Tag: guqin
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Returning Home
In my third lesson two weeks ago, Master Lui gave me the piece Returning Home (歸去來辭). The lyrics of this guqin melody are written by Tao YuanMing 陶淵明 (365–427 AD). When an arrogant official was sent by the provincial government to his home district, Tao, who then served as magistrate, was required to meet him.…
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Second Lesson Pieces
In my second lesson with Lui Laoshi on April 29, 2012, he gave me two more pieces. The first piece is 古琴吟, also known as 相思曲, which is supposed to allow practice of accurate finger sliding positions for the left hand. The ethereal harmonics at the beginning and end of the song calls up the…
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First Guqin Lesson
So on April 22, in my first lesson, Lui Laoshi had me start out with 仙翁操. The song describes XianWeng, or The Transcendent Venerable One, which points to the Song dynasty hermit, Chen Tuan. The main technical points, according to my teacher, is that it allows the student to learn the intervals and relationships between…
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Guqin Lessons
After constructing three instruments, I finally started taking formal guqin lessons—from Lui PuiYuen (吕培源). This all came about in an interesting way. More than ten years ago, I found the 與古齋琴譜 (Abiding with Antiquity Guqin Manual, 1855, tr. Binkley) on the internet while looking for construction details. After making my first one, I decided to…
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In China
This trip to China has been mainly about people, places and food. I got some instruction on guqin playing from Liang Qiu while I was in Foshan. Then, I have been meeting up with mainly relatives that I have not seen for more than ten years. Most everyone remain the same, except for the then…
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Guqin Construction
The guqin project is finished! It began with mathematically modeling the construction manual 與古齋琴譜 with a few of my adjustments. From start to finish, it spanned 144 days.
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Guqin Tuning Cords and Completion
The tuning cords have been twisted and thread through the pegs. On one, I used modern steel/nylon strings, and on the other, I used silk strings. They sound very different, and I’m pleased with how both instruments turned out. Now, I have to try the pick-up system in the jiaoye guqin with the silk strings…
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Guqin adjustments
On the luoxia guqin, I carved some off the nut and lowered it so that the strings would be closer to the surface. This proved to be a good adjustment. Playing the instrument has been absolutely delightful. I refreshed my memory on some of my old repertoire. The first piece I played on it was…
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Tuning the guqin
I’m basically done!!!!! And the experiment with the compound radius worked out well. The main aim in making the new instruments was to try to eliminate string buzz, and indeed, it’s gone. Making the tuning cords required some trial and error. I bought tread, and for this luoxia guqin, I mixed two colors—maroon and brown—to…
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Inscribing the guqin
When I started this guqin project in February, I had no idea it would have taken this long. If I did, I most likely would have not embarked on it. For much of last week, I took a break from working on the instruments, since I was in San Diego at the American Orthopaedic Association…
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Guqin naming
Progress in the guqin building project has been steady but slow. I had made and set the pearl inlay, and they all ended up looking very nice. Then, I applied many clear coats of finish. Also, I drilled holes for the tuning cords. This all took place last week. I have been apprehensive about doing…
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Guqin pearl inlay
This past weekend, I worked on staining the second instrument. Because the shape of this second guqin is known as 落霞 (descending crimson clouds), I decided to color it brilliant red tossed in dark and stormy skies. Under the sunlight, some parts are like a rich burgundy. After getting the stain just right, I shaped…
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Guqin sanding
I reached another major step in the guqin construction project this past Sunday. While both of the instruments have been put together, I decided to sand and finish one of them first—partly to experiment and make sure it turns out well. Applying color was tricky, because it was easy to accidentally remove the color while…
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Applying the guqin coating
I finally finished all the sawing, routing, planing, and chiseling for the guqin parts—except for the tuning pegs. It feels good to have reach this stage, as the next steps mainly involve assembling and finishing. Most luthiers adhere to the traditional technique of applying coats of lacquer from the varnish tree (Toxicodendron vernicifluum). The toxic…
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Guqin assembly
Today was a major milestone in the guqin construction project. Between work and being away to the Association of Bone and Joint Surgeons in Washington, DC, I hadn’t had much time to work on the pair of guqin. I spent much of this week catching up, and I got home earlier than expected this afternoon.…
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Guqin bottom panel
Guqin construction has been extremely slow. I carved out the peg pool last week. I also started cutting the holes for the feet. First, I drilled pilot holes. Then, I have to convert the round holes into square ones, which is why it’s taking so much longer. This afternoon, I started but didn’t get very…
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Guqin peg pool
It’s been quite some time since I’ve worked on the instrument. Between going to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons convention in New Orleans the previous week and becoming sick two days after getting back in town, and having been on call for the past week, I didn’t get a chance. Resuming work on the…
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Guqin panels
This evening, I reached another milestone in guqin-making. For the bottom panel, I had roughly cut out the outlines on a maple board with a jigsaw and finished the finer cuts with a router. Then, I finished carving out the inside. Now, the top and bottom pieces fit nicely together. Basically, the major shaping is…
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Hollowing the guqin top
Today was a milestone in the guqin-making endeavor. After preliminarily hollowing out the inside of the top, I sanded the concavity. Then, I cut around the entire outline of one of the guqin and freed it from the original board. The next step is to plane and sand the convex upper side of the top…
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Inspired to recreate the guqin
For the last month, I’ve been practicing the guqin 古琴 a little more. In time for the Prunus mume that opened and faded, I finished learning 梅花三弄 (Three Variations on the Plum Blossom). Now, I’m working on 流水 (Flowing Water), which is significantly more difficult. Anyways, I got inspired to make another guqin. The one…