雪
For
her
experienced wind and snow
Have experienced the harsh weather for her
wei
tha ɕjε ti tȿhɑŋ phɑu
為
她
鞋 底 常
跑
For
her soles
often run
Have the soles broken for her
thou
透
broken
a la mu xan tȿu tsai na li
阿 拉 木
汗 住
在
那 裏
Alamuhan
where she lives
Where Alamuhan lives
106
thu lu fan ɕi
san pai ljou
吐 魯 番 西
三
百
六
Turpan
western
three hundred and sixty
She lives three hundred and sixty miles away from Turpan due West
107
Chpater Nine:
Conclusion
During these modern times of science and technology with rapid change, the distances
between centuries are seemingly coming closer. It is easier for many social and cultural
aspects from different countries to open up and be accepted into the world. Because more
and more musicians from all over the world desire to perform the music from their
homeland in public concerts in different countries, various musical styles and repertoire
have been placed on the international stage. This is even more true for vocal repertoire.
Italian, German, French, and English have been the major languages sung in traditional
vocal repertoire, but the Spanish, Russian and Czech repertoire is becoming more popular
for singers as well. However, because of the language barriers, there is a large amount of
very artistic repertoire in other languages which have yet to be discovered on the
international stage. Most importantly absent are Mandarin-Chinese art songs.
The language is not the only barrier for this, but also the style of the Mandarin-Chinese
art songs is very different from the Western art song. It combines the styles of traditional
Chinese music and Western music, and the sounds of the songs are very new for Western
singers. Understanding the background of Mandarin-Chinese art songs will greatly help
singers to have better concept in interpreting Mandarin-Chinese art songs. Therefore, I
108
have included a broad history of the development of Mandarin-Chinese art songs in
Chapter Two. Much of this document is focused on the outstanding composer, YiuKwong Chung; I have also included a brief history on the development of the art song in
Taiwan as well. The Association of Vocal Artists of R.O.C had a series of ChineseMandarin art songs concerts and competitions to encourage the latest generation of
singers to explore their Chinese-Mandarin repertoire. These efforts flourished and
contributed to the development of Mandarin Chinese art songs in Taiwan.
Knowing the correct pronunciation is the most important thing for singers as they start
their new repertoire. However, Mandarin-Chinese is not like other American and
European languages having various references of diction to study. Therefore, this
document provides an in depth and complete Lyric Diction pronunciation guide for
Mandarin-Chinese in Chapter Three, Four, and Five. I have described and explained the
thirty-seven Mandarin Phonetic Symbols of the IPA which were devised by the
International Phonetic Association. It included vowels, glides, and consonants. The
explanation of the sounds are from a singer’s point of view, and have used similar sounds
found in Italian, German, French, and English as an example to approach the concepts of
the thirty-seven Mandarin-Chinese Phonetic Symbols in the study.
Unlike other Western languages, Mandarin-Chinese words do not consist of English or
Latin alphabets. Therefore, the study provided the IPA and translations for Yiu-Kwong
109
Chung’s ten Mandarin-Chinese art songs in the later chapters. I have included two sets
which used Zhimo Xu’s poetry, and a set of traditional Chinese folk songs.
Chung is one of the most famous Asian composers. He was born in Hong Kong, and had
his doctoral degree in percussion and composition at City University of New York.
Because Chung liked the music environment in Taiwan better than Hong Kong, he
moved to Taiwan after he finished his doctoral degree to start his career as a composer.
He soon received wide international recognition. Although Chung has written only
twenty-one songs for solo voice, his talent of writing intuitive melodies and transforming
the essence of the poetry into musical expression makes his songs very popular in Taiwan.
Chung’s two sets, Three Poems by Xu Zhimu and Four Poems by Xu Zhimu, are his most
well-known songs in Taiwan. Chung’s unique compositional techniques attracts singers,
but also the poet, Zhimo Xu, wrote very fine poetry and this makes for a unique and high
artistic experience for the singers and the audience. The two sets included in the study
have seven poems which showed the change of Xu’s writing from happiness to
desperation.
The purpose of this document has been to provide the professional singer or voice
students who are non-native speakers of Mandarin-Chinese an understandable and
efficient way to learn Mandarin-Chinese diction and the large amount of highly artistic
and beautiful contemporary Mandarin-Chinese art songs. I have worked the sets which
110
used Zhimo Xu’s poetry with the coach accompanist, Edward Bak, who knows a little
Chinese. During our rehearsals, he has been able to pronounce the text correctly by
reading the IPA I wrote on the scores. This is evidence that this document will be able to
solve the primary obstacle for non-native speakers and they will be able access
Mandarin-Chinese art songs. I hope it will serve as a valuable reference for future
research on Mandarin-Chinese art songs and that many Mandarin-Chinese art songs will
be performed all over the world.
111
Appendix A:
The Table for the Mandarin-Chinese Vowels and glides
Vowels and glides
IPA
Sound
ㄚ
[a]
Italian a in bacio
八 [pa]55 (eight)
ㄛ
[ɔ]
Italian o in poco
火 [xwɔ]214 (fire)
ㄜ
[ǝ]
English a in abroad
餓 [ǝɹ]51 (hungry)
ㄝ
[ε]
Italian e in velo
別 [pjε]35 (to leave)
ㄦ
[ɚ]
English er in leader
二 [ɚ]51 (two)
一
[i]
Italian i in pietà
一 [ji]55 (one)
ㄨ
[u]
English u in blue
婦 [fu]51 (a woman)
ㄩ
[y]
French u in flute
綠 [ly]51 (green)
ㄞ
[ai]
English ie in lie
來 [lai]35 (to come)
ㄟ
[ei]
Italian ei in lei
累 [lei]51 (tired)
ㄠ
[ɑu]
English ou in loud
老 [lɑu]214 (old)
ㄡ
[ou]
English oa in load
樓 [lou]35 (a building)
ㄢ
[an]
NA
半 [pan]51 (half)
ㄣ
[ǝn]
German en in geblieben
笨 [pǝn]51 (stupid)
ㄤ
[aŋ]
NA
浪 [laŋ]51 (wave)
ㄥ
[ǝŋ]
NA
瞪 [tǝŋ]51 (to stare)
112
Example
Appendix B:
The Table for the Mandarin-Chinese Consonants
Consonant
IPA
Sound
ㄅ
[p]
French p in Paris
爸 [pa]51 (father)
ㄆ
[ph]
English p in park
怕 [pha]51 (to be afraid)
ㄇ
[m]
English m in mother
媽 [ma]55 (mother)
ㄈ
[f]
English f in far
罰 [fa]35 (to punish)
ㄉ
[t]
Italian t in tu
讀 [tu]35 (to read)
ㄊ
[th]
French t in tu
兔 [tu]51 (a rabbit)
ㄋ
[n]
English n in not
哪 [na]214 (where)
ㄌ
[l]
English l in lure
路 [lu]51 (a path)
ㄍ
[k]
English k in sky
蓋 [kai]51 (to cover)
ㄎ
[kh]
English c in card
卡 [kha]214 (a card)
ㄏ
[x]
NA
湖 [xu]35 (a lake)
ㄐ
[tɕ]
NA
雞 [tɕi]55 (a chicken)
ㄑ
[tɕh]
NA
氣 [tɕhi]51 (angry)
ㄒ
[ɕ]
Russian щ in щapф
蝦 [ɕia]55 (a shrimp)
ㄓ
[tʂ]
English j in jerk
眨[tʂa]214 (to blink)
113
Example
ㄔ
[tʂh]
NA
茶 [tʂha]35 (tea)
ㄕ
[ʂ]
NA
殺 [ʂa]55 (to kill)
ㄖ
[ɹ]
English r in rude
入[ɹu]51 (to enter)
ㄗ
[ts]
English ds in sounds
再 [tsai]51 (again)
ㄘ
[tsh]
Italian z in danza
擦 [tsha]55 (to wipe)
ㄙ
[s]
English s in sub
灑 [sa]214 (to spray)
114
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