Video: 秋夜讀易 by 夏林余

Guqin is not just 'for old people'. Young people, middle age people play it too. It only takes several months (ok, with daily practice, that is) to pick up the basics, not years. This guqin zither is an instrument that men can learn to play, without looking effeminate. (ahem, not that there's any wrong with being effeminate though, haha. Don't be angry. *nervous laughter*) A man can still look manly while playing the guqin. Check this out: 秋夜讀易 by 夏林余

Video: little boy playing guqin in 2003

If this little boy, whose name is Mao HuiSheng, could play so well 10 years ago (it's 2013 at the time of this post), I can only imagine that he must have become a very great player by now.

Video: little girl playing guqin 10 years ago

If this little girl, whose name is Cui Hui Xin, could play so well 10 years ago in 2003 (it's 2013 at the time of this blog post), then she must be a rising star in the guqin music world by now.

Video: Yi Gu Ren played super slow style by Stephen Walker

I really like the super slow comtemplative style of American guqin player Stephen Walker. Very nice.

残雷 style Guqin with pointy design

The thing I really digg about guqins is its sheer variety of shapes. Here's one, a 残雷 style guqin, looks pretty *heavy metal* with its pointy design. hahaha LOL. If you like this, it can be purchased at this Taobao webpage. RMB3180, which is equivalent to about Singapore S$632 or about US$509. Pretty affordable. Nice!

Learning videos - 3 complete sets of guqin lessons

Treasure trove with 3 complete sets of guqin learning videos. Happy learning guqin!

Videos are available after the jump (uploaded by TheGuqinLover)

If you really like the videos, you can buy the originals from Taobao.com via www.sgshop.com.sg (if you are in Singapore). The DVDs come with hardcopy printed tablature. Support music teachers, support guqin!

Video: Guqin performance by Jin Wei in University of Sydney Australia.

Performance by Jin Wei the guqin master, and other Australian learners at an event organized by University of Sydney Australia.

His guqin sounded like it was probably strung with silk strings. The sounds were more mellow than metal-nylon strings.

Video: English language documentary about the 古琴 guqin

English language documentary about the 古琴 guqin, which is one of the 4 Arts, namely 琴 (guqin zither) 棋 (weiqi chess) 書 (calligraphy) 畫 (painting) that scholars in China were traditionally required to master. Enjoy!

Video: ‎'Flowing Water' played on TV by a teenage rising star

‎'Flowing Water' played on TV by a teenage rising star. Enjoy!

It's good to learn how to play the guqin while the world rages on outside. Far away from political struggles. Just peace and quiet contemplation. Clarity of mind. Relieves stress after a long day of labor.

RMB1400,000【无痕】guqin for sale at JunTianFang.taobao.com

Another【无痕】style guqin made by master guqin maker Wang Peng. However, unlike the previous one which is on sale for a mere RMB500,000 this one costs a whopping RMB1400,000. Yes, rub your eyes and look again. There are indeed 5 zeros after the number 14. That's about US$224,690 or about Singapore S$227,964. Gosh, I only hope that at least it would come mounted with silk strings instead of some modern hybrid metal-nylon strings.

At about S$200,000 that's roughly equivalent to the price of *one* entry-level European luxury car in Singapore, or the less than half the price of an entry-level government-built flat in Singapore. Yes, automobiles and public housing are indeed super expensive in Singapore.

Get your black credit card out from your deep pocket and order it from JunTianFang's online store. No of course I don't get any commissions for recommending this. hahaha LOL

More beautiful pics after the jump. You can see green speckles that are perhaps crushed jade powder mixed into the lacquer of the guqin.

Just wondering: How come JunTianFang does not have any banana-shaped guqins for sale on their online store? They do have banana-shaped guqins on sale in their physical bricks-and-motar store in Beijing. My teacher has one, but they don't have any banana-shaped guqin put up for sale on their online store. Just a suggestion: maybe you can email them in Mandarin if you wish to purchase one from them?

RMB600,000 guqin【号钟】for sale from JunTianFang.taobao.com

Another high end guqin 【号钟】made by master guqin maker Wang Peng himself. RMB600,000. Yes, there are 5 zeros after the number 6. That's about Singapore S$119,127 or about US$96,295. That's a lot of greenbacks indeed. Only the super rich elite, or the captains of industry can afford this guqin. I guess elitist bourgeois capitalism is in full swing again in China. hahahah. Don't get me wrong. That's a good thing for China. It's back to its original top form.

You can purchase it online from JunTianFang's taobao website. If you live in Singapore, you can use www.sgshop.com.sg to purchase and track the sea-freight for you. You're gonna need an invitation-only Black credit card for this guqin! LOL (No, I'm not getting any commission for recommending this, of course not! haha) On second thoughts, if you can afford this guqin, you can probably afford to fly First Class to Beijing and hand carry it back in your First Class cabin. haha

More beautiful pictures after the jump.

RMB500,000 guqin 【无痕】 for sale online

If you have RMB500,000 of disposable income, which is about Singapore $99,106 or US$80,193 you can order this guqin named 【无痕】 (meaning "No tracks" or "Without a Trace") online at Jun Tian Fang's taobao store. Yes, don't be shocked. There are indeed 5 zeros behind the number five. This costs about the same amount of money as a (Certificate of Entitlement) COE in Singapore (also about S$90,000). In Singapore, only people who have successfully bidded for and purchased a COE (which is just a piece of paper, not the car itself) are allowed to pay even more money to buy an automobile. hahaha. Scary but true! hahaha. Well when compared this way, this guqin does not seem too expensive anymore, right? LOL

For the rest of us mere mortals (such as a peasant like me), I'm just content to look at the picture. hahah. More beautiful pictures after the jump. (no of course I do not get any commission, don't be silly.)

Guqins on eBay

It seems that guqins are also available for purchase from eBay,which ship from China. US$1250, which is about Singapore S$1552. You can contact the seller directly at their eBay webpage.

No I do not get any commissions. As with all things eBay, please exercise caution before buying at your own risk. As a precaution, do send the seller (in general, any eBay seller) an email first, and see if you get any response.

7 day Guqin training (RMB10,000) for non-Mandarin speaking foreigners

7 day Guqin lessons for non-Mandarin speaking foreigners. RMB10,000. Includes accommodation. Check out the details at their webpage. No, I'm not getting any commission. Neither am I recommending this. I'm just saying this exists. *smile* Incidentally, JunTianFang also offers lessons at the same price, but only in Mandarin, not in English.

Enjoy the pics of their school environment:

Guqin lessons in English in China

This school in China is offering guqin lessons in English for foreigners. Check it out at their webpage. RMB500 per lesson. Not sure if it's one-to-one or group lesson. Please contact the teacher at the webpage directly if you are interested. (No, I do not get any commissions for this. Neither do I recommend this. I'm just saying this exists.) haha LOL

Very Happy Snake Year to You!

Very Happy Snake Year to You! Gong Hei Fatt Choy!

Image source: GamingUnion(dot)net

In case you're totally clueless (despite being very tech savvy and all) about why there's a picture of a soldier and what it's got anything to do with anything at all, he's SNAKE from Metal Gear Solid. Yeah, even an old uncle like me has enjoyed playing MGS before. heheh. That's the best looking snake I could find which does not have a forked tongue. haha LOL

Beautiful banana-shaped guqin RMB 7000

This looks like a very beautiful banana-shaped guqin. RMB7000, which is about S$1392 or US$1122. Really a good buy, *if* you can get to it first. Found at this TaoBao webpage. TaoBao only accepts PRC-address registered credit cards. If you're in Singapore, you can purchase it, ship it and track it via www.sgshop.com.sg

No, of course I do not get any commissions for recommending this. hahaha LOL

Video: Guqin making master from Hong Kong

A very moving video about a guqin making master in Hong Kong. Enjoy!




This is Maestro Choi's website. http://www.choifookkee.com.hk

Address is: Room 06, L5, Jockey Club Creative Art Centre, 30 Pak Tin Street, Shek Kip Mei, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Free Chinese New Year performances at Singapore's Esplanade Theaters By The Bay

Go with your loved ones! Free performances at Singapore's Esplanade Theaters By The Bay. Enjoy! Full details can be perused at http://www.huayifestival.com/2013/edm/22_free/index_edm.html

Guqin shaped necklaces

Guqin shaped necklaces, sold at this TaoBao webpage. If you're in Singapore, you can use www.sgshop.com.sg to purchase it from TaoBao and have it airmailed from China to Singapore (with tracking provided by SgShop.com.sg) No, I do not get any commissions for recommending this. haha

New CD by 李凤云 (Lee Feng Yun) - Guqin Album recorded with Sung dynasty guqin mounted with Silk Strings

New CD by 李凤云 (Lee Feng Yun) recorded on famous Sung dynasty guqin 南风 (Nan Feng) mounted with silk strings.

You can purchase it from:
http://detail.tmall.com/item.htm?spm=a230r.1.10.183.VgCiL8&id=20463332096

If you're in Singapore, you can use the reliable www.sgshop.com.sg to buy it, track it and ship it from China to you.

Traditional Chinese Clothing for Lunar New Year

Chinese Lunar New Year is coming soon. If you like to dress up in traditional Chinese clothing, you can consider buying from http://www.husenji.com

There are some Chinese who may think that the look and feel of the clothes shown above is too "Manchurian", probably because of the Mandarin dragonfly knots. As far as I am concerned, like it or not, after governing China for centuries, Manchurian culture has already been assimilated into Chinese culture. The Qing dynasty is just one of many dynasties in China's history. Dynasties rise and fall, like the flow and ebb of tide and time.

For those who prefer Han dynasty styled clothing, Husenji.com also has a fine selection! Check it out.

Looks great with your guqin!

Video: 2013 Hanfu couture design competition

Do you consider yourself a Hanfu couture aficionado? Then you must not miss this!

More competition details and more videos can be purused at http://hancouture.ntdtv.com/en/