R.H. van Gulik

In 1941 Dutch diplomat Robert Hans van Gulik (1910 - 1967) published Lore of the Chinese Lute, still (via revised editions) the primary published English language source for guqin history and ideology. His Hsi K'ang and his Poetical Essay on the Lute is also a valuable work. And guqin also featured in some of Van Gulik's other writings, including his most popular works, the Judge Dee mysteries.³

Here are two discussions of Van Gulik's own qin play and of his studies with Ye Shimeng.⁴

From a book by fellow diplomat Chen Zhimai.⁵
Music has always been a favourite pastime of the Chinese scholar-official. During his first sojourn in Japan (1935-42), Dr. van Gulik became interested in the guqin, a zither-type stringed instrument dating back to remote antiquity. He dug deep into the literature on the subject and learned to play it under the instruction of a Chinese teacher.⁶ His first serious book, The Lore of the Chinese Lute, was published by Sophia University in Tokyo in 1940. When I first knew him, he was already a master of the instrument. It was his habit to carry the guqin, a rather clumsy thing, to various social functions in Chungking, and when the dinner was over, to play a few tunes for his friends' entertainment.⁷ I well recall one occasion, a hot summer evening, when we all attended a dinner party in a house perched precariously on the bank of the Chialing, a tributary of the Yangtse. After we all had had our share, of food and drinks, Dr. van Gulik started to play an ancient tune which, according to the Chinese, "simulated the music of water flowing gently down the slopes of high mountains". It was a romantic occasion, romantic in the traditional Chinese sense, which Dr. van Gulik deeply loved, and which we all thoroughly enjoyed. For how could we help being enthralled by this young man from Europe, whose physical features were anything but Chinese, playing for us this tune which had remained in the Chinese mind for two thousand years. In subsequent years Dr. van Gulik gave many guqin concerts to overflowing audiences in wartime Chungking to raise money for charities. They were his contributions to China's war effort. His music therefore became an aspect of his diplomacy.⁸
From Robert Van Gulik and the Guqin Scores of the Sinological Institute, Leiden,
by Dai Xiaolian (translated and adapted by Jonathan P. J. Stock), pp.31-2.⁹
From 1935 onwards, when van Gulik was posted to Japan, he frequently visited China to carry out study and research. He became a pupil of the famous guqin master Ye Shimeng, a member of the Fujian Minnan school of performance. Ye's teacher was Sun Jinzhai (dates not known [style name of Sun Bao]) and Sun's (teacher was) Zhu Fengjie (d. 1964; see Yuguzhai Qinpu). Van Gulik thus inherited a performance style of extensive tradition. Ye had a high standard of performance and was deeply respected by Van Gulik. (Ye) produced the Shimeng Zhai (Qinpu), a score of nineteen guqin pieces, teaching van Gulik Meihua Sannong first and later a total of ten pieces. Van Gulik was extremely upset when Ye died, dedicating The Lore of the Chinese Lute to his memory three years later (van Gulik, 1940). Van Gulik also carefully worked on a painting in traditional Chinese style entitled Master Ye Playing the Qin, the four edges of which bear the inscriptions of other qin players.¹⁰
Van Gulik's widow, Shui Shifang, said that the short time van Gulik spent living in China was the happiest period of his life. His transfer to the Dutch Embassy (1943), then located at the temporary capital Chongqing, enabled him to meet many well known qin players and aficionados, including Zha Fuxi, Xu Yuanbai and Wang Mengshu. Van Gulik joined and helped organise the Chongqing Tianfeng Qin Society, which met frequently for performance and discussion. The Dutch Embassy provided the Society with a meeting place, and van Gulik was able to collect a large number of guqin scores. These scores and treatises include hand-copied manuscripts and volumes and traditional block-printed and thread-bound books. Van Gulik purchased some of these items, copied others by hand himself and was given several by qin-playing associates.

Several passages in the Judge Dee novels have him playing guqin.¹¹

Footnotes (Shorthand references are explained on a separate page)

1. Robert Hans Van Gulik and the Guqin
Van Gulik (Chinese name 高羅佩 Gao Luopei) was a scholar of great breadth. However, this page only concerns him in relation to the qin. Relevant literature includes:

Gulik, R.H. van, The Lore of the Chinese Lute. Hong Kong/Bangkok, Orchid Books, 2011.
An essential resource; the 2011 edition does not include the color prints from the 2nd ed., Tokyo and Rutland, Tuttle, 1969.
Gulik, R.H. van, Hsi K'ang and his Poetical Essay on the Lute. Tokyo and Rutland, Tuttle, 1969.
Out of print.
Janwillem van de Wetering, Robert Van Gulik, His Life, His Work; NY, Soho Press, 1998 (originally D. McMillan Publications, 1987).
Out of print.
The Robert Hans van Gulik Issue, Orientations (Hong Kong), November 1981.
Includes a bibliography and James Watt's The Qin and the Chinese Literati.
陳之邁﹕荷蘭高羅佩。文史新刊之 5 ；台灣﹕傳記文學社， 1969. Chen Chih-Mai, Helan Gao Luopei (Van Gulik of Holland), 1969.
An appreciation of Van Gulik by a fellow diplomat. Includes bibliography and comments on VG's qin playing (see above). This book is available in some university libraries in the U.S.

Van Gulik's rational for calling the qin a lute is discussed elsewhere. See also the Wikipedia entry. Below there are further links regarding the Judge Dee mysteries.
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2. Images: Van Gulik in Chongqing
Van Gulik went to Chongqing after the Japanese invasion of China. The upper image was taken from a website, where it was said the original belongs to a family member. The lower image, entitled Van Gulik in Chongqing ca.1945, comes from Janwillem van de Wetering, Robert van Gulik, His Life, His Work; New York, Soho, 1987.
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3. Judge Dee mysteries
As a writer R. H. Van Gulik gained his greatest popularity as author of the Judge Dee mysteries, which I often recommend to friends as good introductions to early Chinese culture. Regarding Judge Dee and the qin, see the illustration below. There is also Janwillem van de Wetering, Judge Dee Plays his Lute (Dunn & Powell Books, 1997). There is considerable information about Van Gulik and Judge Dee on the internet. In particular, Marco Huysmans has had a Judge Dee website at several different addresses. As of 2012 it was here:

Robert Van Gulik / Judge Dee, including a Scientific Bibliography.

The Wikipedia entry also includes an interesting Judge Dee chronology.
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4. Ye Shimeng 葉詩夢 (1863-1937)
An online biography of Ye Shimeng says this was the 潛號 name taken in retirement by 葉鶴伏 Ye Hefu, who originally had the name 佛尼音布 Foniyinbu, and was a nephew of the empress dowager. It says Ye's father served as an official in 粵 Yue (Guangdong/Guangxi), at which time Ye Shimeng began studying with players who had inherited the tradition of the Yuguzhai Qinpu. Later in Beijing he studied Wuzhizhai Qinpu melodies from 孫晉齋 Sun Jinzhai (孫寶 Sun Bao: see 1875), melodies of the 蜀 Sichuan school from 李湘石 Li Xiangshi, and more. One of his students was 汪孟舒 Wang Mengshu.

Zha Fuxi's Guide includes brief comments and a table of contents for Ye's qin handbook Shimeng Zhai (Qinpu) (1914). His students also apparently also included 管平湖 Guan Pinghu. However, I could not find mention of Ye in the Jin Yu Qin Kan materials.

Dai Xiaolian's article also says Ye studied qin from Sun Jinzhai, who in turn studied from Zhu Fengjie. However, an articleby Julian Joseph (no longer online) says one of Ye's teachers was (also?) Sun's student Zhang Ruishan (see Shiyixianguan Qinpu). Zhang Ruishan had a shop in Liulichang (in Beijing).

Zha Fuxi also wrote an article (p.142) discussing some of these people.
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5. 陳之邁 Chen Zhimai
Chen, op. cit., pp.31-2. "Lute" and "Chinese lute" have been changed here to "guqin". The essay was presented to the Asiatic Society of Japan, 24 September 1968.
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6. Van Gulik's qin studies
Since Van Gulik's first qin teacher was 葉詩夢 Ye Shimeng (1863 - 1937; see footnote above), the qin studies must have commenced during one of VG's numerous trips from Japan to China. VG dedicates Lore to Ye as his "first teacher" of the qin, suggesting he later had other teachers.

As for his having also studied qin in Japan, a biography of Van Gulik in Dutch by Carl Barkman says the following (p. 64; thanks for this to Marco Huysmans, whose Judge Dee website is mentioned above:

The qin having started to fascinate him, (when back in Japan) he bought a tuning whistle in a music shop, had a special qin table made, practiced on his beautiful antique qin, and now also in Tokyo took lessons from a Chinese qin master. I have not yet found the name of the qin master resident in Japan, nor mention of other teachers in China after Ye Shimeng died.
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7. Additional information from the Chinese text
The Chinese essay, p.12, adds that in Chongqing VG organized a 天風琴社 Heavenly Air Qin Society. On p.50 its says that when he was in Hong Kong in early 1967 he took part in two qin gatherings where he saw such qin friends as 徐文鏡 Xu Wenjing and 饒宗頤 Rao Zongyi.
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8. The essay goes on to discuss VG's research into 蔣興疇 Jiang Xingchou (1639-1695), better known as the Buddhist monk 心越 Shin-etsu. Shin-etsu went to Japan as a missionary in 1677 and taught guqin to many students.
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9. A footnote states, "The information contained in this section is derived from (the Chen Zhimai book) and an interview with van Gulik's widow, Shui Shufang, held on August 1st, 1991." The whole article was originally published as Helan cunjiande guqinpu yu Gao Luopei in Yinyue Yishu, the Journal of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, no.2, 1992, pp.67-71.
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10. Van Gulik painting: Master Ye Playing the Qin
The original of this painting, copied below left, is in the Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde (State Museum of Ethnology) in Leiden. Marco Huysmans, whose Judge Dee website is mentioned above, told me that "this beautiful picture of the scroll comes from the Catalog of Christie's Amsterdam for the auction of the Van Gulik collection in 1983 (page 14; item 49). The description says, 'Note by Van Gulik: "The picture was drawn by me, except for the face, which was copied by an expert from the photograph attached to the obituary notice"'. It was sold for 5,130 Dutch Guilders (about 2,500 USD)."

It is interesting to compare Van Gulik's drawing with Illustration 3 found on p.5 of his Lore of the Chinese Lute.

Ye Shimeng
by R. H. Van Gulik Illustration from
Qin Xue Rumen

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11. Judge Dee plays guqin Illustration from The Night of the Tiger
Van Gulik's own illustration at right (see initials upper left), subtitled, "He pulled the silk strings in succession", comes from The Night of the Tiger (R. H. van Gulik, The Monkey and the Tiger, p. 115). In the story, not feeling sleepy in the middle of the night, Judge Dee decides to play qin. As he does so the ghost of a young lady appears.

This particular passage may have been inspired by other stories of ghosts appearing when someone plays qin. Van Gulik translated several of these in Lore, including this one about Su Shi. There is no actual historical information as to whether or not the real Judge Dee ever played qin.
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Return to the Guqin ToC or to ideology.

Ye Shimeng by R. H. Van Gulik	Illustration from Qin Xue Rumen