Guest Hosted by Dr @Andrew MerrittAndrew Merritt writes new songs inspired by Tang poems, adopting the style of American country and folk music. In this episode, the songwriter shares his love for the poems, opens a window to his songwriting process, and plays three songs from his album of &qu...

The Fifteenth of the Nineteen Ancient PoemsBy an anonymous author of the Eastern Han Dynasty,which spanned from 25 to 220 AD.Life spans shorter than a century;Worry extends longer than a millennium.Day is too short and night too long.Why not take a candle out to the stadium?Seize the moment while yo...

Guest Hosted by Prof @Jonathan StallingIn Professor Stalling’s second episode, we return to the Tang and Song “rhyme studies” tradition, but this time he invites our listeners to become “zhiyin” (those who study and understand sound) themselves by taking us step by step through the...

A Woman Wishing for LongevityAuthor: Feng Yansi (903—960)At a feast celebrating spring,I drank a glass of greenish-white wine before singing.Let me make three wishes while praying:May my husband live a millennium-long!May my health allow me to come along!And may we resemble that pair of swallows on...

Guest Hosted by Prof @jonathanstalling4990In the last few episodes, we have learned about the tonal patterns of regulated verse and some of their cosmological underpinnings. In the next two episodes Professor Jonathan Stalling will delve further into the cultural systems that both gave r...

Ume Blossoms in the SnowAuthor: Lu Meipo (Years of birth and death unknown)Ume blossoms fight snow while delaying falling to wait for spring,To judge which side wins, the poet takes a break from writing.Ume blossoms are 30 percent less white than snow,But snow loses for lacking the fragrance ume blo...

At a Green Jade Table—A Song about the Lantern FestivalAuthor: Xin Qiji (1140—1207)An east wind brings up blossoms of fireworks above thousands of treetops.And carries down showers of sparks that resemble raindrops.Scented ornate carriages proceed fragrantly all the way before their stops.Flute mu...

Host: Prof Zong-qi Cai, Program HostGoing beyond the technical issues of tonal patterning, this episode discusses how the regulated poetic forms of Shakespearean sonnets and Chinese regulated verse embody the Western dualistic and Chinese yin-yang worldviews, respectively. Shakespeare’s...