I am grateful to the Hong Kong Arts Development Council for providing funding to assist in publishing both the CD and the transcriptions of Music Beyond Sound. In addition I must particularly thank Dr. Tong Kin-Woon who, over the years, has provided much valuable advice and information. His advice and direct help in translating associated texts has been essential. In addition he supplied me with the special set of silk strings used in the recording.

For the recording, especial thanks go to 沈興順 Benny Shum Hing Shun for loaning me Xiao Xiang Yeyu, a wonderful old qin and to Schtung Music for loaning the AKG microphones. For recording advice, to François Picard, Richard Kuschel, Jerry Chamkis, Francis Wai, Alistair Goolden.

For the transcriptions, thanks to Kevin Mak for putting my rather sloppily written hand transcriptions into the computer program Encore.

For the translation of my commentary, thanks very much to the excellent work of Benjamin Tsui Cheong-Ming.

For the beauty of the finished product thanks very much to Mr. Jat See-Yeu for the calligraphy, Lincoln Potter for the photograph, Karen Phillipps for the qin toad and finally to Lilian Tang and her wonderful designers at Lilian Tang Design, Ltd.

Comments on the project at hand will be much appreciated. Meanwhile, by the time this is published I shall be back working on my original project, in particular trying to make good quality digital recordings to replace my cassette recordings of the music in SQMP, before my occasional inclinations to do something really new with the instrument take over. This is the only way I know to fulfill my debt to my teachers.

John Thompson
The Orchid Garden, Cheung Chau
October 1996