Chapter 17 13

March 14, 1962① Min, dear child, people with ideals, enthusiasm and strong reason are often daunting. You probably still felt this way to me a few years ago.Last year your brother said in a letter: "Every word and every sentence of Dad's article is full of enthusiasm, very persistent, almost fanatic [almost fanatic]." The last sentence is especially pertinent.This is my strength and my weakness.Because of his high ideals and strong enthusiasm, he always shows that he is good at being a teacher and desperately trying to persuade others.But children, don't be afraid, I am over half a century old, the world has faded away, and there is also a very free and easy side in my nature, which is the "Old and Zhuang" spirit in the Chinese national character: in other words, when I am attached, I am very attached, and when I get rid of it Life and death are out of the question.

To my children, I also hold the attitude that it is up to me to say or not, and it is up to you to listen or not.It's just that I have a strong sense of responsibility, a strong sense of right and wrong, and I can't take it off when I see it.Your brother also mentioned in another letter: "In this decadent [decadent] world, over the years abroad, I have met many characters w11Om1admire and Jove, from whom1!earn [some characters I admire and love and are worth learning ], but I have never met anyone who can take me to that at the same time passionate and serene, profound and simple, affectionate and pr0ud, subt1e and straightforward [(simultaneously) warm and quiet, deep and simple, gentle and high-end , subtle and straightforward] world.” It can be seen that he really understands my “two-faced nature” and also understands the two-faced nature of old Chinese culture.Warm and quiet, profound and simple, gentle and proud, subtle and straightforward: this is the refinement of our inherent culture, and we are proud of it!

Of course, I don't have all the above-mentioned characteristics, let alone to an appropriate degree. It's just that I have a strong tendency to have those characteristics, and it's the state I yearn for all my life.For example, I have lofty ideals and hopes for human beings, and at the same time, I look at the evolution of human beings from the perspective of astronomy and geology. Many years ago, I was used to looking at some big things with "interstellar" thinking, and did not regard human beings as everything The spirit feels that it is presumptuous and ridiculous for man to say "I am the only one" to all creatures in the world.I may fully agree with and have confidence in a certain general principle, but I still have many different opinions on specific examples and implementation.

I have a very strong love and hatred for good, evil, beauty and ugliness. For a bad work or for some unreasonable phenomenon in society, I will get very angry, but afterwards I will calmly analyze and explain, so as to explain individual cases. forgive.I am obsessed with the truth, but I always have a skeptical attitude. I feel that clinging to some truths in front of me will make us stagnate, and we will not be able to obtain higher and more advanced truths.The above is just casual chatter, so that you can understand your father's complex psychology more, so that you know that the more knowledgeable a person is, the more difficult it is, and the less you can judge from one, two, three, four points alone.

I am very glad that you and she both agree with some of the principles mentioned in my previous letter. I hope that we will do it practically and encourage each other step by step for the common cause (including personal happiness and contributing to the collective). .Many problems can only be truly understood in practice. Rational understanding alone is superficial, unreliable, and unable to withstand the test of wind and rain. ??Young people who were not strictly disciplined by their parents also have some other advantages, that is, they have a strong ability to be independent, as you say, they can manage themselves.But there is a part of nature that is stronger than nurture: You should remember that even though our decades of education for you have many shortcomings, we have never relaxed you in terms of housework, discipline, order, etc., and you and I The example your mother gave you is always hardworking and conscientious. After half a lifetime, we are still not comprehensive enough and full of shortcomings. How can we be too harsh on others?But the ancients often said: Take the law from the top, and get it from the middle; take the law from the middle, and get it from the bottom.And my requirements for young people and myself, except for suffering (physical and material hardships), have never been lower than the party's requirements for party members; you know this.I hope that all of us will continue to improve ourselves, not only knowledge, but especially self-cultivation and moral character!

① Letter to Fu Min. April 1, 1962 Cong, my dear child, every time I read a letter, I always feel unspeakable excitement, excitement, joy, emotion, and melancholy!Recently, I read the two letters reporting the performances in the United States and Australia. I went around in circles inside and outside the house.How terrible is the cruel and hideous trick of cannibalism!You worked hard for four or five months and ended up empty-handed, and our hearts ache when we think about it.Although you don't seek profit as your goal, and your parents never want you to make any foreign money--and they have always despised this kind of thinking; but why do those middlemen occupy the labor income of artists!Seeing children being exploited to such an extent, just like when you were raped and bullied when you were a child, makes us love and pity you, and we are angry and annoyed at those vampires, and we hate them so much!I believe that sooner or later you will be able to break free from the clutches of the devil and stop being fish.Balzac said it well:

The society can't trample you to death, it just kneels in front of you.In the Western world, this kind of ugly drama has to go on without an earth-shaking revolution.Of course, you have benefited a lot in terms of art from the four-month tour, and you have a new understanding of many works, and you will go to the next step.It can be seen that only art and learning have never failed people: how much labor is spent, how much hard work is used, how much loyalty and enthusiasm are shown, and how much harvest and progress can be obtained.It is a pleasure to write this and think of your self-criticism about the new Mozart record.A person will never be satisfied with his achievements until he is stagnant.Change is progress, -- of course, there are also good metamorphosis and bad ones: -- the light is different every day, and you can see the new world of knowledge and art, and you can continue to create.Mom watched that passage and sighed: "Cong is really like you, always dissatisfied with yourself, always criticizing yourself!"

Most of the comments in the United States are mediocre and shallow, and the praise is also superficial.After all, there are still music scholars in the UK who also write newspaper reviews, such as the London Times ["The Times"] and Manchester's "Guide". Yes, that "New York Times" is even more ridiculous.Glad to see that your Chinese is not regressed, except for a few words.We say "heartache like numbness", not "heartache like numbness".To describe the latter, we can only say "heartache like a cut" reading you or "heart like a knife".

You can't say "shabby" for being mean and humble; maybe it's your typo.letter, the voice and smile are vivid; The frankness, sincerity, simplicity, enthusiasm, and clear distinction between likes and hates expressed in the tone of discussion are exactly the same as what you show on the piano.Child, you have said that our letter is like a mirror to you; in fact, your letter is also a mirror to us.In some places, you and I are too similar, and some words seem to be said by myself.I usually look forward to your letter not only because of "smelling the same smell", but also because there are too few people around to talk about life and art.But we forgive you, you are so busy, how can you bear to ask you to write more?This time I feel surprised to write this letter. I thought that once you returned to England, you would not write any more because of so many performances.But in the past few years, the greatest comfort and happiness for the two of us is indeed to receive letters regularly.I also have to tell you that your medium-sized handwriting (as written on the jacket of this review) is very beautiful; my pen writing has been getting ugly lately.It's rare for you to write Chinese characters, it's really hard for you!

The letter said that the Chinese have a better future than the Japanese in making Western music, because they can't make it despite their hard work.It is not easy to cure the solid, and it is rare to obtain the method through hard work. In terms of the entire nation, there is indeed this difference between the Japanese and Chinese races.But the people we can transform are also rare, because the reason is that we have too little contact with the outside world and too little absorption.Poor nutrition in recent years has also affected mental activity.I deeply feel that I am much stupider than before.

In the translation work, too little hard work was done, not enough was done, and the translation was not good.The requirements of artistic creation and re-creation are similar in nature no matter which one.Music is probably more difficult because of its abstraction.What I understand can't be expressed, or it can't be just right, and it can't fully match my ideal state, no more, no less.The neural connection of the heart, brain, and hands may be more subtle in music performance than in other arts, and it is not easy to master it to the degree of automatic (handy, retractable).Ordinary young people seldom think independently about any subject. Not only do they lack self-confidence, but even if they are given a direction, they will not explore it by themselves.There are many reasons, and they cannot be blamed.There are probably some flaws in the educational methods of more than ten years.Young people don't understand by analogy, and it is difficult to achieve success in any subject of study.The unity of thought has the benefits of unity; but in the end, the mind will only look in one direction, walk in a straight line, and the eyes will only see one road, and they will fall into monotony, poverty, and stagnation.It is not a bad thing to look in one direction to drill, but it is a pity that we did not drill deep. At the beginning of the month, I read "Fen Mo Chun Qiu", which was dictated by Gai Jiaotian and written by others. It is the best book on art since liberation.There is no more perfect combination of life, education, ethics and art.There are examples from beginning to end, it is by no means a dry theory.Regarding learning, he pointed out that "slow is fast", which means that if the foundation is not laid well, everything is built on the sand, and you will never be able to climb it.I think this point is particularly worthy of our deep thinking.If you rush at the beginning and only hope for quick success, not only will there be no results in the end, but it will also create a bad atmosphere of unreliability.If the Germans hadn't worked hard throughout the first half of the nineteenth century and worked hard in every aspect of knowledge, how could they have been able to shine in science, textual research, and literature from the end of the nineteenth century to today?Gai Jiaotian has a deeper understanding of art.He said that learning opera requires a lot of "silence". Learning to sing, read, and act does not count; you have to sit down and call yourself "out of your body", that is, go out by yourself, do and sing a play silently; how to change.Then stand up and do it again, sing it again, and read it again.At that time, you will definitely find that the things that were well-adjusted in your mind just now have disappeared, and your actions are completely different from what you thought.Then you have to practice again, work harder, "silently" and do it again.After doing this repeatedly, one play can be regarded as truly learned and firmly grasped. ——Look, how thorough this passage is, and how well it implements self-criticism!The self-criticism of veteran artists is never on the lips, but is constantly practiced in business.Secondly, after repeated "silent" practice, the work must penetrate deeply into our hearts and completely integrate with our thoughts and feelings.In addition, Gai Jiaotian showed his own experience and talked a lot about an artist's morality, ethics, and being a human being, which must be consistent with art.I think this book is worth writing a long book review: not only the young, middle-aged, and old people who study art, no matter which one they study, should be listed as must-read, even all leading cadres in literature and art from top to bottom should also read it. Read it carefully several times; it is also beneficial for those who do education work to read it.I will send this book to you soon, you must like it, and you must be infinitely excited to read it. April 30, 1962 Recently I bought an old book in French, which is devoted to the art of writing.It talks about "natural" and quotes a famous quote from the Roman writer Cicero: It is an art to 1ook like without art. [The real art is to be able to look natural and leave no trace. ] The author believes that writing naturally is not an unconscious talent, but depends on acquired learning.It can even be said that nature is the result of efforts (Thenatural is result of efforts), which must be honed through hard work.This is certainly a good statement, but I think we must first experience the realm of "naturalness" before we can look forward to this realm.To love nature has something to do with one's temperament, education, and age;Perhaps those who are immersed in Chinese classical literature are more likely to appreciate the beauty of nature, because nature is simple, elegant, and innocent; and our classical literature has these characteristics. The meeting of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference was just over, and the friends who attended came back and said that the central government is very concerned about you, and that your patriotic spirit is rare, which means that they hope to come back.The Central Propaganda Department and the Central United Front Work Department also expressed concern for me, and the local government also took care of me.Originally, as a human being, one could only seek peace of one's own conscience, regardless of reputation or reputation.But after a long time, your personality and style, after all, still have a fair valuation. May 9, 1962 Yesterday I received the text message you sent from Torino on the 27th of last month, and I was very moved.Art needs to be contemplative and contemplative most; modern life makes art so commercialized. On the one hand, managers are as a means of making money, and artists are regarded as cash-cow machines. The simple curiosity of a juggler or a circus troupe.Rolling in this muddy torrent, of course, includes all the old and the young, famous and unknown performers and singers.It is true that a newcomer like you still has troubles, but even seniors who have made up their minds for a long time will inevitably follow the trend, which is even more lamentable.Perhaps they lack confidence and enthusiasm for art, and it is only used as a tool to maintain their fame and fortune.The only way for young people to protect the purity and freshness of art is to reduce performances; this requires three prerequisites: (1) The manager’s exploitation is not so fierce (this depends on the accumulation of the performer’s seniority and gradually strives for it), (2) The personal living expenses are arranged very well, which depends on financial management skills and highly rational control , (3) Reduce the introduction so that it will not become cold and make the masses forget you.I know this is extremely difficult to do, and I can't rush it for a while.But for the dignity of art, for the future of your art, that is, for your long-term interests and lifelong ideals, you must take the above three conditions as the goal of your efforts.Artists of any discipline will inevitably have several artistic crises in their life, and we should make early mental preparations and practical arrangements.The more you can maintain your physical and mental balance (then you must not be too busy), the easier it is to overcome artistic difficulties.I hope you will take a long-term view from this aspect, and don’t be dazed by the vortex of busyness all year round. That is to say, you should look at your art career from a high place and far away; even if there are many practical difficulties, your plan cannot be realized for a while. , but often after thinking maturely in my mind, I can firmly grasp the opportunity when I encounter it.I am afraid that after I am gone, there will be no second person to tell you about this kind of thing; because I am confident that not many people in China have the love and dedication to art. ??When it comes to Lausanne and Geneva, the image of Lamang Lake and Baifeng is as present as it is now.In 1929, I lived for more than three months in the small village "Saint-Jean Golf" at the other end of Lake Leman, at the junction of France and Switzerland; I visited the lake twice.Once, I went with Uncle Liu Kang and Uncle Liu Haisu. I've heard Liebadi ① play Carroll, it's wonderful; it tastes a bit like Prelude OP? 45 [Prelude Op. Recently, I am going through a great difficulty in art. My eyesight is much higher than before (the translation five or seven years ago is no longer eye-catching), but my brain is much dumber, my eyesight and physical strength are not good, and I have not slept for more than ten days. Oh no.Probably the effect of mental distress.What can I do about my naturally anxious personality? On the evening of June 16, 1962, Mira really could speak, and she deduced that she hadn’t written a letter for a long time as no inspiration [lack of inspiration], explaining that if she wrote for the sake of responsibility, she would write dull [boring], you see? Not eloquent?But if I don't write for three months in a row, won't you also feel anxious? August 12, 1962 Cong, my dear boy, it is rare for me not to write to you for so long.Since the beginning of July, you have been in Vienna and South America. Your whereabouts are erratic, and you are afraid that your letter will fail.Mira also said that the postal service in South America is very unreliable, so although I have been given many correspondence offices, I don't want to send it there.The letter written on July 29 with seven landscape pictures was received on August 9.The city streets in Venezuela, the mountains and rivers in Chile, I saw color photos in a foreign magazine the year before last, and I can imagine what I wrote in my letter.The development of modern countries is too deformed, especially those backward countries in South America.On the one hand, the people live in poverty, and on the other hand, they enjoy everything that one expects to find in material equipment. ① Denu Lipaiti (1917...1950), a famous Romanian pianist. According to our ideal, of course we must first eliminate inequality, and then gradually increase it.However, modern historical facts tell us that revolution is easier than construction, and it is not difficult to eliminate the enjoyment monopolized by the minority, but improving the lives of the majority cannot be achieved in 35-89 years.In particular, spiritual civilization is always easy to popularize but difficult to improve; and in the stage of popularization, the original level is often lowered, and it is difficult to maintain the previous peak.In addition, old age, middle age, and young people are out of touch among the three generations, lack of successors, and communication at home and abroad has almost stopped. I am afraid that the next generation will not even know what the standard is, what peaks the predecessors have reached, and what peaks others have reached before them. I can know; it is impossible to talk about catching up.This is a hidden worry for the future; the deviations and side effects caused in the past eleven or twelve years are trying to reverse them in the past year; , There is no sign of change yet,-of course not from their words, but from actual actions.After all, people are materialistic, and there are no objective conditions. It is unrealistic to expect the intellectuals to work hard with enthusiasm and achieve results.The reason why I can stick to my position and cultivate my own small garden is also because of my special and superior conditions, and I cannot blame everyone.What's more, as far as I am concerned, the decline in physical strength has already given me a lot of restrictions, and I always feel that I have more energy than energy! In the previous letter, you mentioned the problem of record recording, and thought it was too mechanical.That's because you are used to art (music) with great fluidity, and also because your temperament is particularly easy to change and your mood is easy to fluctuate. Once a literary and artistic work is completed, it is always a fixed thing: a painting, a poem, a novel, how can it give people different feelings every time like a musical performance?Viewers may have different impressions of paintings and readers' works each time, but it is because the hints and implicitness of the works cannot be experienced at one time, and it is also because of the changes and fluctuations of the emotions of the audience and readers.Even if the record is played ten or twenty times, the listener will not feel the same, unless the performance is too poor and dull; because the music is so fluid, the listener will not easily feel that it will become mechanical after listening too much.What's more, records not only have the effect of popularization, but also are of great help to the performers' own learning and improvement.I think it's mostly about getting over your nervousness in front of the microphone so that you don't feel much different in the studio than you do on stage.After a few more internships, I believe you can do it.As for the conflict between perfection and vividness, sometimes it is almost inevitable; I remember some critics said that perfection [perfect] often sacrifices part of life [vivid].But this disadvantage may also be due to the fact that the performer belongs to the cold [calm] type.Enthusiastic performance is often difficult to be perfect [perfect], in case perfect [perfect], it is incomparable [unparalleled]! Cong on September 2, 1962, dear child, there was no news after receiving a letter from Columbia in the first ten days of last month. You performed everywhere, and the seats were too busy. Needless to say; So far there are no words after the brief.The daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law of each party are in different places, and I am overwhelmed with emotion.Is the climate in South America extremely hot?The schedule is tight, everything in the local area is not on track, and I don’t know if I will be overworked on the way?I waited at home and thought about it all day long. When I was thinking hard, I took out the record and listened to it repeatedly to comfort myself.The last time I received Beethoven Schauer, ?? OP.110 [Work No. 110] last movement twice arioso dolente [sorrowful aria] with different expressions, well measured, ten chords from the lightest to the loudest [ Chords], I have never had such an impression before, which proves that interpretation [deduction] has a great relationship with the original work. The many variations of OP.109 [Opus No. 109] did not realize that there were so many changes in appearance in the past.One comment said: "At first hearing there seemed lightweight interpretations. "["At first listen, the interpretation seems light-weight. "] ①What does light-weight refer to? What do you think of Schnabel's Beethoven now? Kempff [Kempf]②Recently, what do you think of the new Beethoven? I really want to know, please write to me! There is a book review on P. 35 of the July "Music and Musician" magazine, introducing Eva & PauI Badura—Skoda [Eva and Paul? on the Keyboad, do you know this book? Seems worth reading, especially if you care about Mozart in particular. Two nights ago, I listened to Liszt’s Concerto No. 2 (played by a Hungarian pianist), the first piece of Dante’s tour collection in Canada and Italy, and B Min Sonata played by Annie Fischer, [B minor Sonata] are not interested.I just feel that I am showing off novelty, but have no real feelings; it is superficial, without depth, and without logic. I wonder if it is my prejudice?However, this type of style may be just right for young modern Chinese pianists, and the music we compose has more or less the taste of artificially patchwork.As far as composers are concerned, Liz is far behind Schumann and Brahms, what do you think? I sent a letter (No.41) to Switzerland on the 13th of last month, and handed it in person when Mira returned to London. Did you receive it?In that letter, when I talked about my views on records, I should not ignore the importance of records because music is a fluid art, or because personal temperament is changeable.Nervousness in front of a microphone is not difficult to overcome.When recording a concerto, the conductor must first carefully consider and negotiate with the record company early.For the sake of art, to be responsible to the masses, and for the benefit of the record company, soloists should have special opinions and the right to insist on the bands and conductors they cooperate with. I hope they will not be too "talkative" in such places in the future! Thinking of how busy you two are, I can't bear to ask for more writing, but apart from performing outside, you should think about it in reverse: Suppose we also live in London, don't we have to go to your house for dinner every two weeks, and you have to spend Would you like to chat with us for an hour or two?Now that we are thousands of miles apart, spending two hours a month to write a more detailed letter, shouldn't it save you a lot of time compared to being in the same place? ——If you can think about it often, you will give us more news. After long-term travel and performances, be sure to take a good rest. Only work without rest is not an art of life, and it is not good for your own art! September 23, 1962 Speaking of my book, the vice president of humanities came to see me last November and said that he would try to publish one of them first within last year. In August of this year, I received a telegram saying that books could be published in the third quarter, but it is already late September, and I am afraid that one or two books will not be published within this year.This is another ridiculous thing. Your jokes made us laugh, but you were really embarrassed at the time.The character of South Americans is really incredible. It is a miracle that such a free and undisciplined state of anarchy can still establish a country and the society will not be in chaos.After experiencing these strange things, no matter where you encounter any absurd things in the future, you will not be surprised, and you will not be surprised.It can also be seen that it will take hundreds or even thousands of years for human beings to develop reasonably and everything in society to be on track. Also, in such a beautiful natural environment, the people are so innocent and lovely, but they cannot adapt to life in the 20th century.Are these people unfit for modern life, or is modern life unsuitable for them?In other words: Should people live their lives according to their own circumstances, or should they live their lives in a suitable way and adapt to objective reality?One thing is certain: people have lived in the world for thousands of years, but they still cannot design a society according to their own nature.The great unity of the world always seems to be a beautiful fantasy: since people on the five continents cannot move forward at the same pace and at the same speed in terms of spiritual life and material life, the conflict between the advanced and the backward will never be avoided.Just imagine if the Greeks 2,300 years ago were born today, wouldn’t they be in such a mess? How could they create a city and civilization like Athens?Conversely, assuming that today's Westerners and other South American peoples were born around the time of the Renaissance, at least they were born in a self-contained state, and were not invaded by the modern industrial revolution. One knows that they would not have created a culture similar to theirs. The same innocent and lovely national character, a culture reconciled with their beautiful nature? ① The word light-weightg cannot be translated here.Because Fu Lei was not sure what light-weiRht meant in the letter, it is inconvenient to translate it according to the translator. --Jin Shenghua Note② Kempf (1895― ), German pianist and composer. ① Eva (1929― ).Austrian musicologist.Paul Bashera Skoda (1927- ), an Austrian pianist. Balzac said: "The shortcoming of the current government is that it requires people to adapt to society too much, rather than asking society to adapt to people." The previous letter has suggested to you to find a period of rest, whether it is necessary in terms of physical and mental health or art.You have the same shortcomings as me: you can stretch but not relax, and you can work but not relax.But your artistic life is not as idle as mine. Traveling all over the world for a whole month and a year, on the one hand, consumes a lot of physical energy and energy, and on the other hand, you need to calm down to digest and absorb what you see and hear--both of which are related to yours. Art is closely related.What's more, your conditions are better than mine. Although there are many concerts, there are gaps that can be used: staying in any country for three or five days is of great benefit.I heard that your father-in-law and mother-in-law are planning to go to the Bavarian Alps to recuperate at the end of the year and the beginning of the year, and you can still practice piano.I can't think of anything better for you: it's time to recharge your batteries before going to North America. Go live in the mountains for two or three weeks and clean up the dust, even ordinary people will benefit.Diana's letters often express her concern for you, and it seems that it is also out of genuine affection.Don't let down the kindness of your parents-in-law who want to ask you to go to the mountains together. Don't worry too much, make up your mind as soon as possible, let us and Mira be happy together.Really, I feel very clearly: no matter what you say, Mira is always very concerned about your health and art.And I don't know how many times I have mentioned it to you for the sake of rest. If I said it verbally, my tongue and lips would have burnt. You should know that my father not only loves children, but also loves art; loving you means loving art, and loving art means loving you!You must not learn from me, you and I are of different ages, and at your age, I am not like you who stay at home now.Even today, as long as the material conditions are possible, every spring and autumn is good, I still like to wander on the top of the mountains and the waters! The August issue of Music & Musicians has three articles honoring Tepissi, all good. Maggie Teyte's Memoiries of Debussv's "Memoiries of Debussy" has a deep understanding of Belias and Melisante.I wonder if you noticed?The previous letter also mentioned to you a new book discussing Mozart's piano music, I must remember it. Since the revision of the monthly "Music and Musicians", the format is novel and the content is more abundant. What is the income of the trip to South America?Is it more affordable than last winter's performance in North America?Although you don't like to talk about material issues, your parents care about them as much as other things about their son, and they always want to know something about it. After listening to your records, I feel that Beethoven is an endless book. The depth and breadth of his soul do represent the characteristics of the Germanic nation in terms of intelligence, emotion, and feeling, and it also shows the tenacity of personality and will. The indescribable grace, the fantasy of heaven and earth, and the pursuit of life, I don't know how many profound mysteries there are in it.Beethoven is really more than just a musician. No wonder Romain Rolland regards Goethe and Beethoven as the two modern peaks not only of the Germanic nation but of all mankind. The vast majority of Chinese ancient painting forgers, sometimes even the old connoisseurs are not easy to distinguish. The Tang Liuru album you bought in South America, there may be some doubts about its authenticity. It’s easy to take pictures, and enlarge them appropriately. (You might as well go to the British Museum to look at Chinese works, especially those from the Ming Dynasty. You can compare them with what you got from Tang Yin.) In the future, when encountering works by such famous masters, you must be most careful; especially those with high prices cannot be arbitrarily confirmed, if the price is not enough. Ang, after discovering the problem, it can still be transferred to others without suffering a big loss.I usually don't accept big names, I would rather take cold names, because cold names are worthless and there are few fakers, but such works are extremely rare.Recently I saw Huang Binhong's paintings are also fake. ① Maggie Tate (1888-1976), British soprano singer. In a blink of an eye, the Mid-Autumn Festival is almost here, and I have just breathed out from the scorching heat, and I have to worry about the unbearable cold winter.Last winter, because the stove was out of gas and the room was filthy, the fire was only lit for more than 30 days, and the weather of more than 40 degrees Fahrenheit was survived.Holding a hot water bottle in hand, hugging Mrs. Tang, working as usual.Life is aging in the cold and summer!A summer of sweating and doing daily classes, I could barely support my spirit, but I couldn't turn my mind, and I was dissatisfied with the translation everywhere, and I was very depressed. In a few days, I plan to send you "History of Chinese Literature Development" and "Selected Poems of Song Dynasty".The first one is the old work of my friend Liu Dajie, which has been revised several times.The first volume will be issued first, and the subsequent ones will be sent as sequels.This book has a general description of ancient texts and classics, and can also make up for your lack of common knowledge, especially about the oracle bones of the Yin Dynasty, the nature of "Shu Jing" and so on. The preface of "Selected Poems of the Song Dynasty" is well written, and the author Hu Yunyi is also an old gentleman.It is generally similar to my views, especially for the views of Su and Xin. I have always opposed traditional views.However, the argument does have two different angles, one is literary and the other is musical; both have their own opinions.To this day, the techniques of libretto and singing in the Song and Yuan Dynasties have not been tested, and it becomes pointless to comment on the lyrics of that day from the perspective of music. On the other hand, people who write lyrics for songs in modern times are outside the door of music, and they don't know how to pay attention to Yin and Yang, so they often have a hard time speaking; No one noticed.Originally, when people write prose nowadays, they don’t know how to pay attention to syllables and rhythms; And the person who wrote the lyrics is even more unfamiliar with the writing skills.The aria [Aria] of Western operas in Chinese translation is broadcast on the radio, which is often impossible to listen to. I have wanted to send you one for a long time, but I couldn't find a good version, and I wanted to get a smaller and lighter one, which is easy to carry when going out.Today I asked a friend for a commercial print, bound on Chinese paper thread, and I will send it after my mother changes the cover and re-staples the separate volume.I often think that this book is comparable to the Greek "Dialogue". No wonder the Japanese have always kept it as a secret book in their pillows and as a book they often read at the bedside.I used a small part of the Chinese language you read when you were young. October 20, 1962, dear child, received the letter from Sweden the day after the letter was sent on the 14th. I was happy and excited after reading it. I wanted to reply immediately, but it was postponed to today due to the inconvenience of daily work. Fang began to pick up the pen.This time you answered many questions, especially Schumann's expression cleared our doubts.I didn't listen to your performance with my own ears, and even if I did, I wouldn't be able to judge right from wrong. I can only get a glimpse of it from the comments; I don't know whether the comments are correct or not. method to get truthful reporting.It can be seen that I don't take the comment too seriously, but I can't think about it.Now listen to your own analysis, of course everything is clear. Tell us more about this kind of issues in the future, so that we can often learn about your art. The article is a matter of ages, and the gains and losses are known at an inch, which art is not like this!How many people are there in the world who really understand right from wrong, beauty and ugliness?You are very persistent in the objective truth of art, you can calmly check your own achievements, and you have a strong critical spirit. I have already assured you that you will not go astray; but knowing these principles alone cannot understand your expression of individual works. Inquire more about the situation in this aspect: on the one hand, they are concerned about you, and on the other hand, they are also concerned about the entire art of music, eager to know the trends and trends outside. You often dream of coming back, and your mother and I often have this dream.In addition to the kinship, the inextricable and inextricable relationship with the native land, which is purely human instinct, there is another thing that is unique to true intellectuals, that is, the love for the motherland's culture.It is customs, literature and art that make us inseparable from our motherland. It is our views and reactions to big and small things that make people in a foreign land feel lonely at any time.Hope to see you with us sooner or later!I dare say I understand all the complex contradictions in your mood, but I can't help you solve them for a while.Contradictions between principles and concrete, between ideals and reality, between living environment and artistic future, between the fundamental temperament of Easterners and Westerners, and many, many contradictions in our own hearts... How can we unify them?何况旧矛盾解决了，又有新矛盾，循环不已，短短一生就在这过程中消磨！幸而你我都有工作寄托，工作上的无数的小矛盾，往往把人生中的大矛盾暂时遮盖了，使我们还有喘息的机会。As for.认真受人尊重或被人讪笑的问题，事实上并不像你说的那么简单。一切要靠资历与工作成绩的积累。即使在你认为更合理的社会中，认真而受到重视的实例也很少；反之在乌烟瘴气的场合，正义与真理得胜的事情也未始没有。你该记得一九五六一五七年间毛主席说过党员若欲坚持真理，必须准备经受折磨??等等的话，可见他把事情看得多透彻多深刻。再回想一下罗曼罗兰写的名人传和.克利斯朵夫，执著真理一方面要看客观的环境，一方面更在于主观的斗争精神。客观环境较好，个人为斗争付出的代价就比较小，并非完全不要付代价。以我而论，侥幸的是青壮年时代还在五四运动的精神没有消亡，而另一股更进步的力量正在兴起的时期，并且我国解放前的文艺界和出版界还没有被资本主义腐蚀到不可救药的地步。反过来，一百三十年前的法国文坛，报界，出版界，早已腐败得出于我们意想之外；但法国学术至今尚未完全死亡，至今还有一些认真严肃的学者在钻研：这岂不证明便是在恶劣的形势之下，有骨头，有勇气，能坚持的人，仍旧能撑持下来吗？ ① 咏叹调，歌剧中的独唱或二重唱。 一九六二年十一月二十五日 敏尚在京等待分配。??大概在北京当中学教员，单位尚未定。他心情波动??我们当然去信劝慰。青年初出校门，未经锻炼，经不起挫折。过去的思想训练，未受实际生活陶冶，仍是空的。从小的家庭环境使他重是非，处处认真，倒是害苦了他。在这个年纪上还不懂现实与理想的距离，即使理性上认识到，也未能心甘情愿的接受。只好等社会教育慢慢的再磨练他。 本月初弥拉信中谈到理想主义者不会快乐，艺术家看事情与一般人大大不同等等，足见她对人生有了更深的了解。我们很高兴。可见结婚两年，她进步了不少，人总要到婚后才成熟。 一九六二年十一月二十五日（译自英文） 亲爱的弥拉：你在上封信中提到有关艺术家的孤寂的一番话很有道理，人类有史以来，理想主义者永远属于少数，也永远不会真正快乐，艺术家固然可怜，但是没有他们的努力与痛苦，人类也许会变得更渺小更可悲。你一旦了解这种无可避免的命运，就会发觉生活，尤其是婚姻生活更易忍受，看来你们两人对生活有了进一步了解，这对处理物质生活大有帮助。 一九六二年十二月二日 敏于十一月底分配到北京第一女中教英文。校舍是民房，屋少人多，三四个人住一间。青年人应当受锻炼，已尽量写信去给他打气。 一九六二年十二月五日① 宿舍的情形令我想起一九三六年冬天在洛阳住的房子，虽是正式瓦房，厕所也是露天的，严寒之夜，大小便确是冷得可以。洛阳的风刮在脸上像刀割。去龙门调查石刻，睡的是土墙砌的小屋，窗子只有几条木栅，糊一些七穿八洞的纸，房门也没有，临时借了一扇竹篱门靠上，人在床上可以望见天上的星，原来屋瓦也没盖严。白天三顿吃的面条像柴草，实在不容易咽下去。 那样的日子也过了好几天，而每十天就得去一次龙门尝尝这种生活。我国社会南北发展太不平衡，一般都是过的苦日子，不是短时期所能扭转。你从小家庭生活过得比较好，害你今天不耳惯清苦的环境。若是棚户出身或是五六个人挤在一间阁楼上长大的，就不会对你眼前的情形叫苦了。我们决非埋怨你，你也是被过去的环境，教育，生活习惯养娇了的。可是你该知道现代的青年吃不了苦是最大的缺点（除了思想不正确之外），同学，同事，各级领导首先要注意到这一点。这是一个大关，每个年轻人都要过。闯得过的比闯不过的人多了几分力量，多了一重武装。以我来说，也是犯了大娇的毛病，朋友中如裘伯怕（复生），仑布怕伯都比我能吃苦，在这方面不知比我强多少。如今到了中年以上，身体又不好，谈不到吃苦的锻炼，但若这几年得不到上级照顾，拿不到稿费，没有你哥哥的接济，过去存的稿费用完了，不是也得生活逐渐下降，说不定有朝一日也得住阁楼或亭于间吗？那个时候我难道就不沽了吗？我告诉你这些，只是提醒你万一家庭经济有了问题，连我也得过从来未有的艰苦生活，更说不上照顾儿女了。物质的苦，在知识分子眼中，究竟不比精神的苦那样刻骨铭心。我对此深有体会，不过一向不和你提罢了。总而言之，新中国的青年决不会被物质的困难压倒，决不会因此而丧气。你几年来受的思想教育不谓不深，此刻正应该应用到实际生活中去。你也看过不少共产党员艰苦斗争和壮烈牺牲的故事，也可以拿来鼓励自己。要是能熬上两三年，你一定会坚强得多。而我相信你是的确有此勇气的。千万不能认为目前的艰苦是永久的，那不是对前途，对国家，对党失去了信心吗？ 这便是严重的思想错误，不能不深自警惕！解决思想固是根本，但也得用实际生活来配合，才能巩固你的思想觉悟，增加你的勇气和信心。目前你芦先要做好教学工作，勤勤谨谨老老实实。其次是尽量充实学识，有计划有步骤的提高1 务，养成一种工作纪律。假如宿舍四周不安静，是否有图书阅览室可利用？??还有北京图书馆也离校不远，是否其中的阅览室可以利用？不妨去摸摸情况。总而言之，要千方百计克服自修的困难。等你安排定当，再和我谈谈你进修的计划，最好先结合你担任的科目，作为第一步。 身体也得注意，关节炎有否复发？肠胃如何？How was your sleep?健康情况不好是事实，无需瞒人，必要时领导上自会照顾。夜晚上厕所，衣服宜多穿，防受凉！切切切切。 千句并一句：无论如何要咬紧牙关挺下去，堂堂好男儿岂可为了这些生活上的不方便而消沉，泄气！抗战期间黄宾虹老先生在北京住的房子也是破烂不堪，仅仅比较清静而已。你想这样一代艺人也不过居于陋巷，墙壁还不是乌黑一片，桌椅还不是东倒西歪，这都是我和你妈妈目睹的。为××着想，你也得自己振作，做一个榜样。否则她更要多一重思想和感情的负担。一朝开始上课，自修课?排定，慢慢习惯以后，相信你会平定下来的。最要紧的是提高业务，一切烦恼都该为了这一点而尽量驱除。 ??你该想像得到父母对儿女的牵挂，可是时代不同，环境不同，父母也有父母的苦衷，并非不想帮你改善生活。可是大家都在吃苦，国家还有困难，一切不能操之过急。年轻时受过的锻炼，一辈子受用不尽。将来你应付物质生活的伸缩性一定比我强得多，这就是你占便宜的地方。一切多望远处想，大处想，多想大众，少顾到自己，自然容易满足。一个人不一定付了代价有报酬，可是不忖代价的报酬是永远不会有的。即使有，也是不可靠的。 望多想多考虑，多拿比你更苦的人作比，不久就会想通，心情开朗愉快，做起工作来成绩也更好。千万保重！Take care of yourself! ① Letter to Fu Min. 一九六二年十二月三十日来信提到音乐批评，看了很感慨。一个人只能求一个问心无愧。世界大局，文化趋势，都很不妙。看到一些所谓抽象派的绘画、雕塑的图片，简直可怕。我认为这种“艺术家”大概可以分为二种，一种是极少数的病态的人，真正以为自己在创造一种反映时代的新艺术，以为抽象也是现实；一种―― 绝大多数，则完全利用少数腐烂的贤产阶级为时髦的snobbish〔附庸风雅，假充内行〕，卖野人头，欺哄人，当做生意经。总而言之，是二十世纪愈来愈没落的病象。另一方面，不学无术的批评界也泯灭了良心，甘心做资产阶级的清客，真是无耻之尤。 最近十天我们都在忙黄宾虹先生的事。人家编的《宾虹年谱》、《宾虹书简》，稿子叫送在我处（今年已是第二次了）校订。陈叔通先生坚持要我过目，作最后润色及订正。工作很不简单。另外京津皖沪四处所藏黄老作品近方集中此间，于二十五至二十八日内部观摩，并于二十八日举行初选，以便于明春（一九六三）三四月间会合浙江藏品在沪办一全国性的黄老作品展览。我家的六十余件（连裱本册页共一百五十余页）全部送去。我也参加了预选工作。将来全国性展览会还有港、澳藏的作品带回国加入。再从展览会中精选百余幅印一大型画册。 我近来身体不能说坏，就是精力不行。除了每天日课（七八小时）之外，晚上再想看书，就眼力不济，籁落落的直掉眼泪，有时还会莫名其妙的头痛几小时。应看想看的东西一大堆，只苦无力应付。打杂的事也不少，自己译稿，出版社寄来要校对，校对也不止一次；各方函件酬答，朋友上门谈天，都是费时费力的。五八年以后译的三种巴尔扎克，最近出了一种（《搅水女人》）；本拟明后天即寄你，不过月内恐不易收到。另外给刘抗伯伯的一本，也得你转去。直寄新加坡的中文书，往往被没收；只好转一个大弯了。其余两种大概明年三月左右也可先后寄出。《艺术哲学》二月中可出。 手头的――三部曲已译完二部，共三十四万字，连准备工作足足花了一年半。最后一部十四万字，大概四五月底可完成。再加修改，誊清，预计要秋天方可全部交稿。 林风眠先生于十二月中开过画展，作品七十余件，十分之九均精，为近年少见。尚须移至北京展出。