Confucius
Institute
Song I: Happy to see the Spring Rain
Happy to see the Spring Rain
(Lyrics by Du Fu, a poet in Tang Dynasty; Music by XU Jianqiang)
(The video was previously displayed on YOUKU, a video hosting service based in Beijing, China)
This small yet exquisite choral piece is the 5th piece (and the last piece) of the chorus suite <The Voice of Spring>. Inspired by the famous poem <Happy to See the Spring Rain> written by Du Fu, a famous poet in Tang Dynasty, the composer Mr Xu Jianqiang wrote this particular piece to fulfill the expressions and feelings of the poet, using light and cheerful music melody with the mixture of contemporary composing techniques. Particularly, at the end of the music, the composer incorporates the recite of the poem (not in-pitch) in the music, to imitate the scenes that school children are reading this poem together loudly in the classroom.
To help you enjoy this beautiful choral piece, we provide the English translation of the poem and the Chinese version with Pinyin.
春夜喜雨 好雨知时节，当春乃发生。 随风潜入夜，润物细无声。 野径云俱黑，江船火独明。 晓看红湿处，花重锦官城。 | Happy to See the Spring Rain The rain knows its time has come. Wild paths and clouds are all in dark, |
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