Guzheng Repertoire

Further Information

Approximations of each song's difficulty is in the "Level" column. Players of Chinese instruments can sit for exams produced by the Central Conservatory of Music (中央音樂學院). These exams run from the simplest, 1, to the most complex, 10. 10 is also referred to as “Performance” level. To pass a level 1 exam students must play several Level 1 songs; to pass level 2, several level 2 songs, and so on.
I have also added a column for Attribution, that is, where these songs come from. Most are identified with a region of China, each with its own musical style. Some songs are so old and widespread they are listed only as “Ancient”, while others are adaptations of foreign songs. When a song is more closely associated with a person than with a region the person’s name is listed.
All of this information comes from published books of songs, exam materials, as well as names of songs pulled from guzheng theses. Sources are described in the "Sources" blind.
Different versions of the same song exist. They can be made more or less complex or they can be played in different styles. For simplicity I have combined these entries with commas.
If you have level information for any of the ones marked "ungraded" or you feel the grading numbers given to a given song are too far off, please send me an email and I'll make changes.