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54. Celestial Air Defining Qiliang Mode
- qiliang mode; (tighten 2nd/5th strings: 2 4 5 6 1 2 3) 		神品淒涼意
Shenpin Qiliang Yi 1

SQMP gives the following added tuning explanation:2

Same as Chushang Mode; tighten 2nd and 5th strings.
Open 7th string = 5th string stopped at 11th position;
Open 4th string = 2nd string stopped at 11th position.

Qiliang mode is paired with chushang, which has the same tuning. Folio III has two qiliang pieces and one in chushang,

  1. Zepan Yin
  2. Li Sao
  3. Chu Ge (chushang)
All three melodies have stories connected to the ancient state of Chu.3 This also seems to be a characteristic of ruibin mode melodies. Both qiliang melodies concern Qu Yuan; the chushang piece concerns the Chu general Xiang Yu. All these have 2 (re) as the main note and 6 (yu) as the secondary note. This is of particular note because of a possible connection to Song dynasty concepts of shang mode.

A fourth Shen Qi Mi Pu melody using this tuning is,

Huaxu Yin However, this Folio I melody (suggesting it could date from before the Souther Song dynasty) has a somewhat different modality, still with re (2) as the main note but here do (1) is the secondary note. It also has a happier theme.

Melodies published later that use this tuning include:

Qu Yuan Wen Du

  • Diao Qu Yuan (only in 1546)
  • Song Yu Bei Qiu (Xilutang Qinpu version only)

    All have connections with the state or region of Chu (Song Yu was a Chu poet).

    Still other pieces using this tuning include

    1. Qiujiang Songbie
    2. Yangguan Sandie (early forms only; it later changed to using ruibin tuning).

    Neither of these seems to have a Chu connection.

    Shen Qi Mi Pu inserts shangjiao mode and its two pieces before the piece Chu Ge, which uses this tuning and is presumably associated with chushangmode. The fact that Shen Qi Mi Pu is otherwise so carefully edited makes this particularly puzzling.

     
    No original preface4

     
    One section

    (00.38) -- harmonics
    (00.55) -- Modal prelude ends

    Return to the Shen Qi Mi Pu ToC or to the Guqin ToC.

     
    Footnotes (Shorthand references are explained on a separate page)

    1. Shenpin Qiliang Yi 神品淒涼意
    1689.3 qiliang fan 淒涼犯 (but ice radical; cold/mournful offense) name of a 詞牌 cipai, 一名瑞鶴仙影。 See 姜夔 Jiang Kui Jade Crane For more information on modes see Modality in Early Ming Qin Tablature.
    (Return)

    2. See also Qin Tunings, some theoretical concepts.
    (Return)

    3. See Chu themes and the Chu Ci illustrations
    (Return)

    4. Although SQMP modal preludes have no prefaces, those in Zheyin (which all have identical music) do. In Zheyin the preface to the qiliang modal prelude is as follows:

    （淒涼意）﹕希仙曰，
    是意也，一名楚商調，一名曰外調。 其音則散七挑五、名指按五絃於十一徽是也。意簫瑟之意。
    (Qiliang Yi)
    (Return)

    Return to the Shen Qi Mi Pu ToC or to the Guqin ToC.