musicians of old

Chapter 784: Song of Sorrow

“Well, the first time I saw it, I was fascinated.”

"Overall, it seems that the landscape theme is realistic, paying tribute to some Russian techniques of the Itinerant School, but the mass in the upper left corner is very 'expressionist'."

"What is it? The crimson mass on the other side of the cliff? Why is there a swing in this environment? What does the painter want to express or foreshadow?"

Ruoyi muttered to herself, then squatted in front of three other paintings in the "Swing" series to examine them.

"I'll help you put it up."

They were smaller than the previous ones, and Fanning picked them up and put them away one by one.

Then adjust the angle and intensity of the lighting to make the light as bright, soft and natural as possible.

The swing that looks like a gallows and only shows the silhouette of a girl, the empty swing frozen in the snowy mountains, and the hammock-style swing in the interior of a palace salon
The two stood side by side for five minutes.

"Is it the third year since the contract for the 'Swing' series?" Ruoyi pulled out a stack of thin documents from her bag.

"Yes, the last year." Fanning recalled.

"I want all four new works this time, for 50,000 US dollars. How about that?" Ruoyi asked.

"Okay." Fan Ning agreed without hesitation.

The average price of this painting was much higher than in previous years, and the process was smooth and easy, with almost no negotiation involved.

A large sum of more than 30 yuan is about to be deposited into the account. Compared with Fan Ning's job, it is almost as much as his income from working 996 for two consecutive years.

Even for Fan Chenxun himself, who is busy all year round, it is rare to receive orders of this amount. Otherwise, he would not have gone abroad this time to take on such a long and arduous job.

"I'll take a short day off tomorrow to send an international post. Can I still use the same address as before?"

"Yeah, nothing has changed."

Ruoyi put her hands behind her back and walked around the basement a few more times.

"If there are other works you like, you can pick them out and I'll give you one or two, or even three," Fan Ning said.

This was the practice in the past when Fan Chenxun and Esterhazy dealt with each other.

"No need." Ruoyi said.

Fanning followed her around the basement, thinking that he should ask about her schedule next.

Of course, I am also the host of the house. Since this old customer has come from far away, I should do my best to entertain him if I need him to accompany me.

Just ask for leave during this working hour, at least try to ask for half a day off, what excuse can I give to the boss? According to the boss's nature, it is better to go to work normally in the morning, work harder, try to finish some tasks ahead of time, and then ask for half a day off at noon due to an emergency. Well, it is also reasonable, mainly depending on her time.
"Die chinesische Flte?"

Ruoyi raised her hand and casually took out a collection of poems from the wall cabinet and read the German words on the cover.

"Hmm? Well, the Flute of the East." Fanning's thoughts were interrupted.

"'The Flute of the East', so it's a collection of Chinese poetry."

"Tang poetry, poems from the Tang Dynasty."

"A German translation of ancient Chinese? Well, it's still Chinese and German."

"In fact, it can be regarded as a complete 'second creation' or 'third creation'," Fanning shook his head, "because it is not a simple Chinese-to-German translation, but a Chinese-to-French translation, a French-to-German translation, and the German version is adapted into the next version of German. By the time Hans Bethge came to this, there were already major differences from the original text, even in terms of structure or content. The 'Chinese-German double words' here were translated from the German into Chinese, and the result was a modern poem. Before this, cultural scholars from various countries once found tens of thousands of poems before they could barely confirm the corresponding relationship, and many are still controversial."

"A multitude of things?" Ruoyi uttered an idiom.

"There are so many things to think about." Fanning nodded. "Is there such a situation in the West?"

"Yes, there is a collection of folk poems called "The Magic Horn of a Boy" in my study. I talked about it earlier, so I brought it to you for you to read."

"It sounds a bit like that." "How is it similar?"

“There are musical instruments in the names,” Fanning said.

Ruoyi was noncommittal: "Come to think of it, the content of "Flute of the East" is different from the original, but the spirit and core are similar, right?"

"They are not quite the same. For example, some of the poems reflect the Taoist thoughts of Laozi and Zhuangzi in our country, but the German version has been 'philosophically grafted'. When you read it, it feels a bit like, how should I put it, Schopenhauer's pessimism or Nietzsche's Dionysian spirit?"

“Do you also read Schopenhauer and Nietzsche?”

"Read a little when you have free time."

Ruoyi nodded slightly when she heard this and began to spell out one of the songs in The Flute of the East, "Das Trinklied vom Jammer der Erde, the drinking song of the earth's sorrow and sadness. Original author. Um, who is Li-Tai-PoLi-Tai-Po?"

"Li Bai, a poet from the Tang Dynasty," Fan Ning replied.

"Oh, I know. He was the most outstanding realist poet in the Tang Dynasty of China. He was good at the genre of 'regulated verse' and his style was somber and refined. His life in his later years was miserable and he was revered as the 'Poet Saint' by the descendants of your country." Ruoyi suddenly realized and tried to recall the knowledge of Chinese culture that she knew.

"That's Du Fu." Fan Ning held his forehead with his hand.

".Excuse me." He smiled at the girl tonight for the first time. "Fanning, is the title of the poem I translated, "Drinking Song of the Earth's Sadness", correct?"

"Right, but we call it "Song of Elegy," said Fanning.

Ruoyi said "Oh", lowered her head and read a passage: "Schon winkt der Wein im goldnen Pokale" and then read the modern poetry translation at the end -

"The wine has sparkled in the golden cup,

But don't drink yet, let me sing for you,
This sad song will bring a bitter smile,

Resounding in your souls

The girl holding the poetry collection looked up at this time, "Fan Ning, can you tell me what Li Bai's original text is like?"

Fanning nodded, lowered his voice, and recited a passage for her:
"Sorrow is coming, sorrow is coming. The host has wine, please don't pour it, just listen to my sad song."

"Sorrow comes, sorrow comes. Even though the sky is long, even though the earth is old, a house full of gold and jade cannot be kept."

"How many hundred years of wealth and honor can one have? Death and rebirth are experienced by all. A lonely monkey sits on the grave and cries to the moon. I must drink my sorrow away."

Ruoyi listened carefully, pondered for a while, lowered her eyelashes and read a few more sentences, then asked him:

"Dunkel ist das Leben, ist der TodThe ember of life is darkness, and the ember of darkness is death. What is the original text of this sentence?"

"There is no direct correspondence." Fan Ning shook his head. "Maybe it can be considered an overall response. There is really no correspondence. Well, if I have to find one, it might be the one I just recited, 'Everyone has a chance to die and be reborn.'"

"Poetry cannot be translated." Ruoyi was lost in thought for a moment, and then made this comment.

The two chatted for a quarter of an hour longer because of the "Oriental Flute" they picked up casually, and as the topic ended, the basement returned to silence.

Fan Ning and Ruoyi's blue eyes met. He thought it was beautiful, but also felt a little uneasy and awkward. He took the lead and walked back to the first floor.

"Shall I drive you back to the hotel to rest? It's still the same arrangement as before, a 20-minute drive."

"OK thanks."

Late at night, the main roads in the new city were completely open and cars were speeding on them.

“Any places you recommend?”

Just a few minutes later, Ruoyi, who was sitting in the passenger seat, started asking questions.

"Where? It depends on how far it is, and also on my preferences." Fan Ning looked straight out the windshield, "For example, if I want to go to a city landmark, an art venue, go shopping in a mall, or eat some authentic snacks, I will try to take half a day off tomorrow."

Ruoyi shook her head gently, and asked as if talking to herself:
“Is there a place where you can see the starry sky above your head?”