Shuidiao Getou () is the name of a traditional Chinese melody to which a poem in the '' cí'' style can be sung. Different poets have written different lyrics to the melody which are usually prefixed by this melody's title, the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

poet

Su Shi Su Shi (; 8 January 1037 – 24 August 1101), courtesy name Zizhan (), art name Dongpo (), was a Chinese calligrapher, essayist, gastronomer, pharmacologist, poet, politician, and travel writer during the Song dynasty. A major personality of ...

's work "''Shuǐdiào Gētóu – Míngyuè Jǐshíyǒu ''" () being one of the most famous. Cí () is one of the literary genres that are unique to the Song dynasty, and can be sung to melody. Many ancient melodies are lost to history, but modern composers often compose new melodies for cí.

Text of Su's poem

Notes on the poem

In popular culture

In 1983,

Liang Hong Zhi Liang may refer to: Chinese history * Liang (state) (梁) (8th century BC – 641 BC), a Spring and Autumn period state * Wei (state) (403–225 BC), a Warring States period state, also known as Liang (梁) after moving its capital to Daliang * ...

() set Su's poem to new music as the song "Danyuan ren changjiu" (; translated "Wishing We Last Forever" or "Always Faithful"). This new setting was recorded by

Teresa Teng Teng Li-Chun (; 29 January 1953 – 8 May 1995), commonly known as Teresa Teng, was a Taiwanese singer, actress, musician and philanthropist. Referred to by some as " Asia's eternal queen of pop," Teng became a cultural icon for her contributio ...

in her album ''

dandan youqing ''Dàndàn yōuqíng'' () is a 1983 Mandarin Chinese album by Teresa Teng, first distributed by Polydor Records, Ltd. (also called Polygram now owned by Universal Music Group), from Hong Kong and Kolin Records () from Taiwan. It contains twelve ...

'' (), which also contained songs based on other poems from the

Tang Tang or TANG most often refers to: * Tang dynasty * Tang (drink mix) Tang or TANG may also refer to: Chinese states and dynasties * Jin (Chinese state) (11th century – 376 BC), a state during the Spring and Autumn period, called Tang (唐) b ...

and

Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetitio ...

dynasties. Later artists such as

Faye Wong Faye Wong ( zh, 王菲; born Xia Lin on 8 August 1969) is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter. Early in her career she briefly used the stage name Shirley Wong. Born in Beijing, she moved to Hong Kong in 1987 and her debut album '' Shirley Wong'' ( ...

Jacky Cheung Jacky Cheung Hok-yau (born 10 July 1961) is a Hong Kong singer and actor. Dubbed the "God of Songs", he is regarded as one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Hong Kong pop music. Cheung is known for his technically skilled vocals, lengthy tours, and m ...

and

China Flowers China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

() covered this song in albums and concerts.

Other uses

In June 1956,

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...

wrote the poem "''Shuǐdiào Gētóu'' – Swimming" () which is also rhymed to the tune of ''Shuǐdiào Gētóu''."Swimming"
/ref>

References

External links

English translation
by

Qiu Xiaolong Qiu Xiaolong (, Chinese pronunciation /tɕʰjoʊː ˌɕjɑʊˈlʊŋ/, American English pronunciation ; born Shanghai, China, 1953) is a crime novelist, English-language poet, literary translator, critic, and academic, who has lived for many y ...

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Shui Diao Ge Tou Chinese poems Su Shi