Transmitted by Master Liu Shaochun. Based on the Jiao'an Qin Pu. Ten sections.
The Piece
First recorded in the Ming dynasty Shen Qi Mi Pu. Also known as Mei Hua Yin and Yu Fei Yin. Its origins are disputed — attributed variously to Huan Yi of the Jin dynasty, who played flute by moonlight, and to the Tang scholar Yan Shigu. The version in the Jiao'an Qin Pu is characterized by rhythmic freedom and a quality the score calls shū fàng — unrestrained, at ease.
The three variations of the title refer to the piece's structure: the central theme appears three times, each time transformed. The same plum blossom, seen in different light.
The Image
The plum blossom blooms in winter — not despite the cold, but because of it. It does not wait for the world to be hospitable before deciding to exist.
This is the spirit the piece expresses: 傲骨精神 — unyielding integrity. Not defiance. Simply the quality of remaining oneself, completely, regardless of the season.
Mei Yueqiang's Approach
Mei Yueqiang described his method as "以气贯臂力贯指" — let breath flow through the arm, arm's force through the fingers, one unbroken movement from body to string. The techniques he emphasized — double-strike, long chain, strike-vibrato — are all techniques of connection, each note linked to the next without interruption. In the Guangling school: yuán rùn wú ài — round, moist, without obstruction.
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Read more about this piece: Tasting Mei · XV : Wind Stirs the Plum Blossoms →
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There is a quiet coincidence in all of this. Mei Yueqiang's surname, 梅, is the Chinese character for plum blossom — the same plum blossom this piece celebrates. He loved playing Mei Hua San Nong, and he loved painting plum blossoms too. His disciples, in his honor, each took an art name containing the character 梅. William Xu became 听梅, Ting Mei — "one who listens to the plum." Others became 爱梅, Ai Mei — "one who loves the plum," and 颂梅, Song Mei — "one who praises the plum." The plum blossom, it seems, does not bloom only in winter. It blooms in a lineage, in a name, in the quiet act of remembering where your sound comes from.
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