Mo Zi Bei Si is one of the Four Great Pieces of the Guangling School — and one of the most ancient in spirit.
The piece was transmitted by Liu Shaochu. Based on the Jiao'an Qin Score, it is also known by the names Mo Zi Bei Ge, Mo Zi, and Bei Si. Set in the zhi mode, in fourteen sections, it first appears in the late Ming collection Boya Xin Fa, compiled by Yang Tuo.
The music expresses the moral integrity of Mozi — the philosopher who wept at a crossroads, seeing white silk dyed into different colors, and understanding that what is pure can be stained by the world it enters. The melody is ancient in tone, spare and clear, with a depth of genuine feeling held quietly beneath the surface.
Liu Shaochu, who passed this piece down, was known for a playing style of great weight and solidity — full-fingered, unhurried, resonant. It is his touch that gives this recording of Mo Zi Bei Si its particular gravity and art.
In the Guangling tradition, this is a piece about what it costs to remain unchanged.
Recorded by Mei Yueqiang. Part of the ongoing series presenting his complete surviving recordings.
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