Go in Music

General Go Discussion
1

I came across this song about playing a game today, and I thought it would be fun to have a place to share music about or inspired by Go.

HITA 《松窗棋罢》

Chinese Lyrics

曾记当年对局方
竹影摇映小轩窗
拂袖两奁收阴阳
轻敲玉子声琅琅
心寂如茶静自香

何时纹枰却作名利场
黑白翻覆于股掌
一朝平步入朝堂
怎容棋道渐沦亡
看此番君子行藏
正气清扬

一黑一白， 一来一往，世事俱苍黄
此起彼落，此消彼长，烂斧几寒芳
方圆乾坤万象
看透百态炎凉
不如低吟归去兮，风清月朗

行乎当行，止乎当止，闲云天地旷
流水不争，万物无竞，坐隐两相忘
白露滴闻清响
竹叶落带新霜
悠然处，松窗棋罢指犹凉

曾记当年对局方
竹影摇映小轩窗
拂袖两奁收阴阳
轻敲玉子声琅琅
心寂如茶静自香

何时纹枰却作名利场
黑白翻覆于股掌
一朝平步入朝堂
怎容棋道渐沦亡
看此番君子行藏
正气清扬

一黑一白，一来一往，世事俱苍黄
此起彼落，此消彼长，烂斧几寒芳
方圆乾坤万象
看透百态炎凉
不如低吟归去兮，风清月朗

行乎当行，止乎当止，闲云天地旷
流水不争，万物无竞，坐隐两相忘
白露滴闻清响
竹叶落带新霜
悠然处，松窗棋罢指犹凉

English Translation

Lyrics translation by renn at www.onehallyu.com

After finishing a game of weiqi by a window near the pines

still remember the room in which [we] played the game that year.
The swaying shadows of the bamboos were cast upon the small window.
[With] a swish of the sleeve, yin and yang were collected in [those] two boxes.
The sound of the jade stones knocking lightly [against the board] tinkled brightly.
[My] heart was as quiet as the tea so the silence naturally gave off a fragrance.

Since when has the game board served as a place to contend for personal fame and gain?
The black and the white flip under one’s complete control
There comes a day when one enters the imperial court with ease.
How can one tolerate the gradual perishment of the way of weiqi?
Watch this time a noble man’s conduct,
Righteousness clear and raised high.

One black [stone], one white [stone], back and forth—all affairs of the world become sallow.
This rises and that falls, this wanes and that waxes—how many cycles of the seasons have passed that [the handle of] the axe has rotten away?
The state of all things, the heaven and the earth, every manifestation of nature;
have seen through the different expressions and the hypocrisies [of the world].
It is better to softly chant [a poem of] returning home, [remaining] noble in character.

Move when it’s time to move, halt when it’s time to halt —the clouds are idle, the sky and the earth vast.
The flowing water does not vie, all things of this world do not contend—when playing weiqi, [we] forget each other['s existence].
[When] the white dew of autumn drips, one hears a crisp sound.
[When] the bamboo leaves fall, they carry with them fresh frost.
In a distant place of contentment, after finishing a game of weiqi by a window near the pines, [my] fingers still feel cool.

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2

The US go Congress had some songs about Go and playing Go. I don’t think this years videos are up but here’s an older one

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I just remembered one of my favorite songs from Faye Wong. This one is probably about Xiangqi, but I’m including it anyway because I like the song and the lyrics are ambiguous enough that it could almost be interpreted as any “chess” (棋 qi) game. A quick web search showed many people also interpreting it as comparing life to a game of Go. Whoever translated the lyrics and made this video leaned heavily toward chess :merperson:t2: .

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I think this one is very good. The Chinese words capture the feeling of playing Go with a friend (not on the internet) very well, but maybe this feeling will be lost if the words are translated for English.

This song is called “The Soul of Go”. It is written by a hero in the story for a popular Chinese game.

How can I put the video on the post but not the link only?

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I fixed it for you. You just need to put the URL on its own line.

And that’s awesome! I started playing 王者荣耀 about five months ago. I didn’t know they had character inspired music on their YouTube channel though. I love Yi Xing, but he’s too difficult for me to play. Thanks for sharing! :heart_eyes:

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Thank you for telling me this. I know how to do it now.

I feel very surprised that you will play this game. You can tell me your wechat and we can be friends and play together. What is your rank? What hero do you play more?

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I’ll send you a PM in the interest of keeping the thread from veering further off topic. :slight_smile:

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Okay, I’m sorry for making it off topic. Here are more songs.

Chen Xiang - Like Go it’s about how life is like a game of go and when you play a stone you cannot have a regret

This one it is the ending song of the Chinese cartoon “Go Youngsters”. I watched this cartoon when I was a child, now it has many memories. In fact, maybe I started liking Go is because of this cartoon.

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1x1

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Link to the the AGA songbook in this post:

https://www.usgo.org/sites/default/files/bh_library/AGA_Songbook.pdf

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Apparently Japanese pro, Shimojima Yohei 8 Dan, wrote this song last year. It’s quite catchy too.

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Do these count :slight_smile:

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I’ve been in love with this song for a while now… I remember not being sure if it was the best or hte worst thing ever when I hear it the first time, but it’s super fun.

I’ve finally been able to find this in youtube

[Editted to get the youtube enbedded thing. @Kosh ]

but it didn’t sound to well… so here’s the link to Spotify just in case

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That’s a lot of vibrato, even for a Japanese pop song… :flushed:

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Ha! I wrote about this song for the American Go E-Journal in April 2014! I was really disappointed to find, a while back, that my link to the song on YouTube is now dead. I really enjoyed hearing it again, so thanks! Maybe if editor Chris Garlock spots this, he’ll sub in your link?

https://www.usgo.org/news/2014/04/go-spotting-disco-a-go-go/

There was also a follow-up article which not only gave the English translation (courtesy of E-J reader Pieter Mioch) of the Japanese spoken interlude, but also identified Chris Linn as “Christer Lindstedt, a 2-dan who plays at Gothenburg” (courtesy of Tony Atkins of the BGA).

https://www.usgo.org/news/2014/04/your-movereaders-write-more-on-disco-a-go-go/

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I’ve been wondering what the japanese speach since I heard the song, couldn’t find it anywhere. Thank you for that link! And thanks Pieter Mioch! :smiley:

We’re all happy in the end

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Interesting that they predicted the AI analysis curve back in 1981

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Another piece of music mentioned on the E-Journal around that time was the album Go by the eponymous band, a ‘supergroup’ put together by Japanese jazz/rock percussionist Stomu Yamashta and including Stevie Winwood, Al Di Meola and others. It’s more inspired by go than about it as far as I can tell and I’m not sure that Yamashta was really that familiar with the game, since he described it as “a game of chance”, allegedly.

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