#or at least i think it sounds like an erhu

[canmom]

Music theory notes (for science bitches) - part 2: pentatonics and friends

or, the West ain't all that.

Hello again everyone! I'm grateful for the warm reception to the first music theory notes post (aka 'what is music? from first principles'). If you haven't read it, take a look~

In that stab at a first step towards 'what is music', I tried to distinguish between what's a relatively universal mathematical structure (nearly all musical systems have the octave) and what's an arbitrary convention. But in the end I did consciously limit myself, and make a beeline for the widely used 12TET tuning system and the diatonic scales used in Western music. I wanted to avoid overwhelming myself, and... 👻 it's all around us...👻

But! But but but. This is a series on music theory. Not just one music theory. The whole damn thing. I think I'm doing a huge disservice to everyone, not least me, if that's where we stop.

Today, then! For our second installation: 'Music theory notes (for science bitches)' will take a quick look through some examples that diverge from the diatonic scale: the erhu, Japanese pentatonic scales, gamelan, klezmer, and blues.

Also since the first part was quite abstract, we'll also having a go at using the tools we've built so far on a specific piece, the Edo-period folk song Sakura, Sakura.

Sound fun? Let's fucking gooooo

The story so far

To recap: in the first post we started by saying we're gonna be looking at tonal music, which isn't the only type of music. We introduced the idea of notes and frequencies by invoking the magic name of Fourier.

We said music can be approximated (for now) as an idealised pressure wave, which we can divide into brief windows called 'notes', and these notes are usually made of a strong sine wave at the 'fundamental frequency', plus a stack of further sine waves at integer multiples of that frequency called 'overtones'.

Then, we started constructing a culturally specific but extremely widespread system of creating structure between notes, known as '12 Tone Equal Temperament' or 12TET. The main character of this story is the interval, which is the ratio between the fundamental frequencies of two notes; we talked about how small-integer ratios of frequencies tend to be especially 'consonant' or nice-sounding.

We introduced the idea of the 'octave', which is when two notes have a frequency ratio of 2. We established the convention treating notes an octave apart as deeply related, to the point that we give them the same name. We also brought in the 'fifth', the ratio of 1.5, and talked about the idea of constructing a scale using small-integer ratios.

But we argued that if you try and build everything with those small-integer ratios you can dig yourself into a hole where moving around the musical space is rife with complications.

As a solution to this, I pulled out 'equal temperament' as an approximation with a lot of mathematical simplicity. Using a special irrational ratio called the "semitone" as a building block, we could construct the Western system of scales and modes and chords and such, where

a 'scale' is kind of like a palette for a piece of music, defined by a set of frequency ratios relative to a 'root' or 'tonic' note. this can be abstract, as in 'the major scale', or concrete, as in 'C major'.

a 'mode' is a cyclic permutation of an abstract scale. although it may contain the same notes, moving them around can change the feeling a lot!

a 'chord' is playing multiple notes at the same time. 'Triad' chords can be constructed from scales. There are other types which add or remove stuff from the triads. We'll come back to this.

I also summarised how sheet music works and the rather arbitrary choices in its construction, and at the end, I very briefly talked about chord notation.

There's a lot of ways to do this...

I recently watched a video by jazz musician and music theory youtuber Adam Neely, in which he and Philip Ewell discuss how much "music theory" is treated as synonymous with a very specific music theory which Neely glosses as "the harmonic style of 18th-century European composers". He argues, pretty convincingly imo, that 'music theory' pedagogy is seriously weakened by not taking non-white/Western models, such as Indian classical music theories, as a foil - citing Anuja Kamat's channel on Indian classical music as a great example of how to do things differently. Here's her introductory playlist on Indian classical music concepts, which I will hopefully be able to lean on in future posts:

There's two big pitfalls I wanna avoid as I teach myself music theory. I like maths a lot, and if I can fit something into a mathematical structure it's much easier for me to remember it - but I gotta be really careful not to mathwash some very arbitrary conventions and present them as more universal than they are. Music involves a lot of mathematics, but you can't reduce it to maths. It's a language for expressing emotion, not a predicate to prove.

One of the big goals of this series is to get straight in my head what has a good answer to 'why this way?', and what is just 'idk it's the convention we use'. And if something is an arbitrary convention, we gotta ask, what other conventions exist? Humans are inventive little buggers after all.

I also don't want to limit my analytical toolbox to a single 'hammer' of Western music theory, and try and force everything else into that frame. The reasons I'm learning music theory are... 1. to make my playing and singing better, and be more comfortable improvising; 2. to learn to compose stuff, which is currently a great mystery. How do they do it? I do like Western classical music, but honestly? Most of the music I enjoy is actually not Western. I want to be able to approach that music on its own terms.

For example, the erhu... for erhuample???

The instrument family I'm learning, erhu/zhonghu, is remarkably versatile - there are no frets (or even a soundboard!) to guide you, which is both a challenge and a huge freedom. You can absolutely play 12TET music on it, and it has a very beautiful sound - here is an erhu harmonising with a 12TET-tuned piano to play a song from the Princess Mononoke soundtrack, originally composed by Joe Hisaishi as an orchestral piece for the usual Western instruments...

This performance already makes heavy use of a technique called (in English) 'vibrato', where you oscillate the pitch around as you play the note (which means the whole construction that 'a note has a fixed pitch defined by a ratio' is actually an abstraction - now a note's 'frequency' represents the middle point a small range of pitches!). Vibrato is very common in Western music too, though the way you do it on an erhu and the way you do it on a violin or flute are of course a little different. (We could do an aside on Fourier analysis of vibrato here but I think that's another day's subject).

But if you listen to Chinese compositions specifically for Erhu, they take advantage of the lack of fixed pitch to zip up and down like crazy. Take the popular song Horse Racing for example, composed in the 1960s, which seems to be the closest thing to the 'iconic' erhu piece...

This can be notated in 12TET sheet music. But it's also taking full advantage of some of the unique qualities of the erhu's long string and lack of frets, like its ability to glide up and down notes, playing the full range of 'in between' frequencies on one string. The sheet music I linked there also has a notation style called 简谱 jiǎnpǔ which assigns numbers to notes. It's not so very different from Western sheet music, since it's still based on the diatonic major scale, but it's adjusted relative to the scale you're currently playing instead of always using C major. Erhu music very often includes very fast trills and a really skilled erhu/zhonghu player can jump between octaves with a level of confidence I find hard to comprehend.

I could spend this whole post putting erhu videos but let me just put one of the zhonghu specifically, which is a slightly deeper instrument; in Western terms the zhonghu (tuned to G and D) is the viola to the erhu's violin (tuned to D and A)...

To a certain degree, Chinese music is relatively easy to map across to the Western 12-tone chromatic scale. For example, the 十二律 shí'èr lǜ system uses essentially the same frequency ratios as the Pythagorean system. However, Chinese music generally makes much heavier use of pentatonic scales than Western music, and does not by default use equal temperament, instead using its own system of rational frequency ratios. correction: with the advent of Chinese orchestras in the mid-20thC, it seems that Chinese instruments now usually are tuned in equal temperament.

I would like my understanding of music theory to have a 'first class' understanding of Chinese compositions like Horse Racing (and also to have a larger reference pool lmao). I'm going to be starting formal erhu lessons next month, with a curriculum mostly focused on Chinese music. If I have interesting things to report back I'll be sure to share them!

Anyway, in a similar spirit, this post we're gonna try and do a brief survey of various musical constructs relevant to e.g. Japanese music, Klezmer, Blues, Indian classical music... I have to emphasise I am not an expert in any of these systems, so I can't promise to have the most elegant form of presentation for them, just the handles I've been able to get. I will be using Western music theory terms quite a bit still, to try and draw out the parallels and connections. But I hope it's going to be interesting all the same.

Let's start with... pentatonic scales!

Pentatonic scales

In the previous post we focused most of our attention on the diatonic scale. Confusingly, a "diatonic" scale is actually a type of heptatonic scale, meaning there are 7 notes inside an octave. As we've seen, the diatonic scale is constructed on top of the 12-semitone system.

Strictly defined, a 'diatonic' scale has five intervals of two semitones and two intervals of one semitone, and the one-semitone intervals are spread out as much as possible. So 'diatonic scales' includes the major scale and all its cyclic permutations (aka 'modes'), including the natural minor scale, but not the other two minor scales we talked about last time!

However, whoever said we should pick exactly 7 notes in the octave? That's rather arbitrary, isn't it?

After all, in illustration, a more restricted palette can often lead to a much more visually striking image. The same is perhaps even more true in music!

A pentatonic scale is, as the name suggests, a scale which has five notes in an octave. Due to all that stuff we discussed with small-number ratios, the pentatonic scales we are about to discuss can generally be mapped quite easily onto the 12-tone system. There's some reason for this - 12TET is designed to closely approximate the appealing small-number frequency ratios, so if another system uses the same frequency ratios, we can probably find a subset of 12TET that's a good match.

Of course, fitting 12TET doesn't mean it matches the diatonic scale, necessarily. Still, once you're on the 12 tone system, there's enough diatonic scales out there that you can often define a pentatonic scale in terms of a delta relative to one of the diatonic scale modes. Like, 'shift this degree down, delete that degree'.

Final caveat: I'm not sure if it's strictly correct to use equal temperament in all these examples, but all the sources I find define these scales using Western music notation, so we'll have to go with that.

Sakura, sakura and the yonanuki scale

Let's start with Japanese music. Here's the Edo-period folk song Sakura, Sakura, which is one of the most iconic pieces of Japanese music¸ especially abroad:

This uses the in scale, also known as the sakura pentatonic scale, one of a few widely used pentatonic scales in Japanese folk music, along with the yo scale, insen scale and iwato scale... according to English-language sources.

Finding the actual Japanese was a bit difficult - so far as I can tell the Japanese wiki page for Sakura, Sakura never mentions the scale named after it! - but eventually I found a page for pentatonic scales, or 五音音階 goon onkai. So we can finally determine the kanji for this scale is 陰音階 in onkai or 陰旋法 in senpou. [Amusingly, the JP wiki article on pentatonic scales actually leads with... Scottish folk songs and gamelan before it goes into Japanese music.]

However, perhaps more pertinent is this page: ヨナ抜き音階 which introduces the terms yonanuki onkai and ニロ抜き音階 nironuki onkai. This can be glossed as 'leave out the fourth (yo) and seventh (na) scale' and 'leave out the second (ni) and sixth (ro) scale', describing two procedures to construct pentatonic scales from a diatonic scale.

Let's recap major and minor. Last time we defined them using semitone intervals from a root note (the one in brackets is the next octave):

position: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, (8) major: 0, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, (12) minor: 0, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, (12)

From here we can construct some pentatonic scales. Firstly, here are your yonanuki scales - the ones that delete the fourth and seventh:

major: 0, 2, 4, 7, 9, (12) minor: 0, 2, 3, 7, 8, (12)

Starting on C for the major and A for the minor (the ones with the blank key signature), this is how you notate that in Western sheet music. As you can see, we have just deleted a couple of steps.

The first one is the 'standard' major pentatonic scale in Western music theory; it's also called the ryo scale in traditional Japanese music (呂旋法 ryosenpou). The second one is a mode (cyclic permutation) of a scale called 都節音階 miyakobushi, which is apparently equivalent to the in scale.

In terms of gaps between successive notes, these go:

major: 2, 2, 3, 2, 3 - very even minor: 2, 1, 4, 1, 4 - whoah, huge intervals!

The miyakobushi scale, for comparison, goes...

miyakobushi (absolute): 0, 1, 5, 7, 8, (12) miyakobushi (deltas): 1, 4, 2, 1, 4

JP wikipedia lists two different versions of the 陰旋法 (in scale), for ascending and descending. Starting on C, one goes C, D, Eb, G, A; the other goes C, D, Eb, G, Ab. Let's convert that into my preferred semitone interval notation:

in scale (absolute, asc): 0, 2, 3, 7, 9, (12) in scale (relative, asc): 2, 1, 4, 2, 3 in scale (absolute, desc): 0, 2, 3, 7, 8, (12) in scale (relative, desc): 2, 1, 4, 1, 4

So we see that the 'descending form' of the in scale matches the minor yonanuki scale, and it's a mode (cyclic permutation) of the miyakobushi scale.

We've talked a great deal about the names and construction of the different type of scales, but beyond the vague gesture to the standard associations of 'major upbeat, minor sad/mysterious' I don't think we've really looked at how a scale actually affects a piece of music.

So let's have a look at the semitone intervals in Sakura, Sakura in absolute terms from to the first note...

sakura, sakura, ya yoi no so ra-a wa 0, 0, 2; 0, 0, 2; 0, 2, 3, 2, 0, 2-0, -4

and in relative terms between successive notes:

sa ku ra, sa ku ra, ya yo i no so ra-a wa 0, 0, +2; -2, 0, +2; -2, +2, +1, -1, -2, +2, -2, -4

If you listen to Sakura, Sakura, pay attention to the end of the first line - that wa suddenly drops down a huge distance (a major second - for some reason I miscalculated this and thought it was a tritone) and that's where it feels like damn, OK, this song is really cooking! It catches you by surprise. We can identify these intervals as belonging to the in/yoyanuki minor scale, and even starting on its root note.

Although its subject matter is actually pretty positive (hey, check it out guys, the cherry blossoms are falling!), Sakura, Sakura sounds mournful and mysterious. What makes it sound 'minor'? The first phrase doesn't actually tell you what key we're in, that jump of 2 semitones could happen in major or minor. But the second phrase, introduces the pattern of going up 2, then up 1, from the root note - that's the minor scale pattern. What takes it beyond just 'we're in minor'? That surprise tritone move down. According to the rough working model that 'dissonant notes create tension, consonant notes resolve it', this creates a ton of tension. This analysis is bunk, there isn't a tritone. It's a big jump but it's not that big a jump.

How does it eventually wrap up? The final phrase of Sakura, Sakura goes...

i za ya, i za ya, mi ni yu - u ka nn 0, 0, 2; 0, 0, 2; -5, -4, 2, 0, -4, -5 0, 0, +2; -2, 0, +2; -5, +1, +4, -2, -4, -1

Here's my attempt to try and do a very basic tonal/interval analysis. We start out this phrase with the same notes as the opening bars, but abruptly diverge in bar 3, slowing down at the same time, which provides a hint that things are about to come to a close. The move of -5 down is a perfect fourth; in contrast to the tritone major second we had before, this is considered a very consonant interval. (A perfect fourth down is also equivalent to going up a fifth and then down an octave. So we're 'ending on the fifth'.) We move up a little and down insteps of 4, 2, and 1, which are less dramatic. Then we come back down and end on the fifth. We still have those 4-steps next to 1 steps which is the big flag that says 'whoah we're in the sakura pentatonic scale', but we're bleeding off some of the tension here.

Linguistically, the song also ends on the mora ん, the only mora that is only a consonant (rather than a vowel or consonant-vowel), and that long drawn-out voiced consonant gives a feeling of gradually trailing away. So you could call it a very 'soft' ending.

Is this 'tension + resolution' model how a Japanese music theorist would analyse this song? It seems to be a reasonably effective model when applied to Japanese music by... various music theorist youtubers, but I don't really know! That's something I want to find out more about.

Something raised on the English wiki is the idea that the miyakobushi scale is divided into two groups, spanning a fourth each, which is apparently summarised by someone called Koizumi Fumio in a book written in 1974:

Each group goes up 1 (a semitone or minor second), then 4 (major third), for a total of 5 (perfect fourth). The edges of these little blocks are considered 'nucleus' notes, and they're of special importance.

Can we see this in action if we look at Sakura, Sakura? ...ehhhh. I admit, the way I think of the song is shaped by the way I play it on the zhonghu; I think of the first two two-bar phrases as the 'upper part' and the third phrase as the 'lower part', and neither lines up neatly with these little groups. Still. I suspect Koizumi Fumio, author of Nihon no ongaku, knows a little more about this than I do, so I figure it's worth a mention.

Aside: on absorbing a song

Sakura, Sakura is kinda special to me because it's like the second piece I learned to play on zhonghu (after Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star lmao). I can't play it well, but I am proud that I have learned to play it at least recognisably.

The process of learning to play it involved writing out tabs and trying out different ways of moving my hand. I transcribed Sakura Sakura down to start on F, since that way the open G string of the zhonghu could be the lowest note of the piece, and worked out a tab for it using a tab system I cooked up with my friend. Here's what it looks like. The system counts semitones up from the open string, and it uses an underline to mark the lower string.

(Also, credit where it's due - I would never have made any progress learning about music if not for my friend Maki Yamazaki, a prodigiously multitalented self-taught musician who can play dozens of instruments, and also the person who sold me her old zhonghu for dirt cheap, if you're wondering why a white British girl might be learning such an unusual instrument. You can and should check our her music here! Maki has done more than absolutely anyone to make music comprehensible to me, and a lot of this post is inspired by discussing the previous post with her.)

When you want to make a song playable on an instrument, you have to perform some interpretation. Which fingers should play which notes? When should you move your hand? How do you make sure you hit the right notes? At some point this kind of movement becomes second nature, but I'm at the stage, just like a player encountering a new genre of videogame, where I still don't have the muscle memory or habituation to how things work, and each of these little details has to be worked out one by one. But this is great, because this process makes me way more intimately familiar with the contours of the song. Trying to analyse the moves it makes like the above even more so.

More Japanese scales

So, to sum up what we've observed, the beautiful minor sounds of Sakura Sakura come from a pentatonic scale which can be constructed by taking the diatonic scale and blasting certain notes into the sea, namely the fourth and the seventh of the scale. But what about the nironuki scale? Well, this time we delete the second and the sixth. So we get, in absolute terms:

major nironuki (abs): 0, 4, 5, 7, 11, (12) major nironuki (rel): 4, 1, 2, 4, 1 minor nironuki (abs): 0, 3, 5, 7, 10, (12) minor nironuki (rel): 3, 2, 2, 3, 2

Hold on a minute, doesn't that look rather familiar? The major nironuki scale is a permutation, though not a cyclic permutation, of the minor yonanuki scale. And the minor nironuki scale is a cyclic permutation (mode) of the major one.

Nevertheless, these scales have names and significance of their own. The major one is known as the 琉球音階 ryūkyū onkai or Okinawan scale. The minor one is what Western music would call a 'minor pentatonic scale'. It also mentions a couple of other names for it, like the 民謡音階 minyou onkai (folk scale).

We also have the yō scale, which like the in scale, comes in ascending and descending forms. You want these too? Yeah? Ok, here we go.

yō scale (asc, abs): 0, 2, 5, 7, 10, (12) yō scale (asc, rel): 2, 3, 2, 3, 2 yō scale (desc, abs): 0, 2, 5, 7, 9, (12) yō scale (desc, rel): 2, 3, 2, 2, 3

The yō scale is what's called an anhemitonic pentatonic scale, which is just a fancy way of saying it doesn't have semitones. (The in scale in turn is hemitonic). The ascending form is also called the 律戦法 ritsusenpou. Here's the complete table of all the variants I've found so far.

So, in summary: Japanese music uses a lot of pentatonic scales. (In a future post we can hopefully see how that applies in modern Japanese music). These pentatonic scales can be constructed by deleting two notes from the diatonic scales. In general, you land in one of two zones: the anhemitonic side, where all the intervals between successive notes, are 2 and 3, and the hemitonic side, where the intervals are spicier 1s and 4s and a lone 2. From there, you can move between other pentatonic scales by cyclic permutations and reversal.

If you analyse Japanese music from a Western lens, you might well end up interpreting it according to one of the modes of the major scale. In fact, the 8-bit music theory video I posted last time takes this approach. This isn't wrong per se, it's a viable way to getting insight into how the tune works if you want to ask the question 'how does this conjure emotions and how do I get the same effects', but it's worthwhile to know what analytical frame the composers are likely to be using.

Gamelan - when 12TET won't cut it

Gamelan is a form of Indonesian ensemble music. I do not at this time know a ton about it, but here's a performance:

However, if you're reading my blog then it's likely that if know gamelan from anywhere, it's most likely the soundtrack to Akira composed by Shōji Yamashiro.

This blends traditional gamelan instrumentation and voices with modern synths to create an incredibly bold and (for most viewers outside Indonesia!) unfamiliar sound to accompany the film's themes of psychic awakening and evolution. It was an inspired choice, adding a lot to an already great film.

'A gamelan' is the ensemble; 'gamelan' is also the style of music. There are many different types of gamelan associated with different occasions - some gamelans are only allowed to form for special ceremonies. Gamelan is also used as a soundtrack in accompaniment to other art forms, such as wayang kulit and wayang wong (respectively, shadow puppetry and dance).

Since gamelan music evidently uses quite a bit of percussion, and so far we've been focused on the type of music played on strings and wind instruments - a brief comment on the limitations of our abstractions. Many types of drums don't fit the 'tonal music' frame we've outlined so far, creating a broad frequency spectrum that's close to an enveloped burst of white noise rather than a sharply peaked fundamental + overtones. There's a ton to study in drumming, and if this series continues you bet I'll try to understand it.

But there are tonal percussion instruments, and a lot of them are to be found in gamelan, particularly in the metalophone family (e.g. the ugal or jegogan). The Western 'xylophone' and 'glockenspiel' also belong to this family. Besides metalophones, you've got bells, steel drums, tuning forks etc. Tuning a percussion instrument is a matter of adjusting the shape of the metal to adjust the resonant frequency of its normal modes. I imagine it's really fiddly.

In any case, the profile of a percussion note is quite different from the continual impulse provided by e.g. a violin bow. You get a big burst across all frequencies and then everything but the resonant mode dies out, leaving the ringing with a much simpler spectrum.

Anyway, let's get on to scales and shit. While I have the Japanese wikipedia page on pentatonic scales open, that it mentions a gamelan scale called pelog (written ᮕᮦᮜᮧᮌ᮪, ꦥꦺꦭꦺꦴꦒ꧀ or ᬧᬾᬮᭀᬕ᭄ in different languages) meaning 'beautiful'. Pelog is not strictly one scale, but a family of tunings which vary across Indonesia. Depending on who you ask, it might in some cases be reasonably close to a 9-tone equal temperament (9TET), which means a number of notes can't be represented in 12TET - you have that 4 12TET semitones would be equivalent to 3 9TET semitones. From this is drawn a heptatonic scale, but not one that can be mapped exactly to any 12TET heptatonic scale. Isn't that fun!

To represent scales that don't exactly fit the tuning of 12TET, there's a logarithmic unit of measure called the 'cent'. Each 12TET semitone contains 100 cents, so in terms of ratios, a cent is the the 1200th root of 2. In this system, a 9TET semitone is 133 cents. Some steps in the pelog heptatonic scale would then be two 9TET semitones, and others one 9TET semitone. However, this system of 'semitones' does not seem to be how gamelan music is actually notated - it's assumed you already have an established pelog tuning and can play within that. So it's a little difficult for me to give you a decent representation of a gamelan scale that isn't approximated by 12TET.

From the 7-tone pelog scale, whatever it happens to be where you live, you can further derive pentatonic scales. These have various names, like the pelog selisir used in the gamelan gong kebyar. I'm not going to itemise them here both because I haven't actually been able to find the basic pelog tunings (at least by their 9TET approximation).

Another scale used in gamelan is called slendro, a five tone scale of 'very roughly' equal intervals. Five is coprime with 12, so there's no straightforward mapping of any part of this scale to the 12-tone system. But more than that, fully even scales are quite rare in the places we've looked so far. (Though apparently within slendro, you can play a note that's deliberately 'out of place', called 'miring'. This transforms the mood from 'light, cheerful and busy' to one appropriate to scenes of 'homesickness, love missing, sadness, death, languishing'.)

The Western musical notation system is plainly unsuited for gamelan, and naturally it has its own system - or rather several systems. In one method, the seven tones of the pelog are numbered 1 through 7, and a subset of those numbers are used to enumerate slendro tuning. You can write it on a grid similar to a musical staff.

But we could wonder with this research - is the attempt to map pélog to 'equal temperament' an external imposition? Presented with a tuning system with seven intervals that are not consistently equal temperament, averaging them to construct an equal temperament hypothesis on that basis, and finally attempting to prove that gamelan players 'prefer' equal temperament... well, they do at least bother to ask, but I'm not entirely convinced that 9TET or 5TET is the right model. Unfortunately, most of the literature I'm able to find on gamelan music theory with a cursory search is by Western researchers.

There's a fairly long history of Western composers taking inspiration from gamelan, notably Debussy and Saty. And of course, modern Indonesian composers such as I Nyoman Windha have also been finding ways to combine gamelan with Western styles. Here's a piece composed by him (unfortunately not a splendid recording):

Klezmer - layer 'em up

If you've known me for long enough you might remember the time I had a huge Daniel Kahn and the Painted Bird phase. (I still think he's great, I just did that thing where I obsessively listen to one small set of things for a period). And I'd also listen to old revolutionary songs in Yiddish all the time. Because of course I did lmao. Anyway, here's a song that combines both: Kahn's modern arrangement of Arbetlose Marsch in English and Yiddish:

That's a style of music called klezmer, developed by Ashkenazi Jews in Central/Eastern Europe starting in the late 1500s and 1600s. It's a blend of a whole bunch of different traditions, combining elements from Jewish religious music with other neighbouring folk music traditions and European music at large. When things really kicked off at the end of the 19th century, klezmer musicians were often a part of the Jewish socialist movement (and came up with some real bangers - the Tsar may have been shot by the Bolsheviks but tbh, Daloy Politsey already killed him). But equally there's a reason it sounds insanely danceable: it was very often used for dances.

The rest of the 20th century happened, but klezmer survived all the genocides and there are lots of different modern klezmer bands.

The defining characteristics of klezmer per Wikipedia are... ok, this is quite long...

Klezmer musicians apply the overall style to available specific techniques on each melodic instrument. They incorporate and elaborate the vocal melodies of Jewish religious practice, including khazones, davenen, and paraliturgical song, extending the range of human voice into the musical expression possible on instruments.[21] Among those stylistic elements that are considered typically "Jewish" in Klezmer music are those which are shared with cantorial or Hasidic vocal ornaments, including dreydlekh ("tear in the voice"; plural of dreidel)[22][23] and imitations of sighing or laughing ("laughter through tears").[24] Various Yiddish terms were used for these vocal-like ornaments such as קרעכץ (Krekhts, "groan" or "moan"), קנײטש (kneytsh, "wrinkle" or "fold"), and קװעטש (kvetsh, "pressure" or "stress").[10] Other ornaments such as trills, grace notes, appoggiaturas, glitshn (glissandos), tshoks (a kind of bent notes of cackle-like sound), flageolets (string harmonics),[22][25]pedal notes, mordents, slides and typical Klezmer cadences are also important to the style.[18]

So evidently klezmer will be relevant throughout this series, but for now, since we're trying to flesh out the picture of 'how is tuning formed', let's take a look at the notes.

So it's absolutely possible to fit klezmer into the 12TET system. But we're going to need to crack open a few new scales. Though the Wikipedia editors enumerating this list caution us: "Another problem in listing these terms as simple eight-note (octatonic) scales is that it makes it harder to see how Klezmer melodic structures can work as five-note pentachords, how parts of different modes typically interact, and what the cultural significance of a given mode might be in a traditional Klezmer context."

With that caution in mind, let's at least see what we're given. First of all we have the Freygish or Ahavoh Rabboh scale, one of the most common pieces, good friend of the Western phrygian but with an extra semitone. Then there's Mi Sbererakh or Av HaRachamim which is a mode of it, that's popular around Ukraine. Adonoy Molokh or Adoyshem Molokh is the major scale but you drop the seventh a semitone. Mogen Ovos is the same as the natural minor at least on the interval level.

Which means, without the jargon, here are the semitones (wow wouldn't it be nice if you had tables on here?):

position: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, (8) freygish: 0, 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, (12) deltas: 1, 3, 1, 2, 1, 2, 2 mi sberakh: 0, 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10, (12) deltas: 2, 1, 3, 2, 2, 1, 2 adonoy m.: 0, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, (12) deltas: 2, 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2 mogen o.: 0, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, (12) deltas: 2, 1, 2, 2, 1, 2, 2

...that's a big block of numbers to make your eyes glaze over huh. Maybe this 'convert everything to semitone deltas' thing isn't all it's cracked up to be... or maybe what I need to do is actually visualise it somehow? Some kinda big old graph showing all the different scales we've worked out so far and how they relate to each other? ...hold your horses...

[It seems like what I've done is reinvent something called 'musical set theory', incidentally.]

OK, having enumerated these, let's return to the Wikipedian's caution. What is a pentachord? Pretty simple, it's a chord of five notes. Mind you, some people define it as five successive notes of a diatonic scale.

In klezmer, you've got a bunch of different instruments playing at once creating a really dense sound texture. Presumably one of the things you do when you play klezmer is try and get the different instruments in your ensemble to hit the different levels of that pentachord. How does that work? Well, if we consult the sources, we find this scan of a half-handwritten PDF presenting considerably more detail on the modes and how they're played. The scales above are combined with a 'motivic scheme' presenting different patterns that notes tend to follow, and a 'typical cadence'. Moreover, these modes can have 'sub-modes' which tend to follow when the main mode gets established.

To me reading this, I can kind of imagine the process of composing/improvisation within this system almost like a state machine. It's not just that you have a scale, you have a certain state you're in in the music (e.g. main mode or sub-mode), and a set of transitional moves you can potentially make for the next segment. That's probably too rigid a model though. There's also a more specific aspect discussed in the book that a klezmer musician needs to know how to move between their repertoire of klezmer pieces - what pieces can sensibly follow from what.

Ultimately, I don't want to give you a long list of stuff to memorise. (Sure, if you want to play klezmer, you probably need to get familiar with how to use these modes, but that's between you and your klezmer group). Rather I want to make sure we don't have any illusion that the Western church modes are the only correct way to compose music.

Blues - can anyone agree?

Blues is a style of music developed by Black musicians in the American south in the late 1800s, directly or indirectly massively influential on just about every genre to follow, but especially jazz. It's got a very characteristic style defined by among other elements use of 'blue notes' that don't fit the standard diatonic scale. According to various theorists, you can add the blue notes to a scale to construct something called the 'blues scale'. According to certain other theorists, this exercise is futile, and Blues techniques can't be reduced to a scale.

So for the last part of today's whirlwind tour of scales, let's take a brief look at the blues...

There are a few different blues scales. The most popular definition seems to be a hexatonic scale. We'll start with the minor pentatonic scale, or in Japanese, the minor nironuki scale - which is to say we take the minor diatonic scale and delete positions 2 and 6. That gives:

minor nironuki (abs): 0, 3, 5, 7, 10, (12) minor nironuki (rel): 3, 2, 2, 3, 2

Now we need to add a new note, the 'flat fifth degree' of the original scale. In other words, 6 semitones above the root - the dreaded tritone!

hexatonic blues (abs): 0, 3, 5, 6, 7, 10, (12) hexatonic blues (rel): 3, 2, 1, 1, 3, 2

Easy enough right? Listen to that, it does sound kinda blues-y. But hold your horses! Moments after defining this scale, we read...

A major feature of the blues scale is the use of blue notes—notes that are played or sung microtonally, at a slightly higher or lower pitch than standard.[5] However, since blue notes are considered alternative inflections, a blues scale may be considered to not fit the traditional definition of a scale.

So, if you want to play blues, it's not enough to mechanically play a specific scale in 12TET. You also gotta break the palette a little bit.

There's also a 'major blues' heptatonic scale which goes 0, 2, 3, 4, 7, 9, according to one guy called Dan Greenblatt.

But that's not the only attempt to enumerate the 'blues scale'. Other authors will give you slightly longer scales. For example, if you ask Smallwood:

heptatonic blues (abs): 0, 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, 10, (12) heptatonic blues (rel): 2, 1, 2, 1, 3, 1, 2

which isn't quite a mode of any of those klezmer scales we saw previously, but nearly!

If you ask Benward and Saker, meanwhile, a Blues scale could actually be nonatonic scale, where you add flattened versions of a couple of notes to the major scale.

nonatonic blues (abs): 0, 2, 3/4, 5, 7, 9, 10/11, (12)

There's also an idea that you should play notes in between the semitones, i.e. quarter tones, which would be a freq ratio of the 24th root of 2 if you're keeping score at home.

The upshot of all this is probably that going too far formalise the blues is probably not in the spirit of the blues, but if you want to go in a blues-y direction it will probably mean insert an extra, flattened version of a note to one of your scales. Muck around and see what works, I guess!

Of course, there's a lot more to Blues than just tweaking a scale. For example, 'twelve bar blues' is a specific formalised chord progression that is especially universal in Jazz. What it means for chords to 'progress' is a whole subject, and I think that's the next thing I'll try to understand for post 3. Hopefully we'll be furnished with a slightly broader model of how music works as we go there though.

To wrap up, here's the spreadsheet showing all the 12TET scales encountered so far in this series in a visual way. There's obviously plenty more out there, but this is not ultimately a series about scales. It's all well and good to have a list of what exists, but it's pointless if we don't know how to use it.

Phew

Mind you even with all this, we haven't covered at all some of the most complex systems of tonal music - I've only made the vaguest gesture towards Indian classical music, Chinese music, Jazz... That's way beyond me at the moment. But maybe not forever.

Next up: I'm going to try and finally wrap my head around chords and make sense of what it means for them to 'progress', have 'movement' etc. And maybe render a bit more concrete the vague stuff I said about 'tension' and 'resolution'.

(Also: I definitely know I have friends on here who are very widely knowledgeable about music theory. If I've made any major mistakes, please let me know! At some point I hope to republish this series with nicer formatting on canmom.art, and it would be great to fix the bugs by then!)

#Youtube #music theory #music notes #music #notes #japanese music #gamelan #chinese music #klezmer #blues #i took my new adhd meds and hyperfocused on this all day instead of working ><

[byanyan]

@xiianxias sent:ㅤ"one dollar ... one dollar and i play your favorite song, any genre, any composer, on this instrument called 'erhu' ... just one dollar ... " it's late in the day, and despite his best efforts, lí chényǔ's tip jar is painfully empty. perhaps the crowd at the corner of market and 3rd just isn't as interested in listening to the erhu as they are in beginning the night's drunken revelry. or perhaps the musician himself --- dressed in ill-fitting clothes, his heavily-accented voice hoarse from overuse and the beginnings of a head cold --- simply isn't compelling enough to give a second look to. either way, lí chényǔ doubts he'll make enough to buy ingredients for a decent dinner for his younger siblings tonight ( and the thought of the sad looks on their faces makes his heart hurt. ) so when he sees a brightly-dressed stranger approaching, he hops up on his feet, taking a few steps in their direction. he's certain desperation is creeping into his voice, but he has no face left to save, and no pride left to salvage. "my friend, my friend, hey --- just one dollar, and i play you any song on this erhu --- "

ㅤalthough they spot him on their approach, byan doesn't think much of the busking musician and has no plans to pay him any mind, intending to ignore him the same way they ignore anyone performing on the street. —that is, until he starts moving toward them. footsteps slow slightly, something almost hesitant about the first footfall which doesn't match their previous tempo as the immediate wave of suspicion, which comes when any unfamiliar man approaches them directly, washes over them.

initially, they consider simply shoving past and continuing on their way, but something about the look in his eyes instead has them drawing to a reluctant halt. there's a familiar desperation in his features, in the way he's chosen to come straight at them rather than hoping for them to stop, that they find frustratingly difficult to ignore. thus, watching his mouth move and eyeing him up and down with continued reservation and mistrust, they finally reach up to pluck one of their earbuds free so they can actually hear him over their music.

ㅤ...and now that they can hear his voice, that desperation is all the more obvious, and it has byan gritting their teeth. they hate that they can't just walk past like everyone else, unbothered. here they are, with about twenty (stolen) dollars to their name, not exactly in much of a position to donate, meanwhile everyone who surely has at least a bit of cash to spare is just ignoring the guy. it's painfully familiar, and it pisses them off.

ㅤㅤ" not really in the mood, man. "ㅤgrumbling irritably, they reach into their pocket and feel around, seeking out and separating the two ten dollar bills they swiped out of someone's pocket a few hours ago. another moment of hesitation follows — splitting their 'earnings' means a smaller dinner for them tonight, and they don't owe this guy anything, it's not their fault if he goes hungry — but after a bit of stubborn deliberation, they finally pull one of the bills free and thrust it in his direction before they can think better of it.

ㅤㅤ" here. "ㅤthey don't sound happy about handing it over, rather seem more like they're fighting with every muscle in their body to keep from snatching it away again and running off, but it's presented to him nonetheless. having had moments in their past where someone handing them even one dollar would have made the night just that tiny bit less agonizing, they know all too well what it's like to be in that place and wouldn't be able to sit with the guilt they know would gnaw at them if they didn't offer something when they know they have enough that they can share.

ㅤ—god, they want to tear their conscience out of their chest, throw it on the ground, and stomp all over it right about now.

ㅤㅤ" just take it, okay? don't need you t' play anythin', i already got enough music goin' right now. "

#xiianxias #━━ ˟ ⊰ ✰ answered: ic ⋮ i am a vulture that feeds on pain. #hiiiiii!! i'm so sorry about my disaster child....... #they just hate showing kindness and empathy u know how it is #but i do think it's going to be interesting seeing how these two interact :> #━━ ˟ ⊰ ✰ queue.

[blerghie]

ngl tho zhongli’s character demo was and still is my personal favorite

#the cold open with the storyteller #the beat drop at the moment his splash art appears on the screen #the flickering of the lights just before the reveal of the art #the fucking erhu #or at least i think it sounds like an erhu?? #tian dong wan xiang at the very climax of the song #every beat aligned with every single one of zhongli's actions...very fitting considering his ult voiceline #rex incognito.mp3 #eula's is definitely tied at top 2 with xiao though #2am thots #but her songggg #nvm eula's is probably top 2 #xiao's demo now relegated to 3 #that was such a good song #it was fiery and romantic and elegant urggshdgsjd #and the dance animations were so smooth..... #and while she was doing the flamenco and the lights dimmed down and she spun into the spotlight into her splash art?? absolutely wild #i notice that there's a lot of fanservice with female chara demos but i guess thats to be expected #gnsn

[liyuesbian]

liyue characters (+ childe) and what instruments i think they'd play

part two of my genshin characters and what instruments i think they'd play series! part one / part three

beidou

bass guitarist!!!

plays in xinyan's band

the incredibly attractive band member who everyone in the audience fawns over

good luck trying to get her number after gigs, she's most likely got the whole crowd tailing her already

chongyun

idk why but i think he'd suit the ukelele

was probably the one quiet, talented kid whose friends (i.e. xingqiu) made him audition in a famous talent show and guess what? he actually ended up winning

is now one of those quirky, aesthetic, softboy youtubers who posts covers of him singing and playing his little gay guitar

ganyu

guzheng

feels so powerful when she puts on the finger picks

looks so refined during a performance even while doing the notorious musician head-bobbing haha

leaves the string players in constant awe like how can she do vibrato with those picks?! AMAZING

hu tao

tuba player

never takes rehearsals seriously... or her instrument for that matter

is the one making the "tromboner" jokes and telling the strings: "how do you finger your instrument again?"

was also the one who convinced everyone to play the mii channel theme music as a prank in rehearsal

bet it was the only time the whole orchestra played so harmoniously

keqing

parents wanted her to play a traditional chinese instrument. if not, at least the piano or the violin

all hell broke loose when she came home with a synth

"electric instrument eh? keqing, i will electric chair yo-"

oh well, it's kinda like a piano... right...? *ancestors rolling in their graves*

ningguang

erhu player ("chinese violin")

fell in love with the instrument after hearing a busker playing it

tears run down her cheeks when she's practicing alone because the sound is so fuckin' beautiful :'DD

"damn, i'm so good"

qiqi

clarinet

"i'm sorry... what's a reed again?"

definitely forgets her entrance

is only here because she forgot she was actually supposed to join the gardening club and walked into the wrong place

xiangling

drummer in xinyan's band

goes stupid, goes crazy on those things

tries to do the stick tricks (like throwing it in the air midway through playing) she saw on youtube during practice but fails

legend has it she's still trying to this day

xiao

dizi, essentially a "chinese flute"

man is so emo he sometimes goes out to his garden and plays a sad tune :(

maybe does it with his eyes closed and his neighbours probably avoid him around 2pm—his daily sad song hour :((

xingqiu

ok, guys, hear me out. this boy is the personification of that one vine that goes "is there anything better than pussy? yes, a really good book!"

therefore, xingqiu is a pianist

his parents are definitely the asian parents who want their child to be a musician as a brag-worthy hobby (bonus: if he wants to pursue the piano as a career, they will absolutely not be okay with it)

xinyan

honestly, i think she could be an all-rounder with the usual band instruments

guitar, bass, keyboard, drums, vocalist etc.

is, quite literally, a one-woman band

loves rock so much she has become the rock

yanfei

plays the french horn

always has her part down pat

loves to share techniques with her section

during rehearsals, you can hear her more than you can hear her instrument

zhongli

cello. he's a cellist. and a first chair

"do you want to fucking be me or do you want to be fucking me"

the 2nd chair tries to convince him that he'd suit a conductor more in hopes that they'd finally get 1st chair without zhongli being in the way

thing is, this mfer takes it seriously and actually becomes the conductor

why's he good at everything?

tartaglia

"and the trumpets they go—"

EGO EGO EGO EGO EGO EGO EGO EGO

but he actually has the skills to fill up that ego >:(

and the lungs because, jesus, where are my earplugs?!

#not proofread #genshin #beidou #chongyun #ganyu #hu tao #keqing #ningguang #xiangling #xiao #xingqiu #xinyan #yanfei #zhongli #tartaglia #childe #genshin au #genshin crack #genshin impact #genshin headcanons

[pbaintthetb]

quick fic

wrote this because i need to write but lack motivation, and I’m not posting it because it’s not neatly wrapped up but anyway

“I’m here to see the Sect Leader,” Xichen tells the Nie disciples who greet him at the gates. He’s greeted with a nod and a fond eye roll, his presence here is not unfamiliar, frequently coming to drag poor little A-Sang out of trouble.

(How much of that had always been a lie? How much had these disciples known it was a lie. Is it all an act? All of them?)

“He’ll meet you in his office,” one of the disciples tells him pleasantly, “Feel free to wait for him there.” In the corner of his eye he can notices a flurry of green, but he nods and walks the familiar path.

A-Sang, A-Yao. It’s too late for Da-ge, Mingjue is gone, and it’s like a gaping hole in his chest, but maybe he can stop the rest of the tragic story playing itself out again. Stop Huaisang from ruining himself.

“Er-ge?” Huaisang says warily as he enters the office to find Xichen standing there. His fan is up over his mouth and his eyes are wide, but this is just how Huaisang had looked in the temple, and it sends eerie chills down Xichen’s spine.

His silly, foolish, lazy, idle little brother is none of those things. At least not anymore, but maybe Xichen can restore it. Now that he’s looking for it, now that he knows it’s there, he can see it in Huaisang’s eyes. A certain sharpness, warily tracking him.

Or maybe Xichen’s imagining it, so desperate for it to be there, for there to be a sign of everything Huaisang was and will be (won’t be, Xichen will fix it) again. But if even A-Yao had never noticed...

There is no point in wasting more time, so he swallows everything down and lays his cards out on the table. Mingjue had always valued forthrightness and honesty and had tried to instill those in Huaisang. Huaisang had hated Jin Guangyao because he had lied. Honestly should work, it has to.

“I know what you’re planning, A-Sang,” Xichen says, doesn’t whisper it, says it bravely and solidly so his confidence doesn’t abandon him. He needs to do this properly, needs to save as much of his brothers as he can. He can’t watch themselves tear themselves apart once more.

“Planning?” Huaisang says after a short pause, “I don’t know what you’re talking about? I really don’t know. I promise Er-ge! What do you mean?”

It was one thing to listen to Huaisang’s frantic denials and confusion when he had thought it real. It had been almost endearing, if sometimes a little worrying or irritating. Now, when he knows it has so much falseness in it, it sends a trickle of ice down his spine. He resists the urge to shudder, but maybe not enough because Huaisang’s eyes go wider still.

Xichen reminds himself that his sword is at his hip and his erhu hangs on his other side. Then he mentally prods himself, because why does his brain think he’d need protection from Huaisang? No matter what, Huaisang, his da-ge’s didi, would never hurt him. And, not to be rude, but Huaisang never had a particualry  strong core.

He shakes himself to get over the silliness and takes the plunge.

“I know about Da-ge and what you’re planning with A-Yao. How you want to destroy him, make sure he could never come back and-” He doesn’t finish his thought before Huaisang interjects.

“Er-ge? Are you okay, what about Da-ge? I don’t know what  you mean?”

“No, Huaisang.” He blocks off once more, he won’t play this game now. He fell for it before, in the temple, and A-Yao had died. He had done unforgivable things, but he hasn’t necessarily done them all yet this time. Maybe he can be saved, and he didn’t deserve to die.

“I have,” he pauses, “certain knowledge, Huaisang. I have seen, some things.” He swallows, and sees Huaisang watching him like a hawk over his fan, but his brow furrowed to keep up the illusion of confusion. A-Yao had said he’d never see through Huaisang’s mask, but Huaisang is still early in his game, and Xichen knows, he thinks he might now.

“San-ge led to Da-ge’s death.” Xichen tells the other man, as though  Huaisang doesn’t already know. “And I know you want to destroy him for it.”

There is no response, just the feeling that every inch of him is being measured and none of it is being deemed good enough.

“But why would San-ge hurt Da-ge?” Huaisang asks him eventually, voice trembling- and was Xichen too early? Has he ruined everything? Would Huaisang never have come for A-Yao? Or maybe this is right, and they can talk it over, and get justice together and without utterly destroying A-Yao in the process.

“Their relationship was very strained by the end,” Xichen acknowledges heavily. It didn’t make it right, but it made it make sense in hindsight. “I think San-ge...” he trails off, unsure how to continue. He shakes his head, this isn’t the point anyway.

“I know what you’re going to do, Huaisang. I’ve seen it. You’re going to trick him, and trap him and kill him. But you’re smart- no, I’ve seen that too. If we work together we could help him.” He swallows, “please, A-Sang.”

There’s an odd laugh.

“The way you talk, Er-ge. You make it sound as if you’re from the future,” Huaisang chuckles lightly again, and it is an absurd thought.

Xichen nods.

“Oh,” Huaisang tells him, ugly and flat, fan snapping shut to reveal a very displeased expression. “So tell me, Zewu-jun, did it hurt, what I did to him?”

Xichen gapes, he hadn’t expected this, at least not this fast.

“I’m not an idiot-” Xichen knows that now, “And I’m guessing, despite everything. Despite probably knowing more than me about what that bastard had done, you’ve still come to me first? He murdered my brother, and you’ve come to me to tell me to stop?!” Huaisang’s voice is full of venom, but no louder than a hiss.

The smaller man stands up loudly and clumsily, knee banging into a desk as he does so.

“Leave, Xichen,” Huaisang tells him, full of anger and rage. Xichen doesn’t know how it went so wrong so fast. “I thought you just didn’t know, and that was damning- but this?” Huaisang spits, such an unrefined action for such a carefully composed and elegant man.

“Huaisang,” Xichen says a little warningly himself, “I don’t think you want to challenge me either. A-Yao needs to be brought to justice, but you want isn’t justice. It’s barely revenge- it’s blood thirsty vengeance and I cannot condone it.”

He thins his lips, deciding whether to say his next sentence as Huaisang glowers at him, knuckles whitening around his fan. He needs to save as much of A-Yao as he can, it’s clear Huaisang is mostly gone, but maybe saving A-Yao will help save A-Sang.

“You don’t want the Lan as an enemy, Huaisang. My reputation is far better than yours, I could say all kind of things and they wouldn’t be lies. Please, leave him alone, let me deal with him.” It only feels a little wrong on his tongue, Xichen can live with it.

He’s met with a spluttering laugh from Huaisang, but his eyes are so very firm and steady and hard. Huaisang really is like Mingjue, but not in sharing honesty.

“If you tell anybody about this, about the Headshaker plotting, Zewu-jun, you think anyone will believe you? The only person who would is Jin Guangyao, and then you’ve signed my death warrant as well. Do you want this on your conscience? Can you live with the deaths of both my and Da-ge on your head?

Xichen steps back, his mind screaming at him, and Huaisang takes that as an opportunity to move around his desk and slither up to his side.

“Come back to me with his head, or don’t come back at all, Er-ge.” Huaisang strides back to his desk. “After all, I think we’ve established that I really don’t need you. Maybe I’ll drip all kinds of poison about you into people’s ears. I’m a terrible gossip, and just really don’t know how to hold my drink after all. Someone really ought to stop Sect Leader Nie from spending so much time in Taverns.”

Xichen suddenly has the nasty feeling that he’s walked into a snake’s den. That he really, should never have come.

“But that won’t be you,” Huaisang continues, “Seeing that you don’t like me anymore? Or do you? In which case then I’m still so useless, and not scheming.” Huasiang throws him a clearly false beam, and Xichen just wants out.

“Nice talking with you, Er-ge, now I’m fed up of watching you squirm.”

Xichen leaves as quickly as he can, not taking his eyes of Huaisang, who locks eye contact the whole time Xichen backs out of the door. He doesn’t even try to lay on a threat or impress for Huaisang not to go after A-Yao once more. He’s said all he can say to Huaisang. Now he’s stuck here, in the past with the sick feeling he’s made everything worse.

“The Sect Leader’s a real character, isn’t he?” one of the Nie disciples on the door comments with a slight laugh as Xichen focuses on not looking like he’s stumbling out. “Can really drive you up the wall.”

Xichen looks at him, and can see nothing but friendliness and banter.

“Well-meaning, but dumb,” the woman on the other side comments. The two disciples laugh together again.

“don’t worry, Zewu-jun, I don’t think he knows what he’s doing.” They snort.

Xichen looks at them both, tries to see if it’s a facade, if it’s real or-

He draws himself up, “You should show your Sect Leader some more respect,” he intones seriously. “The-”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Xichen is interrupted, “We respect Sect Leader Nie. He at least knows when he’s got an enemy in front of him. He’s not totally useless.”

Xichen swallows. He’s not quite sure how. But the only thing he’s certain of is that he’s made everything worse. So much worse.

#fic #not gonna post this on ao3 #like 50 minutes? #i was bored #don't really know what this is and it doesn't end lmao #also yeah #lxc time travel back dunno why #but i liked the idea of nhs droppign facade and also time travelling lxc fucig everything up more llol #mdzs #lan xichen #nie huaisang

[shangsclaws]

Musical Instruments (Pt. 2)

Pt. 1

Do the kombatants play any instruments? How do they react if their s/o does too?

gifs are not mine!

Includes: Kabal, Erron Black, Kuai Liang (Sub-Zero)

Kabal

A very impressive snare player. He says he played in his high school drumline.

You will often catch him using pens and flat surfaces as his substitute when he’s bored — it can get annoying

Proudly shows pictures of himself in summer band camp. He’ll get nostalgic recalling how ridiculously hot it was, or how heavy the snare felt to him then. Kabal was probably a scrawny kid back in the day.

Is very patient in teaching you. Also understands that it can get pretty loud, so he offers you some ear plugs to be sweet.

Any other instrument and he will fail terribly. You could teach him, but he’d only get frustrated that he can’t play as well as you. Instead he prefers to watch and beat along.

Kano often hogs the drums from him whenever they jam out, so he’s left with the keys or something. They end up sounding like a mid-life crisis. The only good thing about them is Erron, who does not want to be there.

Please just let Kabal play the drums (if anything I think he’s better than Mr. Down Under).

If you get to playing something on your instrument and there is no percussion around, he’ll bang on just about anything he can find to accompany you. It’s a wholesome moment when the both of you really get into whatever it is you’re playing.

Erron Black

This much is obvious — he plays the acoustic guitar

He isn’t terribly good at it though, if anything his strings sound dull. He needs to clean up his fretboard too, it’s kinda grimey in places. That doesn't mean he loves it any less.

It’s probably missing a string or two (I’ve done this...it’s actually fun to work with lol)

Has a fond name for his guitar/ lets his s/o name it

The body is veeerrrryyyy scuffed; he carries it around like a sling bag when the mission he’s on isn’t too demanding

He doesn’t care for how well he plays however, let alone the condition his guitar is in, because he is more or less a better singer — or if you wish, Kano’s lead vocalist (not by choice)

When he isn’t jamming alongside Kabal and Kano, Erron only ever plays and sings when he has the free time. That said, often times the cowboy misses his guitar.

He will request lots of pieces/songs for you to play. He won’t be interested in learning, however. He thinks that if he did, it would erase the wonder of watching you do something he doesn’t understand.

Erron will often try and get you to sing/play with him whenever he’s not on a mission. These moments are very few and far between, and they only really happen at night, so it serves as a small lullaby to send you both to sleep. If not that, then at least a quiet moment alone.

Kuai Liang (Sub-Zero)

Kuai Liang plays the erhu. Alone in the woods, winds howling, this instrument sounds hauntingly beautiful.

Bi-Han was the one to teach him. It’s all the young Sub-Zero has left of his brother.

Kuai probably taught Frost at some point, but she saw it as a distraction more than anything else. If you asked her to play, she wouldn’t even know what you’re talking about.

Any other instrument that you might play is interesting to Kuai. He will silently watch you work your magic, focusing carefully on your fingers and sometimes the contortions of your face as you play.

If you do decide to teach him, he drops the grandmaster title completely; Kuai becomes your eager student. He’ll cut out a part of his busy day to fit his lessons in, no matter what it takes (sometimes at your expense unfortunately).

He'll be discouraged to find, as with any instrument, that he isn't inclined to play like you from the start. Also, instruments don't fare well in the grueling cold. Kuai will constantly be retuning it.

You are likely to find him practicing the instrument outside of lessons nonetheless. At some point to him, it'll be just as stressful as being a grandmaster. He really just wants to be able to play with you at some point.

And when he does get there, it will be almost as if Kuai prefers that over actual conversation between you two.

#mortal kombat #mk11 #kuai liang #mortal kombat x reader #erron black #kabal #sub zero #i should probably practice

[ohmygodtheywereparabatai]

Day 5 | Role-Reversal

Because who doesn’t want to see Firelord Zhao, five-pronged crown and all @zhaozaipalooza?

OKAY hhdhdjd while that was my initial plan, @fire-lady-ilah’s thoughtful and bittersweet Good!Dad Ozai AU made me decide on another approach for today’s prompt(s).

Taking her lovely concept a step further, I thought I’d flip the personality of every AtLA character I can get my hands on. No more gentle, loving moon spirit, only a tidal goddess of wrath! Well, okay, okay, I should slow down…

Let’s start small.

—

Not that he would tell, but… the musician’s self-imposed trembling was, not so imperceptible.

Had he left his children to chart out the course of his remaining life, and sailed the path like a star-wise captain? Most definitely; they were his greatest counsel as Firelord. A Fire Sage couldn’t have convinced him to remarry after Ursa’s loss - but they did.

Darling heirs that held her eyes and her laughter, and where they pointed, he found himself surely to go. Was Ozai still bound to encounter waves?

… It would seem so.

He wouldn’t so much as peep: a timid, jittery captain with no growth permitted of his facial hair than what was painfully humble. Or perhaps it got in the way of his instrument - was it a jaunty pipa? A carved flute, perfectly hollowed? The erhu, once the sole sound of his wife?

Ozai floundered to begin a conversation that didn’t end before he could grow a smile. And it happened quite quickly! Still! “I find myself curious…”

The gifted, devout soldier of a respectable rank - his children’s hand-picked selection - had not taken to him like he had him. At least, he assumed.

Ozai didn’t enjoy making assumptions - not of a man’s worth. Some he would never get to know in their bravest hour; from that roused the rest of his sentence, “… to know what you think of the state of the world.”

“For- I, what?”

“As Firelord, I court many things.” He coaxed him from the shadows, moved from pillar to pillar that entwined the gardens. “The content of my people is… the result. I only influence it, and I barely can during war, can I? Families are splintered, loved ones lost… it’s a cost I can never repay. Not with a thousand years of prosperity… But I listen to their stories.”

After a tense silence that would cue a tight-lipped reply - the Firelord’s only reward for gentler inquiries - Zhao spoke, and this time, for as long as he dared:

“… Ocean.”

Ocean? The Firelord was about to turn in his hand at untangling the enigma trailing his lofty steps - what was it Azula said, that he enjoyed theater? What had Zuko prized about him… that he hid a host of gnarly battles in a crimson ledger? Then Zhao breathed out,

“I chose… a naval career. Because the waves always roll toward home. Of course, it’s concerning - since Chieftess Yue used the spirits against their will, at the cost of her tribe’s safety… The waves have risen higher, moved faster to Fire Nation shores. She may use the ocean and moon to tear us down.”

“But, if my men drown, I can hope - the bodies… they wash up where…”

Ozai sensed, rather than heard, the knot in his words, and dove to console him. “Then I pray Agni should watch over their safe return.”

He nodded, turning away.

“My wife would… take us to the waterfront, set lights and lotus flowers adrift to float down the canals.” He paused, leaned his weight against one pillar. Zhao jerked to a stop, heels meeting with a click.

“They went past grieving houses, some bereft of sons, as a sign of our deepest respect. The city grew to see them as… a brightly lit path for spirits to follow in the afterlife. We carried on the tradition after she - left.”

“My con-” Zhao began, then stuttered.

“Oh.” A shiver crawled into his tone. “Is that why… My lover, he kept a small book, made paper animals from the pages. He set them on the water for our friends. My hands weren’t for folding. I only played the song.”

“And I only played the song, when he…” His voice watered. “I couldn’t fold any paper. Couldn’t sing - couldn’t breathe. Just the erhu. No faith protects the dying… only swallows the living.” Lu… Lu… Lu.

It blossomed in Ozai, spread like wildfire through the recesses he’d barred after Ursa’s loss - a weighing darkness bursting with light. A voice crying it’s him, it’s him, your children found a jewel. And at all costs, he would protect the faith he had left.

“Seems we are no strangers to grief.” He reached for the underside of his palm, the way Ursa would when his beloveds were small - stroking the beating vein until it stilled, and the kids slipped back into sleep. How many weeks had they walked like this? Wasn’t it time to tell him - blessed enough, to taste him?

Zhao ripped out of his grasp with a start, nearly tumbling over the stone railing into a bush of pale flowers. Nearly.

He whirled on him and shrieked, “What is this for? Is it some arrangement? A charade, a test of faith? You think you can invite believers for the amusement of - of burning in your shade?”

“Wh-”

“If there’s something I should atone for - i-if there’s someplace I should voyage with the knowledge that I won’t return… If you’re waiting for me to - to - throw myself at your feet or offer up the blood in my body as tribute, a god needs only speak.” The flurry of words even the Firelord, trained socialite, couldn’t string together ended on a hiss.

Ozai fumbled. “This isn’t - no, no - I’m only a man looking to make his children happy, and what they want is a happier father.” He sought to yield or compromise in an affair, and admitted his flaws when they were complicit. I’m only a man.

His smile was soft, real. And yet.

“You are Agni incarnate.” The noise in Zhao’s throat was a bow raking over untuned string, and I am nothing, I am nothing. “If I have duty here, I will finish it. Otherwise… mercy. Mercy. Please.”

Lack of faith hadn’t ground him into silence. It was pious zeal. Clinging desperately while living stagnant; the thought of letting belief go was more terrifying than it failing. He revered spirits that would never return the favor. Ozai thought of his daughter, throwing herself into the first pair of open arms, indifferent to reason - fear is for fools. Trust is reliable.

He was on his knees - hands too unsteady to fold paper into cranes but perfectly balanced for compositions to take flight, hands calloused from war and clutched in prayer - wanting mercy.

Living to see another day, and knowing nothing more of being spared than a terrifying way to be loved.

Ozai felt the spark in himself simmer to a boil, and even behind closed lids it read, your faith will protect him.

Better than any god could.

Wasn’t that the prerogative of kings?

He knelt by the shivering body, elbows tucked to pull him in with his palms. Their heads touched, royal silk gathered against the gritty, unswept courtyard stone… but that didn’t matter.

“Too many soldiers made of this war… too many lives lost.” He didn’t consider himself soothing by any means, not as Ursa was; Zhao stilled, if slowly. “I should be the one devoted to you.”

Taste could wait, yet his conviction was overwhelming. Ozai pressed his lips to the side of his hair, and stayed; my, was he prepared to stay. “Give me the chance.”

#the polar opposite au where ozai is a sweetheart and zhao has 12 different shrines for the spirits he worships #a healthy zhaozai?? in MY rarepair fleet? a hEALTHY ZHAOZAI ??? inconceivable #thank you angie love for the inspo <<3 #good!dad ozai au #zhaozai palooza 2021 #zhaozai #zhao #ozai #YUE NO #your local clown writes!

[youghvaudough]

Random things from the Shadow of Kyoshi that just make sense (or not)

... as a mandarin speaker 

ft. my Cantonese speaking friend

& my measly one semester of JAPN 1001

(spoiler warning)

rambling after the division

Loongkau, the name of the ghetto Miss Kyoshi raids are the start of the book, is in fact, Cantonese for 壟溝 “gutter/ditch”. these intimidating lookin lil suckers r in the traditional script, & the simplified version is 垄沟 (lóng gōu). no funny business here; p accurate name

extremely random, but, when Kyoshi punched the wood table in her mid-ring apartment, it was mentioned that the joinery cracked. traditional Chinese wood constructs are not held together by nails, but rather carved pieces at the ends that join together like puzzle pieces and provides fixture. they r called 榫卯 (sǔn mǎo)

what rly impresses me abt them is that these fixtures are used to hold together wood structures under whole tiled ceilings; oh yes, no glue, no nails, just expertly carved wood. I’m not gonna do it justice here u can search it up to learn more if ur interested ;)

Erhu !!! Ugh I love this one. 二胡 (èr hú) is a traditional Chinese string instrument that looks like a hammer with an elongated handle and two strings wow a horrible description; the notes it plays sound v sorrowful to me and i think it has something to do with the notes being in the minor scale ??? (I can’t music theory AT ALL don’t take my word for anything)

but yeah I have emotional attachment to that instrument bc my mother & my late grandpa both love it. one of my mother’s favorite pieces (also one of the most famous erhu pieces) is a piece called 赛马 (sài mǎ) “horse racing” and it’s a perfectly thrilling and passionate piece that I am also a huge sucker for ok this is getting off topic

oh I love the use of Aiyaa 哎呀 (āi yā, not only limited to the one tone tho — pronouncing it is like singing in this case: depends on the context) it’s just a very common expression for a multitude of emotions it’s so Chinese i love it sm

Jinpa’s bison Yingyong, I am kinda unsure about bc for some reason my first instinct was 阴阳 (yīn yáng) which I believe everyone knows at this point; I think it should be 英勇 (yīng yǒng) “heroic and brave”

...but what’s interesting & a piece of useless info is that mandarin for apps (applications) is 应用 (yìng yòng); same sound, different tones funny kinda?

now this one is absolutely useless but there’s a Chinese soccer player with the name Yangchen, 杨晨 (Yáng Chén)

the closest irl approx. of “kill two spidersnakes with one stone” is probably the idiom “kill two birds with one stone”, which actually has a very close match (both literally and figuratively) in mandarin four-character idiom (四字成语 sì zì chéng yǔ or just 成语 chéng yǔ) — 一箭双雕 (yī jiàn shuāng diāo) “one arrow (shoots down) two eagle”

Koulin, aka the girl who rightfully got decked in the face by Rangi, my guess at the Chinese characters for her name would be 寇林 or 寇琳 (both Kòu Lín; the second choice’s character for Lín is conventionally used for female names). I chose 寇 bc it originally means “bandits/invaders” or just “enemies” in general, and using it in the name of a character usually indicates villainous status.

also technically the Chinese translation of Zuko’s name also has this character (祖寇, zǔ kòu)

Peony and Camellia, oof eek dunno how I feel abt talking abt this. So, peonies, 牡丹 (mǔ dān), are the closest thing to a national flower for China. Camellia, or 山茶花 (mandarin, shān chá huā) / 藪椿 (Japanese, ヤブツバキ yabutsubaki) / Camellia japonica (binomial/scientific name), obviously carries a lot of meaning and history for Japan (even though a little overshadowed by the cherry blossoms) as it has been ever present in a lot of poetry & has some almost religious reverence tied with it.

Now a conflict btw two clans with these flowers as symbols just feels a lil too poignant to miss; like it honestly just may be a passing mention and what happened in the books plot wise has no relation with anything real world but Sino-Japanese Wars flash backs go brrrrrr

zo/so, the character that almost prompted a civil war, is the kanji 祖 (in pinyin it is zǔ), and as mentioned in the text it means “ancestor/forefather”.

the name Huazo, if we’re going by zo = 祖, could be 府阿祖 (ふあぞ), which can mean at least according to this translator I’m using founder of a prefecture (a district under the government apparently) which is kinda fitting for her tbh

the way I didn’t even know what a prefecture was

Joonho, 준호, Korean given name

the ceramic gaiwan, as a drinking vessel used by the woman at the tea shop in the chapter Home Again, is 盖碗 (gài wǎn) “lidded bowl”, a tea serving set popular during the Qing dynasty (Yongzheng times). it is always a set of three: 上有盖, 下有托, 中有碗 “lid on top, supporting dish at the bottom, bowl in middle”

茶托 “tea supporting dish” also was referred to as 茶船 “tea boat” & i just think that is cute & neat

hey this is actually kinda a short one but thank u for reading this far!

#kyoshi novels #rangi #kyoshi #rangshi #avatar kyoshi #avatar #shadow of kyoshi #language discourse #mandarin #Chinese #yingyong #Jinpa #Yangchen #text wall #original #shadow of kyoshi spoilers #camellia #peony #atla #jinpa #zuko #koulin #idioms #中文 #日本語 #history

[sandu-zidian]

Blabbing about this Musician!au I started last summer that has now also turned into a marching band!au because I got sad and nostalgic because despite how shitty it could be, marching band defined my high school life and social life and I couldn’t had asked for anything else.

I also don’t have every single prequel character (because this au is surrounding the prequel characters) in Star Wars smacked into here, and I gave up halfway through a couple of months ago in terms of brainstorming. Anyways, this is hella long so check everything out under the line if you’d like! don’t want to spam everyone with something that’s like, 4 pages long

Now, you might be asking. What instruments are these characters playing, or what are they doing in marching band? well, boy oh boy do I have some lore for you.

Anakin Skywalker: alright lets start of with the “Chosen One”. Now, I gotta say. He’s got some intense brass vibes, specifically high brass. But I don’t know. He didn’t really mesh well. And given his natural talent with the Force in canon, I thought that Anakin would be a sort of prodigy. And we all know the two instruments associated with that: the piano and violin. He’s more of a piano dude, so here we go! piano prodigy Anakin Skywalker. He also gives mad drumline vibes, and I can see him as either the lead snare, setting the tempo, or the main quad player. He’s brash, slightly obnoxious, but damn is he fucking good at what he does.

Obi-Wan Kenobi: I literally started this AU on the idea that Obi-Wan would play the cello. One of the defining quotes for him is that fucking “infinite sadness” quote. And we all know that cellos play some of the saddest pieces out there. (see: Elgar cello concerto) However, I can’t see him as a marching band dude. He doesn’t really give off color guard vibes (since that’s where most non-band people go to) so I have him as the resident student helper who everyone tolerates because he brings ice cream after band camp.

Ahsoka Tano: Ahsoka is a flute player. As a flute player, I have intimate knowledge on this. She’s like the chill flute player who’s competitive enough to keep her position as principal, but is also chill enough to not have a big ego that butts heads with everyone. She also gives mad color guard vibes. Also speaking about that from personal experience (am I lowkey projecting my own experiences on her? you didn’t hear that from me). She seems like the type to love swing flags and sabre, and is 100% captain by senior year.

I have Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Ahsoka as siblings in this AU because I say so. Qui-Gon is around here somewhere as the resident hippie dad who lowkey smokes pot and will support his children while giving a big ‘fuck you’ to Dooku. 

Yoda’s also in here somewhere, and I love the idea that he’s an old Chinese/Asian man who refuses to speak english and will only do so with the most backwards grammar so his grandchild (Qui-Gon) and great-grandchildren (the trio) are forced to speak Mandarin/Cantonese to him (pick your poison). He just spends his days cutting up fruit and also might pull out his erhu if everyone asks nice enough. (I want to say he was a Peking Opera musician, but immigrated during Mao’s reign after he lost opportunities during the cultural revolution)

So, I know that it doesn’t make sense for a family to have 3 sets of twins and one triplet set, but fuck that I do what I want.

Cody Fett: okay so, Cody 100% plays the french horn. I don’t know, he just, he does. He’s got that air of sophistication because he can play the hardest brass instrument, but at the same time, he’s incredibly good at it and is matter-of-fact about it. He also would be the mello section leader (I was playing with the idea of drum major, but for now, leaving him as a section leader for now). He’s a bit uptight to be a low brass player, but cool enough to still be associated with the general brass group.

Rex Fett: I got Rex and Cody as the eldest Fett twins. Rex feels like a string player, so I have him on violin. I can see him be very hardworking and practicing diligently to the point where he easily sweeps through to concertmaster in high school and the local youth orchestra. He also gives of mad drum major vibes. I can see him copying music, handing out drill charts, and hauling the met around. Also, just think about Rex doing a fancy ass salute at competitions. Yes.

Next round of twins lets gooo

Jesse Fett: You could say Jesse has brass vibes. I see him as a reed person though. In concert band, he’s on clarinet. I used to think clarinets were as stuck up as us flutes but no they’re literally balls of chaotic energy ready to be unleashed. Just imagine Jesse blaming everything on his reed. I see him as the guy who switches to saxophone for marching band, though. He’s got the energy of the clarinet and the saxophone harnessed. Also, wouldn’t be surprised if he knows how to play the sousa.

Kix Fett: Y’know, when I originally made this AU, I had Kix as a musician as well. I’m gonna scratch that. He’s going to medical school, or at least, he’s planning to. He’s on the pre-med track and is dying in organic chemistry and wishes there weren’t so many pre-requisites. However, in high school, he definitely played the oboe. Of course Kix chose one of the hardest instruments to play. Also, just imagine him trying to make his own reeds. I don’t see him as a guy who’s in marching band. He’ll come to competitions and maybe football games if he’s bullied into it. Kix is the guy who’s classes are all AP and he’s dying inside.

Next round of twins yeet:

Fives Fett: shit, I forgot I gave them all real names. If I remember correctly, Fives is Frank. Anyways, trumpet vibes. Need I say more? He’s on the trumpet in marching band as well and he’s the dude who’s obsessed with DCI and always tries to play as high as he possibly can and absolutely demolishes his chops. I would say he’s section leader as well. He also hangs with the drumline at the back of the bus and always plays meme songs on blast and sends weird pictures to people’s phone via open airdrop.

Echo Fett: I think his birth name is Ethan??? I’m spitting thoughts not checking my old documents. Anyways. Echo feels like a string person. Specifically, low strings. So, he plays the bass. Upright bass. Whatever. You get what I mean. He sleeps in the case after school and hates hauling it everywhere. He was in marching band as a mello player (the easiest brass instrument to pick up for the activity so) but he was in a car crash that left him paralyzed from the hip down, and had to quit to recover. He never stopped playing, and found ways to adjust. (I do not know how exactly this would work, since I’m able bodied and also don’t play the bass, but I know he’d at least have a stool to sit on in order to lean his body on. let me know if you have other ideas i’d love to hear them!)

Finally, we got the triplets:

Dogma Fett: Dogma plays the bassoon. He’s a low reed kinda guy and between the bari sax, bass clarinet, and bassoon, he fits the last one the best. He and Kix moan over making reeds and he’s on the quieter side. He just vibes and plays all the low notes and has fun whenever he’s got some moving part. I see Dogma as someone who is only casually into marching band. He uses Jesse’s old student clarinet as his instrument and he’s always on time, knows his sets, and his technique is on point. He always finds himself roped into his brothers’ shenanigans though.

Tup Fett: Tup plays the harp. I like to think he met Shaak Ti (we’ll get to her in a bit) when he was young, and she was playing with an orchestra. He met her backstage and she offered to give him lessons. Tup’s not really a part of high school orchestra but sometimes he’ll be brought in. He’s more involved with solo work and the youth orchestra more than anything. Tup’s another on where I don’t think he’d be into marching band. Though I can see him being in winter guard as the dude who just shows up and is lowkey rip and therefore is a hunk on the rifle. His technique’s good but they’ve never been able to saddle him into fall guard.

Hardcase Fett: (i’ve given up on remembering the birth names so i’m just gonna not) Hardcase is 100% low brass vibes. He can’t be anything but a low brass. I see him as a tuba player. He’s chill, laid back, but also reliable for being the foundation of the band sound. He plays the sousaphone in marching band and always blasts either Seven Nation Army or some other popular show tune right after rehearsals. Hardcase also can play the bari sax and no one knows when he learned how to. 

OKAY we’re done with the Fett’s! Jango and Boba are in here somewhere but honestly I don’t have enough brainpower to come up with what their roles are. Jango’s gonna be a good dad though. Maybe he was a musician and that’s why most of his kids are going into music. Or maybe he’s just a supportive father. Boba’s the youngest though, that’s for sure. And he’s a little shit. Don’t know if he plays an instrument (probably) or what it might be.

Now lets get into some other characters! There’s a lot. And I wasn’t even halfway done with the characters I wanted to include. What the hell was I on last summer?

Padmé Amidala: Padmé is a flute player who quit after freshman year of high school and started taking music production and music theory classes. She loved it so much that she decided that composing was her jam. Now, she’s highly successful and often works with well known pianist, Anakin Skywalker, on piano concertos. Also, she may or may not be dating said pianists but you didn’t hear that from me.

Satine Kryze: twosetters don’t shit on me but Satine feels like she’d play the viola. She and Obi-Obi-Wan definitely dated in high school but after a year broke up on mutual terms and are just good friends now. A lot of people feel like she’d have been a better political science/international studies major than a music major but she’s good so no one complains (until she gets into a fighting match with someone and wins smugly)

Bo-Katan Kryze: shes Satine’s younger sister and is a mad athlete. She doesn’t play any instruments but she’s deeply active and is on scholarship for college, on the pre-med track with Kix. She’s very scary and most people are too intimidated by her to approach.

Plo Koon: I originally had him as an asian man, but I can see Native American as well. He plays the euphonium and he’s just a sweet man. He helps out a lot with private lessons at local high schools and is often brought in to help with low brass during marching band.

Wolffe Koon: Wolffe and Gregor (get to him in a bit) were both adopted by Plo when their parents died when they were very young. Plo was their godfather and he took them in like they were his own. They’re cousins to the Fett brothers (though don’t ask me how I have no idea). Wolffe is an engineer and works close to home.

Gregor Koon: Gregor is Wolffe’s younger brother and had a short stint of musical interest in middle school but quit after he entered high school. Gregor was in a serious car crash during college that left him amnesiac for a year before some of his memories returned. He now owns a restaurant and sticks close to home. Wolffe often comes around to check up on him because his brain injury still impacts his current life in small physical and emotional dips

Kit Fisto: Kit gives off mad trombone vibes and it’s mostly because he seems incredibly laid back. He’s one of those brass players who’s just a nice guy and while jokes around, never got pulled into jokes as a student.

Shaak Ti: like I said above, Shaak Ti is most definitely a harpist. She has that ethereal quality I think is common in harpists. She’s a tall Indian woman and she loves her job! She’s a private lesson teacher and instructor at the conservatory on top of her job in the orchestra since she’s not called in often to play. She loves all her students and gives good hugs.

Mace Windu: Mace is the director of the Jedi Symphony, the orchestra which almost everyone is involved with. He is a bass player and he likes his more classical pieces over contemporary music. He’s good friends with Yoda and sometimes the old troll has to wack some sense into Windu and have him take on newer pieces. Windu 100% gives off unhinged director vibes because mistakes and lazy musicians definitely don’t end after high school/college is over.

Quinlan Vos: this lil shithead definitely is the obnoxious, slightly arrogant, but kind of deserving of that, percussionist. He loves his snare drum and is also in the drumline. He’s the same age as Obi-Wan and the two are close friends. Quinlan is definitely slightly unhinged and is always at the back of the bus causing havoc after competitions. He’s the guy that I (OP) hate but also can’t help but respect cuz yeah he’s annoying but at least he’s good.

Aayla Secura: Aayla is Quinn’s half-sister, and plays the French horn. Again, like Cody, she’s got this air of professionalism that I associate with French horn players and like, we gotta represent the girls in brass somehow. She just fits it really nicely.

I feel like now is the time to list who’s still in conservatory and who isn’t: Obi-Wan, Anakin, Rex, Cody, Jesse, Quinlan, Padmé, and Satine are all recent graduates. Ahsoka, Aayla, Fives, Echo, Tup, Dogma, and Hardcase are still in conservatory (at varying years of course). Kix and Bo are entering med school/frantically applying and banging their heads cuz MCATs. Wolffe and Gregor are older and have been in the field for quite some time now. Plo, Kit, Shaak, and Mace are all faculty/seasoned professionals.

Somehow, I was gonna bring in The Skiratas (with proper research cuz I know very little about them), Dooku, Ventress, the Oppress siblings, rest of Domino Squad, Cut Lawquene, the other CCs, and more. I designated a page out of my sketchbook for this and my oh my the flow chart was hella confusing. How I thought I was gonna handle that in the summer before my first year of college, I have no idea. Maybe I’ll brainstorm more in the future but for now, this is all I have :]]]

Also excuse some of my slightly unhinged language I started writing this a few days ago while slightly unfocused and tired and stressed so my language is a product of that

#star wars #meta #musician au #my thoughts #I miss marching band so fucking much #I miss DCI #and WGI #miss the community #even if it was pretty stressful at times cuz drama #people love their drama in band #I don’t blame them you get sick of people after band camp #star wars au

[touchmycoat]

svsss extraordinary you!AU

shoujo main lead Luo Binghe, the poor kid at Cang Qiong on a scholarship that only barely takes care of his ailing mother’s hospital fees, relentlessly bullied yet relentlessly optimistic

shoujo love interest Shen Qingqiu got looks got smarts got money, top of the school hierarchy, most prominent member of the school’s peak tier trio of heartbreakers, nicknamed, what, the Lords? the Immortals?

secondary love interest Yue Qingyuan also got looks got smarts got money, is the son of the school’s president, famously kind and super darling and popular. Mournfully plays the erhu in LBH presence a lot while SQQ steals LBH’s attention from him

B-plot male lead Liu Qingge, the grumpy pants of the peak lords but also gao fu shuai, son of corporate scion

B-plot love interest Shen Yuan, LQG’s fiancé who’s been pursuing him for ten years, but LQG hates his guts. Has a chronic heart condition that causes many convenient plot lines

One day Shen Yuan begins to grow increasingly aware of the weird page-flipping noises he hears, the gaps in his memory, the way he does things he doesn’t actually want to do, like weep in the middle of a courtyard after LQG snaps at him to stop following him around

Genre-savvy SY sees LBH being bullied, sees the Peak Lords, sees the way everybody immediately forgets any and all rude or “uncharacteristic” thing he says, and makes the educated deduction that he was in a shoujo manga. He’s bound by weird rules here, whether or not he wants to—he’ll always chase after LQG no matter how horrible the things LQG says to him are, he’ll always appear in tropey scenes to help forward the romantic plot line between SQQ and LBH

like when LBH gets locked in that bathroom stall! where did those random wet wipes in SY’s hand come from?? he helps LBH out, and keeps up this constant sighing litany of “oh you poor thing, suffering this shit writing, how many times will they shove you into a locker how many times will they beat you up, how many times will SQQ give you a random debt and demand you be his servant this is such BAD WRITING”

but LBH of course doesn’t remember any of it

as SY develops this habit of commentating on all the scenarios’ being shit, one day he suddenly enters a scene with the super busy school administrator Shang Qinghua, who hears him, and suddenly is all “!!!!!!!!!” and drags him aside

SQH is all “bro, oh my god you’re conscious thank god” and SY is like “??? who are you?” and SQH is all “You don’t remember???”

“What are you talking about?”

“Bro, we’re not from here. This isn’t our world. But thank god you’re awake, seriously, I’ve been so scared this whole time watching you all run around with your bullshit romance plots seriously it’s like they didn’t try at all and that’s coming from me hahaha... Well anyways, we have to wake everybody else up, okay? If you can be woken up... Maybe they all can too.”

“...Who are ‘they?’”

For personality reasons, they decide to try YQY first. SY points out that he’d been talking shit to their faces this whole time, but it’s never worked, they’ve never remembered past the next required plot scene. But they investigate anyways—or well, SY investigates, since he’s the one actually popping in and out of the scenes, while SQH is the most background extra to exist and still have a name in this manga.

SY tries a handful of things, but they never seem to work. YQY is always still staring longingly at SQQ and LBH from afar.

One day, when he’s near giving up, SY asks YQY, “what do you like so much about him anyways?”

“...I don’t know.” Classic shit writing for side characters, Yue-dage!! I’m sorry you got so shafted!! “I just... I just really feel like I’ve always loved him, and have never known how to stop.”

“Man, sorry to hear that, unrequited love must really burn.”

“Well you’d know best, wouldn’t you Shen Yuan? Heheh. I appreciate your commiseration.” Here, YQY’s expression grows frustrated. “I just... I just wish he liked him back, is all. He not liking me back is one thing, but to watch him suffer too? Why can’t he just give him a straight-forward answer already, you know?”

SY, blinking, “I... Sorry, you lost me. You wish who liked who back?”

“Luo B—”

“Shen-xuezhang!” LBH comes bounding over, ditching SQQ mid-convo. “Yue-xuezhang.”

Ah, darling main character, you can’t just leave your love interest behind like that!! This is why Yue Qingyuan keeps hoping you like him back!

“Um, I’ve actually been having a little trouble with the new math material lately, and I think a tutor would really help...”

“...Ah, sorry,” YQY says, attention completely on SQQ glaring at him in the back. SY of course thinks this is about their love triangle with LBH. “I’m no good at math.”

“That’s fine,” LBH dismisses way too quickly. “What about Shen-xuezhang? Please?”

“I don’t mind,” SY says, frowning. “But I doubt the plot will let me. Isn’t your tutor supposed to be Yue Qingyuan, any way you look at it?”

FLIP

SY is LBH’s tutor. SY reluctantly gives the author a little kudos for going out of the box with this one, but he assumes, of course, that he’s meant to be forwarding the love triangle. LBH asks if SY is going to the annual school ball with LQG, and SY goes “aha,  I’m supposed to invite him, doll him up, and bring him to the ball to shock SQQ and YQY’s poor hearts mhm.”

LQG also shows up. Cue scene. SY asks LQG if they’re going together and LQG yells at him and refuses to go and, heroic heroine Bingmei says he’ll go with the quietly crying SY. Typical.

They go the ball. YQY is there first, and SY gets ready for YQY to get the “oh my god he’s beautiful” close-up glowing shot when he sees LBH, but to SY’s surprise it doesn’t come. Instead, it’s when SQQ shows up that there’s some sparkles, and what’s this, a delayed stage effect? What kind of poor scene management!! SY wants his money back!! But at least SQQ gets the glowy close up when he sees LBH.

But before SY can inquire further, he’s flipped into another scene with an angry LQG, snapping at him about using his family’s corporate power to pressure LQG’s family into making LQG keep SY company etc. etc. SY is helplessly sniffling while on the inside he’s like god let me die this is so contrived end the scene already.

The scene finally ends, and he completely snaps out of the weepy setting. He slaps LQG on the arm mid-sentence and is like “shut up for a second, let me ask you a question about YQY—has he been acting strangely recently?”

LQG is a bit startled at first, but does answer. “Not particularly, why?”

“He hasn’t been... asking questions? Talking about gaps in his memory? Hearing strange sounds?”

“Why are you asking??”

“Sigh, grumpy pants Liu-juju of course you’re no help. But that’s not your fault.  It’s not like I’m not taking any of your shouting to heart, though it still sucks a surprising amount to be shit on all the time about a health condition I can’t even help, I’ll be honest. But anyways, I’m off.”

“...Sorry.”

“Hm?”

“I don’t mean to shout about your heart condition,” LQG grits out. “I said I’m sorry.”

“Oh. Wow.” Come to think about it, this is SY’s first time talking to LQG outside of a scene. “Huh, I guess you’re actually not a bad guy, without bad writing? They really did you dirty. Don’t worry about it man.”

#scum villain #sv #lmfao sorry this got way too fucking long but point is #lbh falls in love w sy who's always kind to him #(yes i ship joo-da and dan-oh like c'MON) #LQG's shit character setting has him yelling at SY all the time and as he grows self-aware #he's more and more horrified and is very determined to get out of this scenario #yqy is of course pining after his bestest friend #and SQQ is the last to snap to it #but when he does #he's gonna be so fucking humiliated #for having been pining after LBH #the meta plot is #they're actually still from canonverse #and SQH is trying desperately to find his way back 'cause also MBJ is nowhere to be found #he finds the black holes that bridge the worlds sometimes #and tries to go in #but every time he tries ice freezes him out #and probably the story goes #(SQH doesnt' remember) #when calamity fell upon canonverse MBJ picks up xin mo in a moment of desperation #or something #and rends open a whole in the universe where people would be safe #and he cannot let them come back to canonverse #'cause harm will befall them #etc.etc

[bananban-feature]

Stan Talent, Stan Pentagon

So many reasons to stan Pentagon:

1. Self-Produced

They just have a ton of talented songwriters in here! Cube is popular for self-produced idols after all, like BtoB, another super talented group.

Hui is a composer-producer, not really a secret because he’s well-known as a genius as he also composed hit songs for other popular groups (such as Energetic by Wanna One)

Kino and Wooseok wrote a lot of songs in their albums too, including some of my favorites Spring Snow (Kino) and Nostalgia (Wooseok). Kino also wrote their special single Eternal Flame. Wooseok had a big contribution in writing my absolute favorite, Daisy (but mostly written by Hui), and honestly his songwriting talent seems to be underrated.

Jinho has also composed a few and helped write a lot. Yuto also composed songs (aside from his rap lines), one song being Camella that a lot of “unis” love. *Universe/Unis = fandom name

Both Kino and Yuto have their own soundclouds for the songs they write/produce.

Yeo One composed his own solo songs (yes, even as rookies, they were already composing), and they’re actually so good. 

Also, in general, they are so creative in their songs and performances. Example: their Road To Kingdom performances, and also their super fun b-sides like Round 1 and Round 2!

My personal favorites: Obviously the genius Hui, Wooseok (I love him so much!), and Kino (such a talented person)

2. Vocal Kings

Their main vocals (Hui and Jinho) are absolutely top-tier vocalists, two of the strongest ones in the kpop world (imo).

Jinho was LITERALLY a vocal coach of kpop stars. Incredible vocal range.

Their lead vocals Hongseok (actually now a main vocal) and Yeo One are potential main vocals! And their sub-vocals, Kino (honestly surprised he was a sub-vocal cause he’s waaaay too good to be sub!), Yan An and Shinwon, are on par or better than other groups’ lead vocals, imo.

Vocal kings of harmonization. I love it so much, they sound so good! They take after their sunbaes BtoB, the OG harmonization kings. (Song references: You Are, and Shine acapella version).

Wooseok and Yuto’s rap are also so good! Honestly, I go crazy sometimes, especially with Wooseok’s delivery.

Edit, random trivia: I actually found out Wooseok auditioned in Cube as a vocalist and a model. Thank God, he discovered his talent in rapping later on, because dang, this guy is SICK. His rap touches my heart. He is proof that the basis of what a good rapper is doesn’t need to be about how fast you can say your words.

My personal favorites: Hui, Jinho, and Yeo One (what a beautiful voice, and he’s so good and stable live, halp huhu, totally underrated), Wooseok’s rap (I’m a big fan, my eyes are filled with hearts)

3. Musical ability (in general) and Dance

Being composers/producers, they have a good understanding of music theory and techniques, especially for Hui (obviously, the genius), Jinho (as a vocal coach) and Kino (I think).

Musical Instruments: Almost all of them (except for Hongseok) plays musical instruments

Piano: Hui, Jinho, Kino, Shinwon - I have to make a special note here. These guys can really play. They’re not the type to say they play the piano but only press a few chords here and there a bit and sing a song. They play their keys!

Guitar: Yuto (he is really good! he posts electric guitar covers on Twitter), Wooseok, Jinho, Hui, Yeo One, Shinwon

Erhu (Chinese traditional instrument): Yan An - studied it for 10 years. Haha! This is so unique, I’ve never seen him play it, and it’s not exactly a useful instrument to have for kpop music, but I love it!

Edit: I also found out Wooseok can play the violin. Not only that, he’s won a violin competition.. I couldn’t believe it! Violin it’s such a hard instrument. It’s not easy to be good at violin, let alone win a violin competition. Wooseok really surprises me with the musical talent he has sometimes.

Dance: Quite obvious as a kpop idol group, even though admittedly they aren’t exactly the best as a whole group. 

But anyway, Kino is the main dancer. (Also known for being such a good dancer of girl group songs. Hihi cute)

Lead dancers: Hui, Yuto, Yeo One

Apparently, Kino is also the choreographer! I think he was the main choreographer for Daisy. (Don’t @ me, I’m not sure. But in general, yes, he does choreograph for the group.)

My personal favorites: Kino, Hui - this also includes stage presence.

4. Visuals

Their official visual is Yan An. (Pentagon is whipped for Yanan, btw.)

Other unofficial visuals, at least in my book: Yuto, Hongseok, Yeo One, Kino (but tbf, as a well-loved idol group, everyone becomes an unofficial visual)

Shinwon was actually a legit model before being an idol, and he became viral for being “the handsome part-timer” at a cafe Exo went to.

Men’s Health Korea models (YES, ACTUAL MEN’S HEALTH COVER BOYS aka gym freaks): Hongseok, Yeo One. *PS: I have a feeling Yuto will also be on there soon, one of these days

Let me just reiterate though that while Hongseok is known for his muscles, he more than his abs. He’s smart, funny, and talented, as you can see in this whole post. So yeah, basically, please don’t objectify him.

My personal favorites: Yuto (the reason why I checked Pentagon out in the first place! my heart went deugun deugun), Hongseok (what a great face, beautiful eyes), Yeo One (cutie), Kino (very very pretty face)

*check ending for gifs/pics*

5. Other talents

Acting

Literally THREE of them are musical theatre actors, and all were actually the main characters in their respective musicals: Jinho (already a theatre sunbae), Hui and Yeo One. Honestly, this shows both acting skills and strong vocal ability. (Imagine the strong vocal ability of the lead vocal, in PTG, Yeo One, a main character of a musical. It gives you an idea of how good the vocal line up is.)

I think some of them had some acting in dramas, like Hongseok and Yeo One

Update: Yanan and Wooseok are also on dramas/will be on dramas now. That makes almost everybody in Pentagon (still waiting for Yuto and Shinwon) an actor.

Another update: Kino is now hosting his second podcast with Dive Studios! :)

Randoms

Hongseok, Jinho and Kino speaks three languages pretty comfortably: Hongseok/Jinho (Korean, English, Chinese), Kino (Korean, English, Japanese) ---not super fluent but able to have good conversations. And foreigners Yanan (Korean, Chinese), and Yuto (Korean, Japanese) are obviously fluent bilinguals.

Kino drew and painted the album art for WE:TH / daisy. He even gifted a painted version to Hui for his studio!

6. Personality

Let me start by saying Pentagon is a crazy group. They aren’t really kids but they are so chaotic. I love that they have no filter!

Even the leader, Hui, who’s not really young, is very chaotic! Hui is actually such a cutie pie. And also so funny, especially in their TMIs

Hongseok is so funny, so witty, and has absolutely no shame. I love it!

Shinwon is very witty, and is known to be the mood-maker of the group.

Yeo One is a little 4D. He’s like a messy kid and sometimes has his own world. :)) An absolute cutie!!!

Kino is the sweetest person ever! He never fails to tell Universe how much he appreciates us.

Jinho is known to be the kind and caring hyung they can depend on.

My personal favorites: Hongseok (hilarious and crazy, has me dying), Hui, Yeo One (ugghhhh super cute personality!), Kino also!!!

Overall: They have a bunch of all-rounders! (My personal favorite all-rounders: Hui, Kino, and Yeo One) They’re so talented and deserve a lot of recognition and support.

Hui is my bias and my ult, but I can’t decide who’s my next bias.

Update: I think Kino is my next bias, cause he’s just so good, so multi-talented! I can’t with this guy. I’m even considering adding him to my ult list.

But my gosh, Changgu is absolutely adorable. Wooseok talent. Huhu idk if second tier bias or...

***Not to be this obsessive OT10 fan, but I really like Dawn (formerly E’Dawn), so I’m writing his skills as well: Great composer (Shine, one of my faves huhu), such a great Rapper (he gets some amount of hate for his voice, but I actually really like it!), Main Dancer (what a good dancer tbh), and very unique personality. I love him, he’s so talented. (But anyway, even with him gone, Pentagon isn’t lacking! They’re still so great!)

If you wanna see my fave visuals, click below:

The legendary Yuto ponytail

PG-13 Hongseok GIFs only!!!

Also PG-13 Changgu only 

Sweet sweet Kino

#Pentagon #kpop #PTG

[dustedmagazine]

Listed: Dr. Pete Larson

Dr. Pete Larson runs Dagoretti Records now, he’s gotten there by an unusually long and winding road. Earlier in his career, Larson fronted 25 Suaves and Couch and ran BULB records. He also trained as an epidemiologist and spent time in Kenya studying the transmission of malaria. While in Kenya, he developed an interest in a lute-like eight-stringed instrument called a nyatiti and studied it with the master player Oduor Nyagweno. All these interests collide in a striking first album from Dr. Pete Larson and His Cytotoxic Nyatiti Band, where the nyatiti “cuts through a haze of electric rock distortion, pinging rhythmically and restlessly against floating euphorias of ululating vocals,” per Jennifer Kelly’s review. Here he lists some favorites from several continents.

I have been asked to create one of these lists for Dusted and here’s what I came up with. Making these lists is kind of difficult. I have a hard time remembering what I’ve been listening to at any moment, but here is a collection of old and new that get frequent airplay in my home. I play a Kenyan lyre, so this heavily leans toward lyre and harps and East African music in general, with some other choice cuts thrown in.

Musicians Of The National Dance Company Of Cambodia — Homrong (Real World Records)

I think I got this record (CD) back in the early 90s when I was selling music to Caroline Records. A friend sent me a box of CD promos, most of which wasn’t very interesting, but fortunately, this one was included. I don’t really know anything about Cambodian music, but for some reason, this collection of mid-tempo Cambodian court jamz plays every couple of months. Lots of weird sort of lurching rhythms and chorus singing with an erhu like instrument over it. A great listen.

Maleem Mahmoud Ghania w/ Pharoah Sanders — Trance of the Seven Colors

The Trance Of Seven Colors by Maleem Mahmoud Ghania w/ Pharoah Sanders

Trance inducing this is. Maleem Mahmoud Ghania is (was) one of the 20th century masters of Moroccan Gnawa music, a sort of spiritual, bass-heavy, rolling kind of music of Morocco. Any recording by Maleem Mahmoud is going to impress, but this mash of up of Gnawa with the great Pharoah Sanders is another level. If you are familiar with Gnawa music, it is a little disorienting to hear Sanders howl over the slow burn trance jamz but you are quickly drawn into what a perfect matchup this ended up being. Released on CD in the 90s, it fortunately has finally gotten a proper vinyl release.

Momoyama Harue — “Lullaby for the mother demon’s baby” (桃山晴衣* ‎– 鬼の女の子守唄)

I was playing the shamisen for a while (a three stringed lute from Japan) and found Momoyama Harue as part of my research. Shamisen is kind of a folky instrument for drinking parlors and entertainment of old Japan. The instrument and the music was nearly dead but saw a revival in the 1960s, similar to folk revivals in the US that brought the banjo back. Momoyama, however, was kind of an outlier, more arty than folky, and more poetry than song. Rather than box the music in an imagined past or try to hopelessly smash it into amplified rock music, she pushed it forward, blending it with ambient synth along with Indian and Middle Eastern musics. One of her best collaborations was with the great Egyptian oud player Hamza el Din that was nearly dead until the 1960s. All of the songs on this record are haunting (as the title suggests), but these tracks with el Din are truly singular. I have been searching for a vinyl copy of this record for years; one day I’ll get lucky.

Lucas Odote — “J. Oreng”

Nyatiti Singles Volume 1 by Lucas Odote

I spent several years in Kenya learning to play the nyatiti, an eight stringed lyre historically played by a group of people in an area around Lake Victoria. I also spent time collecting records, searching for hours in dusty boxes for Kenyan traditional music records. One of my best finds was at Jimmy’s Records in Kenyatta Markets, this record by the great Nairobi based nyatiti player Lucas Odote. Most nyatiti records are just a guy playing solo and more ethno than funky. But this one seems to be Lucas teaming up with what I think to be Nairobi funksters, the Loki Toki Tok band. At least that’s what I can guess. My copy is beat to hell. It took some doing to get some sound out of it, but this is one of my faves in my collection.

Siti Muharam — Siti of Unguja (Romance Revolution On Zanzibar)

Siti of Unguja (Romance Revolution On Zanzibar) by Siti Muharam

I swear I saw Siti Muharam sing on the deck of a hotel bar while vacation in Zanzibar several years ago. I can’t be certain, but I am pretty sure it was her singing for the band I saw. The traditional form of Taarab music is something to be experienced. Taarab music comes from the Arab coast of East Africa, and is this fantastic mix of local feel and Arab sounds, overlapped with heart wrenching songs of lost love and longing. I think there are some foreigners involved in this production, but this is an excellent document of Taarab music at its best.

Grandmaster Masese — “Orogena rwa Baba”

Grandmaster Masese: New African Soundz Singles No.1 by Grandmaster Masese

It might be gauche to put records from your own label on a list like this, but I am first a music fan and second a musician and third a music seller… so this one stays. G-master is a friend of mine from Kenya and one of the best humans I know. One of just a handful of people who play the Obokano, a giant 8 stringed lyre that emits an unforgettable sub-bass buzzing sound and this was his first release in the US and one of my favorite records ever. We recorded this in his kitchen in Nairobi with just a couple of mics over dinner. G is a cool guy. You should listen to his music.

Yagi Michiyo — Seventeen

Yagi is another Japanese musician who specializes in what one would think is a “traditional” instrument, but who brings much more to the table than one would expect. Yagi is a koto player by training. You have probably heard koto in the background music for scenes of Japan in American movies. The version you hear there is mostly lifeless and flat, kind of like a plastic chair in the corner. Yagi, however, plays the 17 string bass koto, invented in the 1920s or so, to try and give new life to the instrument. Yagi creates weird percussive, dissonant music that I can’t really get enough of.

Asnakech Worku (featuring Hailu Mergia) — Asnakech

Asnakech by Asnakech Worku

Asnakech Worku was a lot of things; pioneer, actress, but most notably a female Krar player. Certainly there might have been other female Krar players in Ethiopia at the time, but Krar players are mostly men. The Krar is a lyre from Ethiopia, mostly played with one hand, though there are several playing styles out there. Worku plays haunting sounds on her Krar on this record, backed up by famous Ethiopian keyboardist Hailu Mergia, who really needs no intro.

Ogola Opot — “Domtila Ogola”

This will probably be the only 78 on this list. Ogola Opot is considered the grandfather of the Kenyan nyatiti, coming to prominence in the 1960s and 70s, and creating the genre we know as Siaya style “traditional nyatiti.” If someone asks me what nyatiti music sounds like, this is probably where I would have people start. I include this first because it is a great record and second because it was my holy grail for a while (though I always have new holy grails) and managed to find a pristine copy for sale from a place in France recently. I am not going to say how much I paid for it.

Sosena Gebre Eyesus — S/T (Little Axe Records)

Sosena Gebre Eyesus by Sosena Gebre Eyesus

I bought this record off the net because I am a huge fan of Begena music, this haunting, trance inducing music from Ethiopia that appears to be the go-to for Ethiopian Christians… but this record explained nothing of that. Just a picture of a lady with a begena and no other info…. It took me a while to put together what the record was and where it came from, but the sounds contained within are impeccable. Just 40 minutes of weird undersea tones on a giant bass lyre.

#dusted magazine #listed #dr. pete larson #Dagoretti Records #Musicians Of The National Dance Company Of Cambodia #maleem mahmoud ghania #pharoah sanders #momoyama harue #lucas odote #siti muharam #grandmaster masese #yagi michiyo #asnakech worku #hailu mergia #Ogola Opot #sosena gebre eyesus

[eyes-like-a-pisces]

Rules: Answer 10 questions, tag 10 people and make another 10 questions.🧜‍♀️

Questions from my astrological twin: @maiden-song 💕

1. if you could choose to glimpse the afterlife, would you?

Yes, I would. I think a lot about It.

2. under what circumstances do you think you past life was lived?

I could have had many past lifes. I think I was a native american, cause I've always felt bonded to their tradicion and same with China, cause when I hear the sound of Erhu - traditional chinese instrument, something wakes up in me. I've also always wanted to see Sweden & Finland, so maybe I was doing something there... I mean, I could do anything. I see myself in biblical times, as well as middle ages. I could be a renaissance artist, as well as dying of hunger during victorian era, or something, and that's probably why I'm still careful with money, haha. For my latest one, I think I could have been a hippie in the 60/70s and had some drug use experience, cause when I was a child I used have dreams about taking drugs, even if I didn't know anything about It. I also had some experience with psychics (and "psychics"), my mom had a past life regression and she told me she saw me few times... I don't take anything for granded, but reincarnation is one of my favourite theories.

3. what three skills would you instantly master if you had the choice?

Playing every instrument, speaking every language, singing beautifully

4. would your rather no passion or no pain?

No pain. Everything is needed in life, but you know, enough is enough.

5. if you had a chance to leave this world and go to another one, would you take it?

Depends of the world and who I would meet there. Even if this world can be cruel and disappointing at times, I still have some love for him and humanity.

6. if you could smell like anything in the world, what would it be?

Like the first day of spring, when you go outside and the air smells different. Or a storm.

7. do you feel like common interests or philosophical comparability are not important?

They are very important. I can't imagine a relationship without similar interests, views. You either get bored or fight constantly. I think that the whole point of searching a partner is trying to find things you got in common. The more similar you are, the more understood you feel and more you are attracted to them. That's my experience at least. That's a very basic example, but as you may noticed, I'm very much into music and I was dating a guy, who wasn't into music that much at all. I thought It doesn't matter at first, but then I started feeling like I'm missing my favourite way to connect with other person. Once I met a guy who loved music as much as I do, I'm sorry to admit It, but my partner became unattractive to me.

Similar interests and views are needed at the beginning, to bond with somebody, and later, to simply enjoy spending time together (thanks Captain Obvious). I mean... chemistry and good will are not enough for a relationship to last. Don't get me wrong, I don't think you have to be identical and agree on everything - some differences can be inspiring, balance your relationship and teach you something new. It's also ok and even needed, to have some separate hobbies, things that you like to do on your own. There are also other important things, like, if you equally care about each other and if you are on the same page in general, but I can't imagine not agreeing in the key points and things that are the most important to you. And the only person who can decide what is the most important is the person who is in that relationship, no matter if It's about interests, philosophy or religion. But beside a romantic relationship, I think It's good to be surrounded by different people and listen what they got to say.

8. if there was one mystery you alone could learn the answer too, what would it be?

The mystery of life in general. Why we are here, is there any destiny, how we are connected, how this universe works, what happens after death...

9. in your opinion, is there anything more important than love?

No :) (I'm not talking about putting your relationship before other things. I'm talking about love as a big force and meaning of this universe)

10. describe a new planet you would live on, if you could.

I want things to be diverse, monumental... Maybe another moon, why not. As a concept of the world, I wish there would be peace :) everybody has their safe place to live, will to live, passion, purpose, someone to love and who loves them back. Amen.

Questions from @mybloodiedvalentine 💕👯

1. What is an unpopular opinion you hold you about which you feel strongly and with which you seem to notice a lot of people disagree?

Nothing specific comes to my mind at the moment (that I haven't mentioned before). I sure have some, but what's unpopular opinion in general and what's unpopular opinion on tumblr, are two different things. Maybe, that the "tumblr positivity" is not really helpful. Like: "in case you need to hear this: you are smart, you are loved... ". How do you know that? Those are just empty words. But It's better to spread positivity than negativity, of course.

2. What is the nicest thing a stranger has ever told you that you can recall?

Oh, I had a few situations like that... This is so lovely, when a stranger wants to just be genuinely nice, not just catcalling you...For example, when I was with my 3 girlfriends at the club and 2 ladies in their 40s where like: "excuse me, we just wanted to say that we can't stop starring at you all, cause you are the priettiest girls in the club." And we were like: aww, omg, you are beautiful too, come dance with us. And we were all dancing in our witches circle ignoring all sweaty men around us, haha. Or when my mom went to the the same hair saloon as me and asked hair dresser if she remembers me and she said that she does and that I'm nice and intelectual. I'm her faithful client now ;_; (Sorry for sucking my own dick, but It was nice to remind myself about these situations).

3. Has a piece of art or music ever made you cry? If so, do you remember a specific moment? 

Crying to music is my passion. The latest intense moment was few days ago. I was loading a dishwasher at night and I played some music and then "lover you should've come over" by Jeff Buckley came on and sudden wave of lonelliness hit me so hard, that I just had to put down the plate, hide my face in my hands and weep ✌

4. What’s your favourite piece of clothing?

Idk, maybe my Penny Lane coat :)

5. What’s a random childhood memory that fills you with a deep sense of comforting nostalgia? 

Sledding with kids during a very cold winter in my home town, until It got dark and snow looked like sprinkled with glitter and having my freezed feet warmed up with a hair dryer, when I came back home, haha.

6. What is/was your favourite thing about your mom? If not your mom, your dad? Or best friend?

My favourite thing about my mom is that she's tolerant and open minded. I didn't have to lie to her or pretend I'm someone I'm not because of that. My favourite thing about my dad is that he actually cared about being a parent, even tho my parents divorced. I respect that he has unwavering morals and huge knowledge about a world - biology, astronomy, music, art...- subject doesn't matter- but he is very modest about It.

7. What’s something you learned on your own of which you’re proud?

Playing guitar

8. When was a moment in your life you remember laughing the hardest?

I was playing cards since I was a kid. After few years, when I was about 13 y. o. I got the first poker, a royal flush. When I saw my cards, I'm not sure why, I just coudn't believe my luck, I started laughing so hard I almost died.

9. What do you like to do when you’re having a hard time mentally that invariably calms you down?

Really depends of the kind of situation and if It's triggered by something or just a longer period of time feeling in a certain way. The is no a magic trick, but some things might be helpful. When It's concrete situation, at first, when the feelings are really intense, then I just can't calm down. Every try to do so, has a reverse effect. Like, I CAN'T THE FUCK CALM DOWN and It makes me even more angry. Brain needs about 20 min to chill, if It's not triggered, so It's better to be left alone and just go mad a little until brain will have enough haha. Have a good cry, listen to some music, have a lonely walk, write my feelings down etc.

I like to listen to Teal Swan on youtube. She's a spiritual teacher. I know, It might not sound encouragingly, but she actually seems very down to earth. She has a video about like, every emotion and every problem ever. She's very good in naming feelings, rationalizing them and It makes you feel more understood. And It calms me down as result. ASMR doesn't work for me, but I remember that at some point I liked to listen to sounds of the nature, like rain, waves etc + guided meditation to fall asleep.

Music always helps in general - listening, playing guitar, singing. I also like to take an oil and do a face massage. I'm really sorry if I sound like an instagram influencer 🤢, but when you feel bad for a longer time, you frown and there is a tention in your jaw, it can be really relieving. I follow instructional videos on yt.

When I have a longer period of going into downward spiral, then every way to distract my brain is good - TV shows, internet content that is not related to my life situation (although, sometimes It's good to distance yourself from social media), for example, I like criminal podcasts, cause they are occupying enough to distract a miserable brain, meeting somebody, going to a place I've never been before. + any kind of shedule, reason to leave the house, any goal, anything positive to look forward to and having even the simplest things done, is a blessing (even if sometimes It's the last thing I wanna do). I also tend to be much sadder in the evening, so I just go to sleep. When nothing works, then It's time for the professional help.

10. Do you have a favourite holiday memory?

Discovering Cocteau Twins.

Best regards if u actually read all that chatter, but those questions were so interesting, that I couldn't limit myself to one sentence answer (in most cases).

My questions are:

1. Who or what was the most influential for your music taste?

2. If you could time travel, where and when would you like to go first?

3. If you could be someone from an opposite gender for a day, how would you like to look like and what would you do?

4. Do you have a style icon/inspiration? Or a favourite designer? Desribe your dream clothing style

5. What's the song by a band/artist from your country that you could recommend? (From your hometown or state eventually)

6. What is the most rebellious thing you've ever done?

7. Has ever something in your life happened, that you coudn't explain with logic?

8. What 5 objects someone could use to summon you?

9. What is your favourite name from your culture's language? And outside your culture's language?

10. What's a song you normally wouldn't admit you like or different from music that you usually listen, but still enjoy?

I tag: @winterdryad @bowiepop @nightmare @confusion-in-the-sea-of-sorrow @l0w-budget @numberoneblind @mirandasinclairs @mysticbride @leperwitch @comeacrossthedesertnoshoeson @hexafu @mielmelancolie @arcane-delight

#don't reblog this or any of my personal posts please #and thank you

[dancingkirby]

Azula Week Day 5: Smiles

Summary: Zuko decides to invite all of his and Azula’s illegitimate half-siblings to the brunch on his and Mai’s wedding day.  It goes less badly than Azula had feared.

Warnings/Notes: Multiple non-graphic references to past sexual abuse of multiple underage girls, leading to one death and one near-death in childbirth.  (Don’t worry, it has a happy ending!).  Classism, internalized misogyny, etc. on Azula’s part.  OC-heavy.  One GoT reference that sort of wormed its way in there under its own volition.  

Word count: 2667 (longer than I had been anticipating!)

After many, many delays, the day of Zuko and Mai’s wedding was finally imminent.  There, would, of course, be intense media coverage and a general holiday for the populace, as well as thousands of guests. However, Zuko had also come up with the idea to have a pre-wedding brunch for family and close friends only. This wouldn’t be so outlandish, except that to him, “family” included Ozai’s bastards…every single one that he could find.

“Even the commoners, Zuzu?” she had sighed when he broke the news.  “It’s not a good image.  People at court are already talking.  We ought not to remind everyone of our baggage.”

“They��re not baggage, Azula,” he retorted.  “They’re our siblings.”

“Half-siblings,” she corrected as she brushed a cherry blossom from her shoulder; they were sitting in the courtyard watching the decorations being put up.  

Azula,” her brother admonished.  He spent what seemed like an absurd length of time trying to figure out what to say next, looked to make sure the decorators weren’t eavesdropping, then added, “I’ve been to their houses, you know that.  I’ve spoken with them personally, and I know all of their names and their stories.  You don’t want to know what I found out.”

“Don’t I, brother?” Azula inquired in faux innocent tones.  Zuko rubbed a knuckle against his forehead.

“Fine.” He conceded. “Here’s just one of the stories. There was a girl.  Lian.  Her father died suddenly, and her mother was sick a lot.  So she and her older siblings had to find jobs in the palace so the family wouldn’t starve.  She wasn’t even old enough to legally be hired, but they found work for her in the laundry under the table.  Her job was to go from room to room, gathering the dirty clothes.  I think you can see where this is going.  And…she died giving birth.  She was just a child.”  Sparks flew out of his nose as he exhaled forcefully.

“You’re rambling, Zuzu.  And watch the volume,” Azula stated almost without thinking.  Internally, however, her mind was spinning.  As much as she hated to admit it, Azula had not been prepared for that last part.  Died? Five years ago, she would have dismissed Lian as not fit to live anyway.  But now…she knew that she herself had been near death in that same situation, no matter how much the doctors had tried to sugarcoat it.

She was able to remain expressionless, however, and asked, “And the baby?”

“His name is Chun. The youngest of the bunch; just turned four.  Cute kid.”

That would place his conception sometime in the weeks after the Day of Black Sun, during which Ozai had lost his last vestiges of self-control and everyone else in the palace suffered.  For all she knew, Lian could have been one of the ones Azula herself had witnessed; she’d never bothered to find out any of their names.

“Any other dead?” she queried.

“No, thankfully.  Many of the mothers have permanent medical problems, though.  Some have turned to alcohol.  A few of the kids were adopted out.  Acknowledging and welcoming them and their children...well, it’s the least we can do.  It’s the…”

Wait for it.

“honorable thing to do.”

And that was that.  Once the h-word was added to the equation, there was no changing her brother’s mind.

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It was the morning of the big day.  Zuko had decided to get the inevitable family photos done at the brunch, since Fire Nation weddings were lengthy and the smaller children would probably be tired after a long day of ceremonies.  Currently, he and Mai were standing at the entrance to the courtyard, greeting the guests as they walked in.  

There were twenty-one acknowledged bastards; everyone at court knew that.  Zuko had managed to track down an additional twenty-three, and he wasn’t even certain that he’d found them all.  This meant that their lord father had sired at least forty-six children…well, technically forty-seven, Azula thought as she fingered the footprint pendant on her necklace.  Twenty-eight of those had been born during his not quite six-year reign as Fire Lord.  Had she not known for herself how insatiable Ozai had been, she may have found the number mind-boggling.

What was more, their heretofore unacknowledged half-siblings tended to skew younger than the acknowledged ones.  The noblemen of the court who were actually decent people (or at least concerned about marriage prospects) had started keeping their young daughters home a couple of years into Ozai’s reign.  That meant a veritable flood of children ten and under, most of them having never come anywhere near the palace prior to this.

She nibbled on a green onion tartlet as she stood on a slight rise, surveying the goings-on in the courtyard.  Some children were wandering around, looking at their surroundings with big eyes.  A sizable group had been attracted by Ty Lee’s impromptu acrobatics performance.  Ursa was sitting by the pond, commiserating with some of the young mothers.  Kiyi had taken it upon herself to give people tours of the grounds whether they asked for it or not.

But…where was…?

Azula was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even fully register the timid tug on her sleeve until it was repeated a few seconds later.  She looked down for the source, and saw a small boy, wearing what must have passed for finery in whatever tiny village he came from.

“Bathrooms are that way,” she said for about the tenth time today as she pointed with her finger. But apparently that wasn’t the reason this child had sought her out.

“Are you the Princess?” he asked.  Except the “r” sounded more like a “w.”

“I am,” she confirmed. Then she watched, bemused, as the kid sank into a kowtow with surprisingly good form for a child of that age…not to mention a peasant.

Azula would not smile. She would not smile.

“You may rise,” she told him automatically, with all the solemnity she would give to an adult.  He sprang back up.

“Aunty said we have to do that if we see the Fire Lord or Fire Lady or Princess,” he explained in a rush.  “I saw the Fire Lord and he said don’t do it, but I wanted to do it because I practiced!”

Pwacticed.

She…was smiling, wasn’t she?  Damn.

“What is your name?” she asked him.

“Chun,” he answered. Azula had already had her suspicions when he had mentioned an aunt instead of a mother, and this confirmed them. This was the one Zuko had mentioned, whose mother had died.

“Well, Chun,” she said, “Your aunt was correct, generally speaking.  However, Zuzu does have his hangups about etiquette.  If you really want to pay obeisance, I would suggest a bow instead.  Would you like to learn the correct form for that?”

“Yeah!” he cheered.  Azula was quite sure that in the entire history of the world, no four-year-old had ever been as enthused about learning courtly manners.  

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chun had the three different depths of bowing down in about five minutes.  Azula had always considered herself good at sniffing out potential, and this child had heaps of it.  Perhaps one day he could find work as a palace bureaucrat, and even ultimately be appointed to a seat on the Fire Lord’s council.  She supposed that Zuko’s incorrigible stubbornness had had some merit for once; otherwise, Chun’s talents would have been wasted among the riffraff.  He was also tremendously eager to please, and refused to leave her side.  Azula got the feeling that nobody paid much attention to him at home.  

It almost made her wish that she hadn’t been so harsh toward Mai’s younger brother a few weeks ago. For someone who continued to know nothing about children except that they liked gross stories, she sure seemed to attract a lot of children.  

As the two of them wandered back to where the main crowd was, Azula provided a running commentary about their various half-siblings.

“That woman in the glasses is Anshi, the oldest,” she informed Chun.  “Great with numbers, and even beat Iroh at Pai Sho once.  Very boring conversationalist, though.  The lady in that hideous gown next to her is Zhilan.  She can lightning bend, yet refuses to actually learn how to use it effectively because she prefers to spend her days arranging flowers and playing the erhu like a proper lady.”  She shook her head.  

“She’s fat!” Chun exclaimed brightly.  Azula chuckled.

“Sssh.  Well, to be fair, she doesn’t have my flawless physique, but actually she’s expecting her third child.  Perhaps she thought that people would be so blinded by that monstrosity of an outfit that they wouldn’t notice?” She pulled Chun along before her vision was permanently ruined by what even Ty Lee would likely reject as too over-the-top.  Although it was unclear how much of her gossip the child actually understood, he didn’t appear bored.

“There’s Ichiro; he’s skilled at archery and so aloof that he makes Mai seem warm and inviting. And…ugh, that’s Eri, stuck-up as ever. Do not go near her,” Azula cautioned. The girl apparently ruled over the Royal Fire Academy for Girls just as Azula herself had done a decade earlier, but unfortunately lacked the intellect to be anything more than a common bully. Best to give her a wide berth like Kiyi did.

“Who’s that?” Chun piped up while pointing at a pair of children dressed in bright red from head to toe.

“Those are Akane and Akemi.  Twins. They’re the youngest of the Acknowledged, and they’re…”

Azula never got to say exactly what it was that Akane and Akemi were, since just then, there was a commotion at the courtyard entrance.

“Sorry I’m late!” yelled the new arrival.  As she turned to greet the soon-to-be newlyweds, her face was somewhat obscured. However, Azula had no difficulty recognizing her.  She’d know that short haircut anywhere.

Ruanyu.  Azula’s breath caught in her throat.  They hadn’t seen each other in nearly five years.  After so long without any contact, she’d been starting to think that her half-sister was dead.

“How about you run over to the Fire Lord and show him your bow?” she asked Chun.  He scampered off happily enough.

Azula was not anticipating that this would be a happy reunion.  Once, they had been close, and Azula had even allowed Ruanyu to call her by her given name.  However, she really had treated the girl more like a pampered yet disposable pet than anything else, and had all but forgotten her in the events leading up to Sozin’s Comet.  In fact, she hadn’t remembered that she had left the girl to her own devices until months later, when she was in the hospital.  

Then Ruanyu looked her way, paused for a split second, and began running toward Azula at top speed. Azula steeled herself, her heart racing. She remembered that the feisty little girl had held her own in sparring matches, and she was prepared to repel any firebending that might come her way.

What she was not prepared for was being nearly knocked off her feet by the sheer enthusiasm of her half-sister’s embrace.  When they pulled apart, Azula attempted to remain stoic, but the sheer magnetism of Ruanyu’s famous ear-to-ear grin was too much for her to resist.

“I see you managed to escape,” she commented dryly.

“Yeah.  My mom smuggled us out after the whole Phoenix King thing,” Ruanyu answered while shrugging, as if it were of no great importance.

Azula became painfully aware that everyone in the courtyard was watching them.  In fact, Zuko was leading the spectators in some applause, Ty Lee ran over to get her hug, and Mai made a cough that sounded a lot like the word “Finally.”

“You knew about this, didn’t you?” Azula accused Zuko.

“We wanted it to be a surprise,” was all he said in response.

“It seems that you succeeded in something for once,” Azula remarked in as deadpan a tone as she could manage.  Then, to Ruanyu, “Let’s go talk somewhere more private.”  Ruanyu agreed, and they retreated to Azula’s favorite shady little enclave.  Once they were out of earshot, Azula decided to cut right to the chase, as she looked at the face that was almost like looking in a mirror.

“If you’re angry at me, then say so.  Don’t hold back on my regard.”

Ruanyu bit her lip as she considered.

“I was angry at you.  Really angry for a while,” she commented.  “But I decided to forgive you.  Zuko told me about what Ozai did to you.”  Her eyes hardened.  

“Did he do anything to you?”   Azula had to know.

“Nah.  Well, he kept saying all this creepy stuff, but I was always faster than him,” Ruanyu replied.  She was obviously trying to be casual, but not quite succeeding.  She was sixteen; old enough to know that she had only just dodged a lightning bolt, and that others had not been as fortunate.

“And just what have you been doing these past years?” she inquired.

“Mom took us back to the village where she grew up.  She wanted me to settle down with some boring man and raise a family.  But that’s…not me.  So I’ve been doing a lot of traveling, seeing the world,” Ruanyu explained. Yes, Azula remembered her half-sister’s thirst for adventure well.  In fact, she had briefly considered taking the girl to the Earth Kingdom, but had decided against it since she knew that Ruanyu would never have gone along with taking Zuko and Iroh prisoner.  

She asked, “Any plans for after the wedding?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Ruanyu answered.  “I think I might stay at the palace again for a bit, then set off again.  I’m interested in seeing that new city that Zuko and his friends are building; he told me that they’re looking for settlers.”

Someone cleared their throat behind them.  “Did someone say my name?”  Azula turned to see that Zuko was indeed present, with one twin hanging off each arm.

“Yeah, I was just telling Azula that I wanted to see Republic City.”

“Well, we’d be glad to have you there.  But, uh, anyway, I came up here to tell you two that the photographer’s setting up.  He has a prototype model of a new kind of camera; one that can take the picture instantly.  I thought the younger kids might find it harder to stand still.”

“Don’t get him started on that special camera,” Mai chimed in as she walked up with Chun trailing behind her.  “He’ll probably spend our entire wedding night talking about it.”

“Not the entire night,” Zuko protested.

“Oh, really?  I suppose I will just have to make sure that you keep your word.”

Azula said, “There are children here, you two!” in almost perfect synchrony with Ruanyu’s “I don’t think I wanna hear this…”  They must have pulled identical faces, since Akane exclaimed, “More twins!”

“Oops.  Forgot about the kids,” mumbled Zuko. “So…yeah.  Picture time.”

And so the soon-to-be-wed couple kissed as they temporarily parted; Mai had to leave to undergo the ordeal of getting dressed in her many-layered wedding outfit.  (“If I’m really lucky, maybe it’ll actually get done sometime this decade,” she said.)  Zuko eventually got the whole group of Ozai’s progeny rounded up.  As her brother enlisted Sokka’s help to explain how the camera worked to those children who had never been photographed before, and Azula snuck appraising glances at the latter, she felt oddly at peace. They made for an odd collection of individuals indeed, but Zuko had been right just this once.  That awful trial was behind them, and they were all stuck in this same recovery boat together.  

After some time, they were all arranged in a more or less organized manner, and Azula made sure that her necklace would be clearly visible in the picture.

“Smile!” the photographer ordered.

And, as they saw weeks later when the developed pictures were sent to them, nearly everyone had.  Even Azula.

#azulaweek2020 #azula #atla #I think we all know that Azula and Sokka hooked up that night

[adhd-wifi]

If you could role swap any two characters (make Yanli NMJ sister and NHS a Jiang) which two would you choose?

If you'll let me cheat and switch more than one pair I'll go with swapping [Wei ChangZe & CangSe Sanren] for [Jiang FengMian & Yu ZiYuan]. I want their kids to have happy and loving parents and given what we know of CangSe Sanren at least I feel like they'll be wonderful parents.

If it HAS to be just one pair swapped...I think I'll switch LXC and JYL, so they'll be Jiang XiChen and Lan YanLi (they sound kinda pretty, no?).

I think XiChen would benefit from a more unrestrained life, and the Yunmeng bros would have an understanding older brother who can fight alongside them in desperate times. I feel like XiChen would also not seek conflict with his (Jiang) parents like YanLi, but he probably also wouldn't ignore the abusive situation.

With YanLi, I feel like she could live happily and peacefully in the Cloud Recesses, studying with the countless books and learning to play music (I like to imagine her with an Erhu), and also cook if she wanted. I think even if she doesn't cultivate here as well, she'll have the chance to have motivations of her own since she won't have to worry about keeping her siblings happy. She would also be great as Lan Zhan's older sister, because she's very loving and nurturing and will give him the emotional support and the female role model he needs after losing his mother the way he did.

Thanks for asking!

#ask replies #insomnia asks #my posts

[queenpersephonesgarden]

something worth remembering

Wangxian Week Day 3: Mementos

The markets of Qinghe are lively in the golden light of afternoon, the air buzzing with the voices of peddlers and customers negotiating prices while children shrieked with laughter and dodged between the legs of their parents to run off with a newly acquired toy to show their friends.

Wei Wuxian wandered the streets with wide-eyed excitement, little rattle drum clutched firmly in one hand, and kept moving through the bustling crowd, determinedly not daring to look behind and risk catching the eyes of the great white shadow following in his wake.

He…. Doesn’t want to restart their last conversation where it left off, not when there’s so many interesting things to see in a town as bright as this one. It’s not the sort of place that should be sullied with questions about things that had happened well over ten years ago.

He doesn’t want to discuss something as trivial as the way that his first life ended, doesn’t want to bring out such dark memories on such a lovely day.

He doesn’t want Lan Zhan to look at him like he’s just stabbed him in the ribs when he dismisses his questions. Wei Wuxian isn’t sure if he could take seeing that again.

Can be read on AO3

A colorful sign with an elegantly painted pipa decorating the top of it catches his eye, and he swerves automatically toward it as he always does when something captures his attention.

He’ll take any sort of distraction at the moment, and for once this one isn’t even wasteful!

Lan Zhan slipped in just behind him as he entered the shop beneath the sign. “Wei Ying?”

Wei Wuxian turned to him with a bright smile, slipping his little rattle drum into his robes before gesturing grandly at the walls bearing a multitude of different instruments. “Rejoice, Hanguang-jun! I figured it’s about time I replaced my trusty dizi with one that has properly carved holes that won’t shriek when I play it!”

A blink. Lan Zhan inclined his head in brief nod. “Not a bad idea.”

…hmm.

Wei Wuxian narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Are you saying my playing sounds bad?!” he demanded.

No answer. Lying is forbidden in the Cloud Recesses, a voice that could belong to a teenage Lan Zhan reminded him snidely.

“I’ll have you know that that performance was not an accurate showing of my prowess! Besides, it was my exceptional music skills that saved your little disciples on Dafan Mountain, you know!”

Lan Zhan hummed noncommittally.

“Jingyi insisted it was a miracle that his ears didn’t start bleeding. I cannot disagree.”

Betrayal!

Wei Wuxian sputtered in indignation, clutching his dizi close to his chest, suddenly half-afraid it would be snatched out of his hand without warning.

“Hey! This was the only instrument I could get my hands on in the middle of a burning forest! And I’d love to see how well you’d play a guqin that was rush-made after a decade of no practice! Lan Zhan!”

Lan Zhan serenely inspected a row of stringed instruments on the far wall, completely ignoring the offended squawking from beside him. The nerve of the man!

Turning away with an offended huff, he met the eye of the clearly amused saleswoman behind the counter and tried his most winning smile.

“Do you happen to sell dizi as well, guniang?”

The woman’s lips twitched the slightest bit at the overly-respectful form of address, but she nodded. “Are you looking for something ceremonial, gongzi? My husband takes commissions if you were looking for something specific,” she said, calmly rooting around underneath one case.

“I’m okay with something more practical. Simple bamboo is fine,” he assured her. There would be no sense in getting a complex, highly decorated dizi that would see more use on a battlefield than in a banquet hall.

The woman pulled out a few different options, but Wei Wuxian wasn’t feeling particularly picky; as long as it was lightweight and had a similar pitch to what he was used to, he didn’t mind much for how it looked.

When he made his selection, a rather familiar money pouch was set on the counter beside his choice. He chanced a glance over his shoulder to find Lan Zhan studying an erhu not far away, doing a rather good job of appearing nonchalant.

Valiantly resisting the urge to roll his eyes at the non-apology for the slight against his musical skill, Wei Wuxian paid for the dizi and tried to ignore the suppressed laughter in the saleswoman’s voice when she thanked him for the purchase.

Stepping back out into the afternoon sunlight with two distinct weights in his hand felt oddly triumphant.

“Now look at this! I have two weapons! This way, if anyone smacks the dizi out of my hands in some vain attempt to stop me from fighting, I can just pull the other one out! Can’t you just imagine the look on their faces?” Chuckling maniacally, Wei Wuxian twirled both dizis independently in each hand, a delighted grin lighting his face.

Lan Zhan did not dignify his plans with a reply, but Wei Wuxian liked to think that his lips might be tilting up the slightest bit at the edges.

They continued on for several paces as nonexistent muscle memory made twirling the instruments more difficult than it should be, before a memory decided to smack Wei Wuxian directly upside the head.

“Oh yeah! Lan Zhan! We should have gotten one for you while we were in there!”

Elegant dark brows furrowed slightly. “… A dizi?”

“What else?” Wei Wuxian spun right around and began heading back the way they’d come. “I’m sure they’ll have at least one that could meet your impeccable standards if we ask to see more of the fancier ones like the saleswoman suggested-”

“Wei Ying.”

He slowed down from his hurried pace to glance sideways. “Yeah?”

“I do not play the dizi.”

Wei Wuxian paused. “…Ah? But I saw the really nice one you had in your room- er,” he nearly stumbled, remembering that the dizi he’d found had been hidden quite well underneath the floorboards of the Jingshi, in a compartment Lan Zhan more than likely did not wish to be found. “Well, I happened to catch a glimpse of it. Somewhere.”

Lan Zhan stared.

Wei Wuxian forced himself not to acknowledge the blush slowly rising to his cheeks. “A-anyway, you’re not the kind of person to collect frivolous things like I do, so I figured you must play, right? Or maybe you collect them for the Library Pavilion, or something? The Lan family collects instruments to use in their cultivation, right?”

Lan Zhan was silent for a long moment as they started to walk slowly down the street again.

Wei Wuxian definitely did not fidget with his brand new dizi, inspecting it for the first time to check for flaws in its design just in case he needed a convenient excuse to cause a fuss in the middle of the market.

“….. It was not for the Library, no,” Lan Zhan admitted eventually, eyes scanning the crowd around them but not really seeing any of the people walking past.

Realization was a slow thing, the far away look in Lan Zhan’s eyes as they dropped to the pair of dizis in Wei Wuxian’s hands settling like a stone in the pit of his stomach.

Some complicated knot of something painful and happy and confused twisted up inside his throat, but Wei Wuxian determinedly did not allow any tears to form, not here in the middle of a crowded street, dammit.

Swallowing hard, he didn’t leave himself any time to second guess; he plopped the poorly made dizi into Lan Zhan’s unsuspecting hands. His fingers instinctively tightened around the sudden weight, pale gold eyes falling to look at the dizi in mild surprise.

“Didn’t you just say-”

“Think of it as a present!” Wei Wuxian twirled his brand new, far shinier dizi between his fingers with only a slight delay in the movement, grinning wide. “I don’t really need two! But now instead of a random dizi, you can have a memento that belonged to me! A little something to remind you of me!”

Lan Zhan’s steady gait stuttered to a stop in the middle of the street.

Wei Wuxian walked forward a few more paces before pausing as well, glancing back again in surprise. “Lan Zhan?”

Large, calloused fingers cradled the dizi close, like it was some treasure made from the rarest, most precious jade rather than a clumsily carved affront to anyone with even the vaguest musical talent.

Lan Zhan studied it for a long moment, eyes almost painfully lost, and something in Wei Wuxian’s chest ached. His eyes slipped closed as he took one deep breath and held it for a moment, raising his head minutely.

When pale gold rose to meet silver, Wei Wuxian felt his own breath catch at the tender warmth making them shine.

“I do not require a trinket to remember Wei Ying,” Lan Zhan said firmly, reaching up to softly tuck the dizi into his sleeve. “But the gift is appreciated.”

It was a long time before they continued on their way down the street, because it took a while for Wei Wuxian to remember how to breathe.

--

A/N:  Yeah so you know how in s2e1 WWX is rooting around in the Emperor's Smile stash and finds a dizi hidden in there? My heart broke, so now this exists. ~Persephone

#Wangxian #Wangxian Week #Wei Wuxian #Wei Ying #Lan Zhan #Lan Wangji #Mo Dao Zu Shi #MDZS fanfiction #my writing #MDZS