It comes from "Pipa Xing" by Bai Juyi, a poet of the Tang Dynasty. The whole poem is as follows:

The Xunyang River sees off guests on the first night, and the maple leaves and flowers rustle in autumn. The master dismounted and was on board the boat. He wanted to drink wine, but there was no orchestra.

We will say goodbye miserably when we are too drunk. When we say goodbye, the vast river is soaked in the moon. Suddenly I heard the sound of pipa playing on the water, and the host forgot to return home.

Who is asking questions secretly? The sound of the pipa stopped and it was too late to speak. Move the boat closer to invite us to meet each other, add wine, turn back the lights, and resume the banquet.

After calling for a long time, he came out, still holding the pipa and half covering his face. There are three or two sounds of the strings being plucked by the rotating shaft, and there is emotion before the tune is formed.

The strings muffle the sounds and thoughts, as if complaining of a life of dissatisfaction. The formalities of the letter were continued with a low eyebrow, telling all the infinite things in one's heart.

Lightly gathered, slowly twisted and smeared, and then picked again, at first it was a neon dress with a green waist. The big strings are noisy like the rain, and the small strings are like whispers.

Noisy and jumbled bullets, big and small beads falling onto the jade plate. I asked Guan Ying and said that the bottom of the flowers is slippery, and it is difficult to go under the ice of Youyanquan.

The ice spring is cold and the strings are condensed, and the condensation will never pass the sound for a while. Don't worry and hate yourself. Silence is better than sound at this time.

The silver bottle bursts out, and the water slurries burst out, and the cavalry stands out with swords and guns. At the end of the song, the plucked strings are carefully drawn, and the four strings sound like cracking silk.

The east boat and the west boat were silent, except for the white autumn moon in the middle of the river. While he was chanting and plucking strings, he straightened his clothes and tightened his features.

She said that she was originally a girl from the capital city, and her family lived under the Xia Toad Mausoleum. At the age of 13, he learned the pipa successfully and became the first member of the Jiaofang.

Qu Ba once taught good people how to dress up, and Qiu Niang was always jealous of her makeup. The young people in Wuling are struggling with their heads, and there are countless red silk songs.

The head of the ink is shattered by the grate, and the bloody skirt is stained by wine. This year's laughter will bring back the next, and the autumn moon and spring breeze will pass easily.

My younger brother left to join the army, and my aunt died. The front door is deserted and there are few cars and horses. The boss is married to a businessman.

Businessmen value profit over separation. The month before last, they went to Fuliang to buy tea. We go to and from the mouth of the river to guard empty boats, and when we go around the boats, the moon shines brightly on the river, and the water is cold.

Late at night, I suddenly dreamed about my youth. I cried and cried, and my eyes were red with tears! I sighed when I heard the pipa, and I groaned again when I heard the words.

We are both fallen people at the end of the world, so why should we have known each other before? I resigned from the imperial capital last year and was relegated to Xunyang City where I was sick.

There is no music in the remote place of Xunyang, and the sound of silk and bamboo is not heard all year round. Living in the Huanjiang River, the land is low and humid, and yellow reeds and bitter bamboos grow around the house.

In the meantime, I heard something at dawn and dusk. The cuckoo sang and the blood ape screamed. On a spring river with flowers facing the autumn moonlight, I often drink wine alone while drinking.

Are there no folk songs and village flutes? It's hard to listen to the vomiting and dumb ridicule. Tonight, hearing your pipa music makes my ears suddenly bright as if listening to fairy music.

Mo Cigen sat down to play a piece of music and translated it into a pipa line for you. I feel that I have been saying this for a long time, but sitting down makes the strings turn sharply.

The sad sound is not like the forward sound, and everyone in the house is crying after hearing it again. Who cried the most in the audience? Jiangzhou Sima Qingshan Wet

The translation is as follows:

On an autumn night I went to the head of the Xunyang River to see off a returning guest. The cold wind blew the autumn sounds of maple leaves and reed flowers. Thurs.

My guests and I dismounted and held a farewell banquet on the boat. We raised our glasses to drink but the music did not entertain us.

After drinking wine, I was even more sad that we were about to say goodbye. The bright moon was reflected in the vast river at night when we were saying goodbye.

Suddenly I heard the crisp sound of pipa playing on the river; I forgot about the returning guests and didn’t want to leave.

Look for the source of the sound and ask who is playing the pipa? The pipa stopped for a long time but there was no movement.

We moved the boat closer and invited her to come out to meet her; we asked the servants to add wine, put back the lights, and start the banquet again.

She walked out slowly after calling her a thousand times, still holding the pipa in her arms and half covering her face.

Tighten the axis of the piano and pluck the strings to play a few test sounds; before the tune is formed, the form is very sentimental.

Xianxian's sad and sad voice implies contemplation; it seems to be telling her life's frustration.

She lowered her head and played continuously, using the sound of the piano to tell all the infinite memories in her heart.

Gently gather it, twist it slowly, apply it for a while, and pick it for a while. The first performance was "The Song of Colorful Feather Clothes" and then the "Liu Yao".

The big string is loud, long and noisy like a storm; the small string is gentle and quiet, like someone whispering.

The noisy sounds are intertwined with each other; like big beads and small beads falling from a jade plate in a string.

The sound of the pipa is sometimes like the smooth and smooth sound of birds singing under the flowers, and sometimes it is like the deep, low and intermittent sound of water flowing under the ice.

It seems that the sound of the pipa in the cold water spring begins to condense, and the condensed and unsmooth sound gradually stops.

It seems that another kind of sadness and hatred is secretly growing; at this time, the silence is more moving than the sound.

Suddenly it was like a silver bottle breaking and water splashing everywhere; it was also like armored cavalry fighting with swords and guns.

At the end of the song, she aimed at the center of the strings and plucked them; the fourth string roared as if tearing the fabric.

People on the east and west boats listened quietly; they saw the white autumn moon reflected in the middle of the river.

She pondered, put away the pick and inserted it into the strings; she straightened her clothes and still showed a solemn face.

She said that I used to be a famous singer in the capital; my hometown lived in Xia Tongling in the southeast of Chang'an City.

I learned how to play the pipa at the age of thirteen; my name is listed in the first team of the Jiaofang Orchestra.

Every time she plays a song, she is impressed by the art masters; every time she puts on makeup, she is jealous of her fellow geishas.

The wealthy children of Kyoto rushed to present gifts; after playing a song, they collected countless red ribbons.

The silver grate on the tin head is often broken and smashed; the red skirt is stained by wine stains, but I don’t regret it.

Year after year is spent laughing and playing; the beautiful time from autumn to spring is wasted in vain.

My brother joined the army and my sister died, and the family fortune has been ruined; as the evening passes and the morning comes, I gradually grow older and lose appearance.

The number of cars and horses in front of the door has decreased, and only a few people are visiting; my youth is gone and I have to marry a businessman as my wife.

Businessmen value profits rather than love and often break up easily; last month he went to Fuliang to do tea business.

He left, leaving me alone to guard the empty boat at the mouth of the river; the autumn moon accompanied me around the cabin, and the autumn water around the cabin was cold.

Even late at night, I often dream of having fun and carnivaling as a teenager; in the dream, I wake up crying and my tears stain my pink face.

I had already shaken my head and sighed when I heard Pipa’s cry; and hearing her words made me even more miserable.

We are both miserable people who have fallen into the world; why do we need to ask if we have known each other before when we meet today!

Since I left the bustling capital of Chang'an last year, I was demoted to live by the Xunyang River and often fell ill.

Xunyang is a desolate and remote place with no music; no orchestral instruments can be heard all year round.

I live in a low-lying and humid place in the Huanjiang River; yellow reeds and bitter bamboos are growing around my house.

What can you hear here sooner or later? It's all the sad cries of cuckoos and monkeys.

The scenery is as beautiful as the flowers on the spring river and the moonlit night on the autumn river; I have no choice but to often drink wine alone.

Are there no folk songs and village flutes here? It's just that the hoarse and rough tone is really unpleasant.

Tonight when I listen to you playing the pipa and expressing your true feelings, it’s like my eyes light up and my ears light up when I hear fairy music.

Please don’t refuse to sit down and play another song; I want to compose a new poem for you, "Pipa Song".

Moved by my words, she stood for a long time; turned around, sat down, and tightened the strings to make an urgent sound.

The mournful sound was no longer the same as before; everyone present covered their faces and cried non-stop.

Who among you has shed the most tears? I, Sima Jiangzhou, am soaked in my blue shirt with tears!

Extended information:

About the author

Bai Juyi (772-846), named Letian, also known as Xiangshan Jushi, was a native of Xinzheng, Henan. Realist poet of Tang Dynasty. He was a Jinshi in Zhenyuan and was awarded the title of Secretary Provincial Secretary. Later he moved to Zuo Qianyi and Zuo Zanshan, officials. In the 10th year of Yuanhe (815), Prime Minister Wu Yuanheng was assassinated. Bai Juyi advocated the strict arrest of the murderer. He was demoted to Jiangzhou Sima for overstepping his duties and served successively as the governor of Hangzhou, the governor of Suzhou, and the minister of the Ministry of punishment.

When he died in the sixth year of Huichang (846), he was given a posthumous title document by You Pushe, the minister. Bai Juyi was excellent in both poetry and prose. He advocated that "articles should be combined to suit the occasion, and songs and poems should be combined to suit the event." He was an advocate of the New Yuefu Movement. The language of his poems is popular, and he is also called "Yuan Bai" together with Yuan Zhen, and "Liu Bai" together with Liu Yuxi. His representative poems include "Song of Everlasting Sorrow", "Charcoal Seller", "Pipa Xing", etc. There is also "Bai's Changqing Collection" handed down to the world. . He is called the "Poetry King" and "Poetry Demon" by later generations.

Appreciation of the work

This is a popular realist masterpiece. The full text uses characters as clues to describe both the life experience of the pipa girl and the poet's feelings. The two sentences converge. The tragic experience of the singer is written very concretely, which can be regarded as an overt line; the poet's emotions permeate between the lines, and they ripple along with the music played by the pipa girl and the constant changes in her life experience, which can be regarded as a hidden line.

This light and dark, one reality and one imaginary, makes the plot ups and downs.

The story it narrates is tortuous and touching, the emotions it expresses can arouse people's emotions, the language is beautiful but not flashy, precise but not obscure, the content is close to life but has broad social nature, and it is both elegant and popular.

When "I was too drunk to say goodbye happily", I "suddenly heard the sound of pipa playing on the water, and the host forgot to return and the guests did not leave", pushing the plot to another realm. The first pipa performance has been completed, and "the east boat and the west boat are silent" seems to be over. Suddenly, she "muses" and "collects her face" again, and the pipa girl is about to tell her life experience.

As soon as the Pipa Girl finished speaking, the poet expressed his emotions and connected his own experiences with those of the Pipa Girl, thus promoting the development of the plot. Another song was played, and the music reached a climax, but the poet no longer made a positive description, only saying that the sound was "sad" and "not moving forward". At this point, he stopped abruptly.

In this way, it can not only make people sigh with emotion, but also make people feel profound and far-reaching. This twists and turns of the plot highlight the dramatic encounters of the Pipa girl, and her unique Pipa skills are also described in detail; the author's mood and emotion can also be vividly expressed.

In the farewell section, "autumn greetings", "tragic farewells" and "broad rivers soaking in the moon" are used to create a sad atmosphere for the environment. The pipa girl played for the first time. When the poet described the pipa girl's playing technique and melody, she let her emotions and hatred run through it.

The self-narration of one's life experience is the source of "sorrow and hatred", and is full of all kinds of sadness caused by the characters' past prosperity and present decline. The poet laments his own experience, and uses the environment to set off his own emotions, fully describing the sadness of being homeless. In the last section, the mournful strings and cries complement each other, which fully expresses the poet's grief.

The whole poem uses very few allusions, and the language is concise and clear. Not long after the poet's death, Li Chen, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, wrote a poem in memory of him, saying: "A boy interprets and chants the song "Eternal Sorrow", and a Hu'er can sing "Pipa"."

The most commendable thing about this poem is its description of the sound of pipa. From "The big strings are as noisy as the pelting rain" to "At the end of the music, please be careful of the painting", the abstract and difficult-to-perceive music is simulated with vivid metaphors, which has both auditory and visual images. After reading it, It makes people feel the lingering sound and endless aftertaste.

Among them, "Big beads and small beads fall on the jade plate", "Don't feel sad and resentful, at this time, silence is better than sound", etc. have become classic poems about music. A series of exquisite metaphors such as "hurry rain", "whispers", "orioles' whispers", "spring flow", "beads falling on jade plates", "water bursting out of bottles", "riding swords", "split silk", are ingenious. Unparalleled.

This musical description is listed as a classic of classical music together with Han Yu's "Listening to Master Ying Playing the Qin", Li He's "Li Ping Kong Hou Yin" and Li Xin's "Listening to Dong Da Playing the Hujia and Talking to the Message Room" Four wonderful articles. However, because its metaphors are plain and appropriate, its language is fluent, and its emotions are rich, it is more widely circulated and well-known than the other three articles.

The events narrated in this poem (seeing off guests at the river head on an autumn night, the tragic fate of the pipa girl, the author's relegated life) are full of emotional components; the description of the scenery, the setting of the atmosphere; the actions and psychology of the characters Detailed descriptions; characters expressing their sorrows in a lyrical way; precise explanations and clever interweaving of discussions.

Baidu Encyclopedia - Pipa Xing