I just got my new Henle books delivered and I'm excited to try out new music. One of the titles I got is this. It's something different from what I usually get from Henle but the music sounds interesting. It definitely sounds "Chinese". The book has some easier pieces that are approachable by early intermediates and some more advanced ones. Here are some samples from the easiest and most difficult pieces:



If someone likes that type of music it's worth a try.

I hope you will record a piece from this book for us!

    That looks interesting--not necessarily for me, but as a potential gift for my piano teacher, who grew up in Asia. Thanks for posting it!

    Josephine I hope you will record a piece from this book for us!

    I hope to one day but my waiting list is long. I'm a compulsive buyer of sheet music, most of which sits on my shelf waiting. 🤣

      That looks very interesting! I will have to look it up. Thanks for sharing!

      Bart, that looks interesting! It’s not all the same composer, right? Have you played through many of the pieces so far?

        ShiroKuro Bart, that looks interesting! It’s not all the same composer, right? Have you played through many of the pieces so far?

        It's different composers. There is a playlist on YouTube with some but not all of the pieces:

        I played through a couple and especially liked this one:

            Bashu 巴蜀 is the ancient name of the Sichuan region that’s famous for their spicy cuisine (kung pao chicken, hot pots, etc)

            thanks Bart, I'll give a listen to that! 🙂

            5 days later

            20th Century Famous Chinese Works have many interesting and unfamiliar pieces. Tradition Chinese music is played on Guzheng which is Zither with 12 strings (Goto in Japanese), Dizi (flute). Pipa (string instrument with 4 strings), Erhu (string instrument with 2 strings), Yangqin (Dulcimer). Piano is a Western import after the 19th century. The names of composers tend to be less well-known compared to Western Classical composers.

            For much of the 20th century, China was in turmoil from war & revolution. My parents' generation would listen to songs about China defending against Japan. Modern pieces composed after the 1950s would be unfamiliar. I've heard "Color Clouds Chasing Moon" 彩云追月 before. Some of these are traditional songs arranged for piano.

            Traditional Chinese music is based on the pentatonic (5-note) scale instead of the the common diatonic (7-note) scale. C major is a diatonic scale C-D-E-F-G-A-B. A pentatonic scale would be C-D-E-G-A skipping 4 & 7. 4 & 7 is sometimes used as passing notes. "Morning Song" from Pictures from Bashu is written in C major. Looks like the 2nd page has a key change to F (with 1 flat). Do all the pieces start in C major or in different scales?

              thepianoplayer416 "Morning Song" from Pictures from Bashu is written in C major. Looks like the 2nd page has a key change to F (with 1 flat). Do all the pieces start in C major or in different scales?

              No, the Morning Song is just one page. The other page is a different piece. But it's actually in A minor not in C major.

              The pieces have different tonalities. For example, the Colorful Clouds Chasing the Moon is in A major (pentatonic).

                Interesting! I've been hunting for classical music by Taiwanese composers but it's hard to find publishers -- ended up reading through Tyzen Hsiao's Farewell Etude using bootleg screenshots from a score video lol

                "You're a smart kid. But your playing is terribly dull."