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Yan Shu 晏殊. "To the tune “Willows by the Mountain Pavilion”—"To a singer"." Global Medieval Sourcebook.Text based on Tang, Guizhang 唐圭璋 (ed.). Quan Song Ci 全宋詞. Vol 1. Beijing: Zhonghua shu ju, 1965, 135. .
贈歌者 | To the tune “Willows by the Mountain Pavilion”
Source Information
贈歌者 | To the tune “Willows by the Mountain Pavilion”
by Yan Shu 晏殊
Text Source:
Responsibility Statement:
- Text based on Tang, Guizhang 唐圭璋 (ed.). Quan Song Ci 全宋詞. Vol 1. Beijing: Zhonghua shu ju, 1965, 135.
- Translation by Qian Jia
- Notes by Nina Du and Runqi Zhang
- Encoded in TEI P5 XML by Nina Du, Manya Bansal, and Danny Smith
Editorial Principles:
The original text of this ci is based on the edition by Tang Guizhang 唐圭璋 (Quan Song Ci 全宋詞. Vol 1. Beijing: Zhonghua shu ju, 1965). Punctuation follows the edition. Since ci poetry rarely includes personal pronouns, and gender-differentiated pronouns did not exist in Classical Chinese of this period, the gender of the speaker as well as their perspective (e.g. first, second or third person) must often be deduced by the translator from context.
Punctuation follows the edition.Publication Details:
Published by The Global Medieval Sourcebook.
The Global Medieval Sourcebook is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
贈歌者 To a singer
家住西秦。 My family lived in the west of Qin,
賭博藝隨身。 I lived by my skills and talent in dancing and song;
花柳上、鬥尖新。 among all the blossoms and willows,
c
I vied to stand out. Critical note:
“Blossoms and willows” is a euphemism for sexual relationships between men and women.
偶學念奴聲調， Occasionally I imitated the tunes of Niannu,
c
Critical note:
Niannu is the name of a famous courtesan in the Tang dynasty, who was known for her excellence in singing.
5
有時高遏行雲。 my voice could halt floating clouds in their path. 蜀錦纏頭無數， I have countless Shu brocades and silks,
c
Critical note:
Brocades produced in the Shu area (in present Sichuan) were exquisite and expensive. They were given to singers and dancers as rewards. Although singers and dancers did wrap Shu brocades around their heads as a form of ornament, here the persona says this to indicate her success as a singer.
不負辛勤。 my efforts were well-rewarded.
數年來往咸京道， For years now I have traveled between Xianyang and the capital.
c
Critical note:
The singers usually travel a lot from work place to work place to accommodate the needs of officials.
殘杯冷炙謾消魂。 Leftover wine and cold food consume my spirit.
10
衷腸事、託何人。 To whom can I confide the things deep in my heart? 若有知音見採， If a patron who appreciated me would choose me,
不辭遍唱陽春。 I would willingly sing every one of the finest songs.
一曲當筵落淚， Now, a single song at the banquet and my tears start to fall.
重掩羅巾。 Once again, I hide my face with the silk kerchief.
贈歌者 To a singer
家住西秦。 My family lived in the west of Qin,
賭博藝隨身。 I lived by my skills and talent in dancing and song;
花柳上、鬥尖新。 among all the blossoms and willows,
c
I vied to stand out. Critical note:
“Blossoms and willows” is a euphemism for sexual relationships between men and women.
偶學念奴聲調， Occasionally I imitated the tunes of Niannu,
c
Critical note:
Niannu is the name of a famous courtesan in the Tang dynasty, who was known for her excellence in singing.
5
有時高遏行雲。 my voice could halt floating clouds in their path. 蜀錦纏頭無數， I have countless Shu brocades and silks,
c
Critical note:
Brocades produced in the Shu area (in present Sichuan) were exquisite and expensive. They were given to singers and dancers as rewards. Although singers and dancers did wrap Shu brocades around their heads as a form of ornament, here the persona says this to indicate her success as a singer.
不負辛勤。 my efforts were well-rewarded.
數年來往咸京道， For years now I have traveled between Xianyang and the capital.
c
Critical note:
The singers usually travel a lot from work place to work place to accommodate the needs of officials.
殘杯冷炙謾消魂。 Leftover wine and cold food consume my spirit.
10
衷腸事、託何人。 To whom can I confide the things deep in my heart? 若有知音見採， If a patron who appreciated me would choose me,
不辭遍唱陽春。 I would willingly sing every one of the finest songs.
一曲當筵落淚， Now, a single song at the banquet and my tears start to fall.
重掩羅巾。 Once again, I hide my face with the silk kerchief.
Critical Notes
Translation
Line number 3
Critical note: “Blossoms and willows” is a euphemism for sexual relationships between men and women.
Translation
Line number 4
Critical note: Niannu is the name of a famous courtesan in the Tang dynasty, who was known for her excellence in singing.
Translation
Line number 6
Critical note: Brocades produced in the Shu area (in present Sichuan) were exquisite and expensive. They were given to singers and dancers as rewards. Although singers and dancers did wrap Shu brocades around their heads as a form of ornament, here the persona says this to indicate her success as a singer.
Translation
Line number 8
Critical note: The singers usually travel a lot from work place to work place to accommodate the needs of officials.
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