Mr. Tang Jianyuan is a great master of guqin (a traditional Chinese zither). He recalled his arduous experience of learning guqin, as well as the tremendous efforts he and his wife spent compiling the monumental work Qin Fu (The Mansion of Qin). As an epic masterpiece in the field of guqin, Qin Fu has influenced countless guqin enthusiasts and players across the Taiwan Strait. After 50 years, Qin Fu will be published for the first time on the Chinese mainland, which is also the reason why Mr. Tang came to TEDx to tell us stories about himself, the guqin, and his teachers. Tang Jianyuan was born in Hong Kong, China in 1946. In his early years, he studied under the great sinologist Professor Rao Zongyi, listening to his qin (guzheng) playing and receiving guidance in the research of two types of qin literature: qin scores and qin theories, which laid the foundation for his practice in four levels: technique, art, learning, and Tao. Later, he studied under qin masters such as Wu Zonghan and Wang Yici of the Mei'an School; Cai Deyun of the Fanchuan School; Sun Yuqin of the Shanlin School; Wu Jinglue of the Yushan School; and also sought advice from Yang Xinlun of the Lingnan School and Wang Huade of the Chuan School. Tang Jianyuan has been playing the qin for more than 50 years. In his middle age, he gradually formed his own style, which is elegant, quiet, mellow, ancient, and long-lasting. Just as Tai Gu Yi Yin (ancient qin book) puts it, "like a lonely cloud in the vast sky, rolling and stretching with the wind, never dispersing for a long time". His playing features endless variations in hardness and softness, continuity and interruption, complexity and simplicity, and he is especially skilled in using "yin" and "nao" (vibrato techniques in qin playing). Each piece has its own charm, and connoisseurs praise it as "the qin rhyme of the Tang School". Tang Jianyuan learned the techniques of making and repairing qin from Sun Yuqin and Wu Jinglue. Over 50 years, he has collected more than 100 old qin from the Tang, Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties, and has never stopped repairing and making qin. His fine qin, with wonderful sounds at the fingertips and lingering aftertones, are cherished and treasured by qin enthusiasts at home and abroad. In addition, Tang Jianyuan has conducted research in fields such as oracle bone inscriptions, Cantonese opera, Nanyin (Southern Music) singing, purple clay teapots, Pu'er tea, and Redology (studies of Dream of the Red Chamber), and is known as a "polymath scholar". This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx