Seven strings:

As a nirvana for scholars and artists such as the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou, a group of painters in the 18th century who rejected orthodox methods in favor of a more individualistic style of painting, Yangzhou has its own illustrious story of a connection with the guqin that dates back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

The poet Li Qi, in his The Song of Qin (qin ge), tells of listening to a qin performance at a farewell banquet. In this poem the phrase “Guangling guest” specifically refers to the accomplished guqin players, the presence of Guangling guqin players being regarded as underlining the host’s hospitality and high status.

Yangzhou’s guqin culture reached its zenith during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), when many Yangzhou musicians rose to fame because of their mastery of the instrument, in practice and in theory. The most renowned, Xu Changyu, founded the Guangling school of guqin in Yangzhou. His style of guqin playing features a subdued tone and a flexible rhythm, and displays a taste for simplicity and subtlety.

Xu valued original music and devoted most of his life to compiling the tablature of classic guqin pieces, which was later collated and published as Qin Tablature of the Clear Mirror Hall (Chengjian Tang Qinpu) by his three sons, all of whom were accomplished guqin players.

In modern China, Yangzhou musicians led by Sun Shaotao established the Guangling Qin Society in 1912, the activities of which were suspended in 1937 due to the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (193145), and resumed in 1984.

Yangzhou continues to be home to China’s most well-known guqin masters, one being Ma Weiheng, regarded by many as an unofficial ambassador of the Yangzhou region.

“The Guangling School of guqin is closely related to Yangzhou’s culture, from food and garden, to language and literature,” Ma says.

Following the tradition of the Guangling School, he founded the Nanfeng Qin Society in 2008 and the Hanfeng Guqin Construction Technique Research Institute in 2012, aiming to ensure that the legacy of the Guangling School is passed on and that research into the culture and construction of the instrument would continue.