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Bilangual Song--050: Shirley Sings A Chinese Folk Song 080:"Zhiyin -- A Bosom Friend" in English & Chinese

Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In English July 4, 2009 in the US
Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In Chinese July 4, 2009 in the US

Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In Chinese May 27, 2006 in China


This is a famous Chinese folk song. It is also the theme song of a movie with the same name.

This move recorded the history that how a famous general Cai E (1882 -1916))took part in the Xinhai Revolution of 1911 and served as Commander-in-Chief of the Military Government of Yunnan after the revolution, and then he launched the Republic-Protection Campaign in Yunnan to crusade against Yuan Shikai when Yuan proclaimed himself as a new Empire of China in 1915 and successfully forced Yuan to abandon monarchism.

He later went to Japan for medical treatment and he died shortly after he arrived in Japan.

Also this move recorded a story that General Cai and his bosom friend -- a beautiful lady names Xiao Fenxian, to expresses   how she helped him extricate oneself from the control of Yuan, how she followed him in the war and how she looked after when he was sick in China and in Japan...

This song mentioned several times "high mountain and flowing water" that is from a famous Chinese idiom -- to say how friends understanding each other as a couple of bosom friends. In Chinese history, a musician Bo Ya was well at playing instrument; Zhong Ziqi was good at listening to the music. Both of them could understand via Music totally, so that when Zhong was dead, Bo Ya broke his instrument and said there would no one understanding his music again...

For singing convenient, I did not translate the flowing water to be "Flowing water" directly, but I sing it as "River".

I do hope the little story can help you to understand this song... and to help you to understand Chinese culture and to learn Chinese language.

Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In English July 4, 2009 in the US
Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In Chinese July 4, 2009 in the US


MAIN MEANING OF THE SONG


Mountain is green,
water is blue,
the high mountain and the river
are playing musical sounds harmoniously.
One by one,
Sounds like weeping,
sounds like crying
What I am sighing is.
Itsn't easy to find a true friend,
A bosom friend forever is the most difficult to find...

Mountain is green,
water is blue,
the high mountain and river
are playing musical sounds harmoniously...
one by one,
sounds like ode,
sounds like paean,
What I am praising,
General drew sword,
uprose in the South,
I will be the wind to round of your flag...


CHINESE CHARACTER AND PRONUNCIATION

-- shan qingqing,
-- shui bibi,
羌羂箴箴 -- gaoshan liushui yun yiyi
-- yi shengsheng鐚
-- ru qi ru su ru beiti鐚
ュ訓 -- tai de shi renshen nan de yi zhiji,
-- qiangu zhiyin zhui nan mi

-- shan qingqing,
-- shui bibi,
羌羂箴箴 -- gaoshan liushui yun yiyi
-- yi shengsheng,
莎腓 -- ru shong ru ge ru zanli,
-- zan de shi jiangjun bajian nantian qi,
-- wo yuan zuo changfeng rao zhanqi

Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In English July 4, 2009 in the US
Listen to Shirley Sang the Song In Chinese July 4, 2009 in the US


If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please write to shirley@ebridge.cn, or yiping007@missouristate.edu, You are welcome to publish your opinions in Forum For Friends. :-)

--Shirley Zhang
Written, Translated and Recorded It Sat, May 27, 2006 in China / July 4, 2009in the US.