Static Sheet Music
Dynamic Sheet Music
Song Bie(Farewell) is one of the most enduring songs in modern Chinese music history, composed with lyrics written by the artistic master Li Shutong (Master Hongyi) in 1915. Its melody originates from the 19th-century American composer John Pond Ordway's Dreaming of Home and Mother , which was later adapted into Traveler's Sorrow by Japanese musician Inukai Kyukei. Inspired by this during his studies in Japan, Li Shutong fused Chinese cultural heritage to create this classic—though the melody is "imported", the lyrics are entirely localized. Li Shutong employed the long-short sentence structure of Chinese classical poetry, infusing traditional imagery like "willow-breaking farewells" and "pavilion farewell banquets", endowing it with the soul of Oriental aesthetics.
In the winter of 1915, when Li Shutong's close friend Xu Huanyuan bid farewell in the snow due to his family's decline, they only briefly parted outside the gate. Li Shutong stood in the snow watching Xu's retreating figure for a long time, then returned home and tearfully wrote the lyrics, which his Japanese wife later set to music. The lyrics, fewer than a hundred characters, blend the conciseness of poetry with the catchiness of folk songs. From campus children's voices to superstar covers, they span ages and social strata. The melodious, soothing melody integrates seamlessly with the cadence of the lyrics, forming an artistic conception of "unity of poetry and music." Not a single word directly states "parting," yet every character is steeped in the sorrow of separation.
This sheet music is based on Han Hong's cover version, in the key of
C, and can be played on aC-tuneddizi (Chinese bamboo flute) by using the closed tone as5(sol).
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