Qian Qi

Qian Qi (traditional Chinese: 錢起; simplified Chinese: 钱起; pinyin: Qián Qǐ; Wade–Giles: Ch'ien Ch'i; 710–782) was a Chinese poet of the Tang dynasty. Three of his poems have been included within the famous anthology Three Hundred Tang Poems. His courtesy name) was Zhongwen (Chinese: 仲文; pinyin: Zhòngwén).

Poetry

Qian Qi's poems as collected in Three Hundred Tang Poems were translated by Witter Bynner as:

• "Farewell to a Japanese Buddhist Priest Bound Homeward"
• "From my Study at the Mouth of the Valley. a Message to Censor Yang"
• "To my Friend at the Capital Secretary Pei"

Part of one of Qian Qi's poems was used by Gustav Mahler in his Das Lied von der Erde. He is credited under the name Chang Tsi as the author of the original Chinese text for the second movement of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde. The movement's title is "Der Einsame im Herbst" in German and "The Lonely Soul of Autumn" in English. The lyrics lament the dying of flowers and the passing of beauty. The inclusion of Qian Qi's poetry in Mahler's work joins him into the company of the other Tang poets whose works Mahler drew upon for this piece: Li Bo, Wang Wei, and Meng Haoran.

Biography

Qian Qi flourished in the Wu region of China (modern day Zhejiang and Hubei provinces).