Forums » Smalltalk » Interesting Song I Found

So, recently, there is a really popular song- at least, between my friends- and it is interesting because it is actually a rendition of an old poem- and while the song itself is quite good, in my opinion, the story behind it is rather..sombre, and meaningful, I think.



I know it is in Chinese, and I doubt most of you know it, but I am just going to talk about the meaning behind the poem/song.
(I’ll try to recount the background, but I don’t reallly remember the details so...)
It is about the poet, BaiJuYi, who is sending his friend off by the docks and when they boarded the boat, a woman was playing the pipa, an instrument that looks vaguely like a guitar.

They became curious about the woman, as the song she was playing sounded incredibly sad; and at the end, she told them her story.

She had mastered playing the pipa at a young age, and was sent to the capital (?) to become a songstress (?), but as she got older, her beauty began to fade, and she had no other choice than to marry a merchant. (note: merchants weren’t anywhere near being of high status at that time)

Her story moved the poets, and caused them to feel great sadness for the woman.

That’s the gist of it, at least.

I just think that it is a good reflection(?)/ story, about how talent is lost due to certain things we can’t help but to comply with; her skill with the pipa was complimented by a master musician back in the capital, and now due to her age, she had to marry, doubtful that she would pick up the instrument in the future.

Also, the dance looks pretty fun.

And though the backstory might be rather sad, the way it is sung...sometimes makes me laugh.

I’ve just been obsessing over this song for the past few days, so I just wanted to let it out

Interesting, Birdy