Video 15: 梅梢月 MeiShaoYue page 1 to middle of page 7

[Note: Please use ear phones if you really wish to hear the sounds of silk strings on the Guqin. The tiny speakers in most computers won't be able to produce the low bass sounds of the guqin. Thank you.]

My 7-string Chinese zither 古琴 (gu qin) is tuned to A-flat (also known as G-sharp) on the 1st string (thickest silk string). Normally, silk strings on Guqin can be tuned as high as B-flat on the 1st string, but I prefer to drop-tune it on this set of thick gauge silk strings. (Click here to read more about how I procured them.)

This video recording from my headcam (GoPro Hero2) is used to capture my lived experiences of practising a piece called 梅梢月 Mei Shao Yue (page 1 to middle of page 7).

The aim is not just to see how much I can memorise and play while "under pressure" of being recorded, but more importantly, the video helps me to recall the lived experience of the phenomenon of playing sensuous sounding silk strings on Guqin. There is absolutely no metallic sound from silk strings, so there is no aural fatigue, and I can play for hours on a guqin strung with silk strings. (*smile*)

At this point in my learning, I have attended 19 lessons with my American teacher, Guqin master John Thompson (silkqin.com)

Please feel free to post your comments! Any comments (whether positive or negative comments) would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!