Water Flowing In The Brook

Xiao he tang shui (Water Flowing In The Brook), arranged by Shui, is a song of love. Lovers, separated by the deep mountains of the Yunnan province, think of their loved one in the form of the moon walking through the sky. A brook links the lovers - the image of the moon in the water is reflected back onto their hearts. The ideas of heaven, man and earth are suggested by something in the sky (heaven) being reflected by the water (earth) into man's heart.

The moon rising...

The moon rising shining, shining,

Recalling my sister in the mountains,

Like the moon gliding across the sky,

Below the mountain, water gently flowing flowing.

Water in the brook rippling, rippling,

My brother in the mountains herding.

The goats are fat and the cows are strong,

My brother is a good man.

The moon lights up half the slope,

Looking at the moon makes me think of my brother.

A cool breeze blowing up the slope,

did you hear the sister calling to the brother?

Below the mountain, clear water in the brook.

The moon rising...

Because sound and pitch play an important role in the Chinese language, the words are intrinsically onomatopoeic. In the first verse, as the man thinks of his lover, the sounds of the Mandarin text are very delicate, pronounced with a small mouth (for instance, qing you you: gently flowing). In the following stanza, when the woman sings of her lover, the sounds of the text are relatively robust, with active vowels (as for, hua la la: rippling).

- Jennifer Tham

With gratitude to Hoh Chung Shih, whose ideas and knowledge of Chinese culture and folksong form the basis of these notes. And also, for his poetic translation of the folksong.