曲高和寡

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Chinese

tune; song; bent
tune; song; bent; crooked; wrong
 
high; tall
mix together; peace; harmony
mix together; peace; harmony; and; with; union; cap (a poem); respond in singing; soft; warm
 
few; widowed
simp. and trad.
(曲高和寡)
Literally: “songs of a highbrow type will find very few people joining in the chorus”.

Etymology

From an ancient piece of dialogue disputably bearing the author's name of Song Yu

楚襄王:「先生遺行士民衆庶?」:「大王使郢中下里》《巴人》,國中數千》《》,國中陽春》《白雪》,國中不過數十流徵國中不過而已。」 [Classical Chinese, trad.]
楚襄王:「先生遗行士民众庶?」:「大王使郢中下里》《巴人》,国中数千》《》,国中阳春》《白雪》,国中不过数十流徵国中不过而已。」 [Classical Chinese, simp.]
From: c. 3rd century BC, Song Yu ,宋玉《對楚王問, translated into English as Unpopularity by Herbert Allen Giles, 1922.
Chǔ xiāngwáng wèn yú Sòngyù yuē: “Xiānshēng qí yǒu yíxíng yú? Hé shìmínzhòngshù, bùyù zhī shèn yě?” Sòngyù duì yuē: “Wéi! Rán! Yǒu zhī. Yuàn dàwáng kuān qí zuì, shǐ dé bì qí cí. Kè yǒu gē yú Yǐngzhōng zhě, qí shǐ yuē “xiàlǐ” “bārén”, guózhōng zhǔ ér hè zhě shùqiān rén; qí wéi “yáng'ē” “xièlù”, guózhōng zhǔ ér hè zhě shùbǎi rén; qí wéi “yángchūn” “báixuě”, guózhōng zhǔ ér hè zhě bùguò shùshí rén; yǐn shāng kè yǔ, zá yǐ liúzhǐ, guózhōng zhǔ ér hè zhě, bùguò shù rén éryǐ. Shì qí qū mí gāo, qí hè mí guǎ.”
The Prince of Ch'u said to his prime minister, "What have you done that should cause the officers and people of this State to abuse you so clamorously?" "Abuse me indeed they do," replied the minister; "but pardon my boldness, and I will explain. A stranger was singing in one of our villages the other day, and this was the subject of his lay: There is the music of the masses; there is the music of a narrower circle; that of a narrower circle still; and lastly, the classical music of the cultured few. This classical music is too lofty, and too difficult of comprehension, for the masses."

Pronunciation


Idiom

曲高和寡

  1. to be highbrow and unpopular, as it cannot be easily understood by the common people