Liberal Arts Blog — Mo Li Hua (“Jasmine Flower”) — Hugely Popular Chinese Folk Song
Liberal Arts Blog — Thursday is the Joy of Music Day
Today’s Topic: Mo Li Hua (“Jasmine Flower”) — Hugely Popular Chinese Folk Song
When a tourist at the North Bridge tells me I should learn a particular song, I pay attention and make sure to check it out later. This happened last week and the song was “Mo Li Hua.” I found out that it is a simple pentatonic tune that dates back to “the Qianlong Era (1735–1796) of the Qing dynasty,” was featured in Puccini’s opera Turandot (1926) as well as in the 1937 film version of Pearl Buck’s classic about China, The Good Earth. More recently, “it has been used at such events as the 2004 Summer Olympics, the 2008 Summer Olympics, the 2010 Shanghai Expo opening ceremony, and during the 2011 Chinese protests.” The first link below is a simple, traditional version with lyrics and an English translation. The second features a solo performance by Chinese soprano Song Zuying with the Sydney Opera from 2002. The third is a super glitzy, kitschy modern duet in which Zuying is joined by Celine Dion, the Canadian pop singer. Experts — please chime in. Correct, elaborate, elucidate.
Jasmine Flower (茉莉花) Learn Chinese through Songs with Lyrics
Song Zuying — Jasmine Flower 茉莉花
Céline Dion performs in Chinese on China’s CCTV New Year Gala 席琳迪翁春晚《茉莉花》
ENGLISH LYRICS: “What a Beautiful Jasmine Flower” (one of many versions)
1. What a beautiful jasmine flower! What a beautiful jasmine flower!
2. A spray of fragrant and lovely petals!
3. Everyone loves your snow-white buds
NB: Let me pick a jasmine flower and give it to my beloved.
REGIONAL VARIATIONS, METAL BELLS, JADE CHIMES
1. Melodies and lyrics vary widely. “One version…describes a custom of giving jasmine flowers in the southern Yangtze delta region of China.”
2. “Another longer version describes the fear of plucking the flower.”
3. “It has been used on ancient metal bells (bianzhong) and on modern jade chimes.” Above is a photo of a bianzhong.
NB: The song “uses the five note pentatonic scale, ubiquitous in Chinese music. It is one of xiaodao (“short tunes”) popular in Chinese urban areas.” “In 1804, a British diplomat John Barrow noted that it is one of the most popular songs in China.”
THE JASMINE FLOWER BAN OF 2011 — romance and revolution
1. In 2011, the jasmine flower became the symbol of the pro-democracy movement. And the Beijing police banned their sale.
2. Protestors would play “Mo Li Hua” on their cell phones as a form of rebellion. Authorities included the song on the list of “online censored materials.” Videos of “Mo LI Hua” were removed from websites and searches blocked.
3. The association of a flower with both romance and revolution is reminiscent of the Ukrainian song “Oi U Luzi Chervona Kalyna (red viburnum)” as well as the fictional “Edelweiss” from the Sound of Music.
MO LI HUA Lyrics Traditional Chinese Song
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bianzhong
https://ltl-xian.com/chinese-songs/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Chinese_pro-democracy_protests
Tian Mi Mi — Teresa Teng Lyrics [CHINESE MANDARIN | PINYIN | ENGLISH]
10 traditional Chinese Musical Instruments — chinaculture
Flower power: symbols of romance and revolution | The Spectator
LAST FOUR YEARS OF POSTS ORGANIZED THEMATICALLY A FEW MORE DETAILS ON THE HISTORY
1. There are several regional versions of the song, with different lyrics and melody. One version of the song describes a custom of giving jasmine flowers, popular in the southern Yangtze delta region of China.[2] Another, longer version describes the fear of plucking the flower.[10]: 46– [9]: 81–82 It has been played on ancient metal bells (bianzhong) and modern jade chimes.[4] It uses the five note (pentatonic) scale ubiquitous in Chinese music. The tune is one of xiaodiao (“short tunes”), popular in Chinese urban areas.[11] In 1804 a British diplomat, John Barrow, noted that the tune seems to be one of the most popular songs in China.
PDF with headlines — Google Drive
ATTACHMENTS BELOW:
#1 A graphic guide to justice (9 metaphors on one page).
#2 “39 Songs, Prayers, and Poems: the Keys to the Hearts of Seven Billion People” — Adams House Senior Common Room Presentation, 11/17/20
YOUR TURN
Time to share the coolest thing you learned in the last week related to music. Or the coolest thing you learned in your life related to music. Say your favorite song or songs. Or your favorite tips for breathing, posture, or relaxation. Or some insight into the history of music….Or just something random about music… like a joke about drummers. jazz, rock….or share an episode or chapter in your musical autobiography.
This is your chance to make some one else’s day. And perhaps to cement in your memory something important you would otherwise forget. Or to think more deeply than you otherwise would about something that matters to you.
