王維, Wang Wei
渭城曲/送元二使安西
Air of Weicheng/Send-off for Yuan’er on his mission to Anxi
渭城朝雨浥輕塵
Mists, after the morning rain in Weicheng, dampened the light dust.
客舍青青柳色新
The guest house irradiated, afresh, by verdant willows, all pristine.
勸君更盡一杯酒
I urge you, my friend, to drain another cup of wine:
西出陽關無故人
West of Yangguan, you will find no old friend.[1]
* * * * * * * * *
Air of Weicheng
Wang Wei 王維, one of the leading poets of the High Tang, wrote this poem as a farewell to Yuan’er who would soon be on a mission to the frontier. Er is an informal name meaning the second (child) of the family. Using a casual name to address an official envoy was a clear indication of the closeness between the two men.
They were sharing a drink at a guest house—possibly a courier post—in the town of Wei. A light rain in the morning washed away the dust. The air was slightly damp. Branches of weeping willows, freshened by the rain, cast a green hue on the surroundings. The poet urged Yuan to down another cup of wine since there would be no friends beyond the border.
Wang Wei mentioned three locations in the poem:
•Weicheng 渭城 (Town of Wei): It was named after the Wei River. Located northeast of today’s Xianyang city in Shaanxi province 陝西咸陽市, Weicheng was roughly forty miles—a day’s horse ride—west of the Tang capital Chang’an 長安, today’s Xi’an City 西安.
•Anxi 安西 (meaning “pacifying the west”): In the Tang Dynasty, the inland trade road traveled westwards from Chang’an to the town of Anxi, where it diverged into northern and southern routes. It is today’s Guazhou county 瓜州縣, under the jurisdiction of Jiuquan city of Gansu province 甘肅酒泉市. Because of its unique geographic and climatic features, it is the site of Gansu Wind Farm, a large-scale wind power project.[2]
Anxi was also the name of a military institution—Anxi Grand Protectorate (or Protectorate General to Pacify the West) 安西都護府, headquartered in Qiuci 龜茲.[3] It was established in 640 to secure the westernmost territory. About a decade later, four garrisons were installed to fortify the military control of the region, covering today’s Southern Xinjian. At its height, the authority of the Protectorate reached the border of Persia. Based on Wang Wei’s tone, Yuan seemed to be heading west for a long-term post, likely at the Protectorate.[4]
•Yangguan 陽關 (Yang Pass) was an important pass on the trade road, southwest of Anxi. Its name—the sunny (and southern) pass—was a geographic reference to its northern counterpart Yumen Pass 玉門關.
Wang Wei only mentioned the challenge of losing connection to old friends. What was not said was that there would be no light rain in the morning and no fresh-looking willows in the western frontier. It would be difficult for us today, with modern vehicles and highways, to fully appreciate the physical and emotional demands on the traders and officials traveling across massive deserts during the seventh century. Fortunately, Anxi, Yangguan and Yumen were all near Dunhung 敦煌 where, for centuries, travelers and pilgrims carved their prayers on the wall and left their paintings and manuscripts in the library caves.[5] From these ancient treasures, we have learned of confluences of religions and cultures in the region.
Three Refrains of Yangguan
Born into a musical family, in addition to his literary accomplishments, Wang Wei was also known as a skillful pipa player and a painter. He was appointed the Deputy Master of Music by Emperor Xuanzong 玄宗, in charge of court music.[6] Later critics often commended the commingling of painting, music, and words in his works.
The musical nature of “Air of Weicheng” was clearly indicated in the title. Sun Zhu appropriately placed it under the subcategory yuèfǔ in chapter six of Three Hundred Tang Poems among seven-character jueju (four-line verses). Later the poem became the inspiration of a “qin song,” entitled “Three Refrains of Yangguan” 陽關三疊.
Qin 琴 or guqin (古琴, meaning “ancient qin”) is a fretless seven-string zither. It was considered an instrument for gentlemen and scholars. Most of the qin melodies are slow-moving and quiet, with characteristic sliding sounds.[7] Since ancient time, qin was often paired with the 25-to-50-string se [sə]. The latter instrument gradually became obsolete and is very rarely heard today.[8]
Qin melodies are either passed down orally or notated in tablatures. The original notation of “Three Refrains of Yangguan” has long been lost. How the instrumental and vocal parts would have been performed together is also uncertain. Su Shi 蘇軾, a poet of the Song Dynasty, after examining an old source, described the layout: “All verses except the first would be repeated.” It would make sense that the qin melody and the voice would pair each other heterophonically. As the qin melody evolved throughout history, the song texts of “Yangguan” changed accordingly.[9]
Today, the piece is most often heard as an instrumental solo.[10] Chinese American composer Chou Wen-Chung’s 1957 piano work “The Willows are New” was based on the qin melody. Chou also adopted the phraseology and sonority of the ancient instrument for his work on the modern “western qin.”[11] A piano/voice version of “Three Refrains of Yangguan” by Hong-Kong-based musician/engineer Wong Wing-Hee 黃永熙 has been popular among the recitalists.[12]
[1] 渭城朝雨浥輕塵， [wèichéng zhāo yǔ yì qīng chén]
客舍青青柳色新。[kèshè qīngqīng liǔ sè xīn.]
勸君更盡一杯酒，[quàn jūn gèng jìn yì bēi jiǔ]
西出陽關無故人。[xī chū yángguān wú gùrén]
[2] Google map showing direction from Xianyan to Guazhou county
Gansu Wind_Farm/Wiki
[3]Quici is more commonly known as Kucha today.
[4] Protectorate_General_to_Pacify_the_West/Wiki
[5] Silkroad_Dunhuang_en.unesco.org
[6] Wang’s grandfather Wang Zhoù was music official of the Sui Dynasty. His official title at Xuanzhong’s court was 大樂丞.
Wang_Wei_(Tang_dynasty)/Wiki
[7] The Qin/The Metropolitan Museum; Guqin/Wiki
[8] Se_(instrument)/Wiki. Se was gradually replaced by zheng, another plucked zither with movable bridges. Japanese koto is related to se and zheng.
Qin_and_Se_YouTube A rare performance of qin and se. The instrument seen on the screen-right is qin.
[9] In his blog,” American qin specialist John Thompson mentioned a few possible performance practices of “qin songs:” http://www.silkqin.com/05poet/songs.htm
Yangguan_Variation_YouTube This link includes a qin/vocal performance based on the notation in qinxue rumen (琴學入門, “Introduction to Qin Study”) of 1867. The original poem was repeated three times, each followed by additional texts. A musical and textual coda concludes the piece:
渭城朝雨浥輕塵，客舍青青柳色新。勸君更進一杯酒，西出陽關無故人。
遄行，遄行，長途越渡關津。
歷苦辛，歷苦辛，歷歷苦辛，宜自珍，宜自珍。
****
渭城朝雨浥輕塵，客舍青青柳色新。勸君更進一杯酒，西出陽關無故人。
依依顧戀不忍離，淚滴沾巾。
感懷，感懷，思君十二時辰。
誰相因，誰相因，誰可相因，日馳神，日馳神。
****
渭城朝雨浥輕塵，客舍青青柳色新。勸君更進一杯酒，西出陽關無故人！
旨酒，旨酒，未飲心已先醇。
載馳駰，載馳駰，何日言旋軒轔，能酌幾多巡！
千巡有盡，寸衷難泯，無窮(的)傷感。
尺素申，尺素申，尺素頻申，如相親，如相親。
****
噫！從今一別，兩地相思入夢頻，聞雁來賓。
Qin_and_Vocal_Solo_YouTube: Qin specialist Liao Quizhen 廖秋蓁 recited the poem in Taiwanese.
[10]Three_ Refrains_qin_solo_YouTube
[11] The_Willows_Are_New_Chou Wenchung_composition, Chou_The_Willows_Are_New_Gloria_Change_Piano
[12] Chen Xinhao 陳欣豪, baritone; Lin Huiling 林慧伶, piano