Shuishan Yu is a fourth generation Mei’an School guqin player, a Professor at the Northeastern University in Boston, and the Chair of North America Mei’an Guqin Society. Born in China and learning Chinese instruments since age seven, Yu’s early music education belongs to the rich and dynamic folk traditions of the Shandong Province.. Yu is especially committed to the spread of guqin among non-Chinese speaking communities. His fingering-centered etude writing aims to systematize traditional experience-based guqin education and his composition based on Classical Chinese literatures explores new possibilities of traditional musical vocabulary.
Guqin Solo
Moon over the Mountain Pass
This piece was attributed to the Tang dynasty poet Li Bai (701-762). Possibly originated from a folk tune in the Shandong province, the music was later matched with a poem of the same title by Li Bai. It depicts homesick soldiers guarding the mountain pass watching the moon while missing their loved ones. The version played here is from the Meian Qin Manual printed in 1931.
Flowing Water
This piece was attributed to the Eastern Zhou period (771-256 BCE) guqin master Baoya. Arguably the most famous Chinese musical work from antiquity, it depicts the richness and grandeur of the awe-inspiring nature, focusing on the various states and movements of waters flowing among mighty mountains. “High mountain and flowing waters,” together with the story of Boya and Ziqi, exemplifies the Chinese ideal of friendship as well as the keen and sympathetic appreciator of someone’s music. The version played here is from Tianwenge Qin Manual printed in 1876.