When I told Mr. Jat about my recording project, saying I wished to emphasize that the sound came from silk, since at that time all qin recordings then being made used metal strings, and then wondered whether in his calligraphy he could convey a sense of music as silk in motion, he told me to come back in a few days. When I came back he had produced about 100 examples, of which he suggested I select one. For me this was a very difficult task as so many were so expressive. When I had narrowed it down to two, and told him I was having trouble deciding on which one, he gave me two. These are shown at right. The designer then decided which of the two to use.

The images at right are not two "copies" of "幺 yao"; likewise, although one can say that the result "has composition", it is not "a composition" in the sense that that term is used here. Presumably Jat See-Yiu learned his craft by making countless "copies" but now as an artist he makes "renditions", each with a life of its own. It has overall composition, but was not "composed" in meticulous detail. Still, though, appreciation of these renditions is improved if one is familiar with standard forms of the original character and all the shades of its meaning.

In accord with this tradition, musicians begin by learning the "correct" version of a melody, but then puts life into it by developing their own rendition. How different the result is from the original depends on such matters as the skill, sensitivity and attitude of the individual.

Likewise, when reconstructing a melody I try very hard to learn as much as possible about how the original creator of the melody would have played and appreciated it. When playing it, though, one should eventually be able to forget about what is "correct" or "incorrect'.

And only then, it has been said, should one play for others.
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