We have handpicked some of the best songs adapted from classical Chinese poetry. Some of them are widely known among Chinese households, while others are newer modern interpretations of the old classical Chinese poems. Hope you will enjoy them!

Tang Dynasty Poetry

The Tang Dynasty (618-907) was China's and poetry's golden age. Not only that but there was probably no time or place in history when poetry was more important. The imperial exam, a ticket to the social elite, required test-takers to be well-versed in poetry.

Parties where people sat around drinking and writing poetry dominated elite social life. To advance in society, you had to be able to write poetry. Not surprisingly, the Tang produced a plethora of poets. Read more…

Here we have a song that’s adapted from a famous poem by Li Yu from Tang Dynasty.

Song Dynasty Poetry

About Song Ci (Song Poetry)

Cí (词), also known as chángduǎnjù (长短句; 'lines of irregular lengths') and shīyú (诗馀; 'the poetry besides Shi'), is a type of lyric poetry in the tradition of Classical Chinese poetry that also draws upon folk traditions. 

Cí uses various poetic meters derived from a base set of fixed pattern forms, using fixed rhythm, fixed tone, and line lengths varying according to that to the model examples. The rhythmic and tonal pattern of the cí are based upon certain, definitive musical song tunes (cípái), and in many cases, the name of the musical tune is given in the title of a cí piece, in a form such as "after (the tune of)...." The underlying songs are generally lost or uncertain.

Typically, the number of characters in each line and the arrangement of tones were determined by one of around 800 set patterns, each associated with a particular title, called cípái (词牌). 

Originally, they were written to be sung to a tune of that title, with a set rhythm, rhyme, and tempo. Therefore, the title may have nothing to do with its content. Indeed, several cí often shared the same title. The titles did not refer to the content, but rather shared rhythmic and tonal patterns. Some cí would have a "subtitle" or a commentary, sometimes as long as a paragraph, indicating the content. Sometimes, for the sake of clarity, a cí is listed under its title, followed by its first line.

Here you will find 8 songs that are adapted by Song Ci, or Song Poetry.

Ming Dynasty