Wu Fei's Music Daily

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Thank you for subscribing to Wu Fei’s Music Daily! I’ve received emails asking where to find my newsletters about upcoming concerts and tour dates. Substack has been a great home for me, though I also announce my tour dates and concert info on my website and social media. I know it can feel overwhelming to keep up with it all. Thank you all for your support ov...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Happy Moon Festival (Mid-Autumn Festival) and Sukkot if you celebrate them! This last weekend, during the celebration of the Moon Festival 中秋节 aka the Mid-Autumn Festival, I learned that Chinese singer-songwriter Liu Huan 刘欢 passed away (1963–2026). He just turned 63 last month. Liu Huan was one of China's most celebrated and recognizable singers, whose s...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today’s three-track guzheng composition is inspired by the humming birds at my home in Nashville, Tennessee. This year, we have had many more humming birds that come to our feeders. I notice that there is a mean one who always chases the other humming birds away whenever they come close to the feeders. It gets intense when the other weaker ones want to eat. It...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Yesterday I was walking in a forest in West Nashville when I stopped at a patch of white flowers. Two monarch butterflies were resting on a cluster of white flowers (photo above). Every time I am this close to butterflies, I gaze at their wings for as long as they stay on the flowers. Today’s solo guzheng piece is inspired by this precious moment. I went looki...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, I am excited to share this superpower solo guzheng improvisation I recorded today, and my new concert tour dates for 2026–2027. There are still more concerts being confirmed. Please stay tuned here or on my website https://www.wufeimusic.com/concerts for the latest updates. Can’t wait to head to your cities! 2026 Oct. 9 – The Freight, Berkeley, CAOct. 15 – Zoe...

I recorded a new guzheng improv thinking of Dolly Parton who passed away in Nashville. I also live in Nashville. She’s been an inspiration to me. I always dreamed of meeting her but never got the chance. I never expected to feel so heartbroken when any celebrity dies, but her passing has been really difficult. On the day I heard she died, I had to distract myself from crying all evening by helping...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today, I saw two beautiful purple passionflowers during a morning hike in West Nashville (photos above). The colors and shapes of the blossoms were breathtaking. I learned that they only bloom for one day. I must have walked by at the perfect moment. How lucky was I! The poet Chen Gongyi (1631–1700), from the late Ming Dynasty wrote: “The Western Buddha has bl...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Right before I stepped into my studio today, I saw a beautiful katydid on the wall (photo above, wish I had a better camera :) I read that the rhythmic "katy-did, katy-didn't" call of the male is a summer night soundtrack, made by rubbing their wings together. This process is called stridulation. I immediately looked up what they sounded like on the internet....

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Thank you for being patient with me this past week. I was sick, but I’ve finally recovered :) Today’s solo guzheng improvisation was inspired by the Southern Magnolia I saw in China this summer. It was the biggest magnolia flower I had ever seen (photo above) — the blossom was larger than my palm, about the same size as a lotus flower. That’s why its Chinese n...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, It would be amazing to play this newly composed piece at this exact spot — the 118th floor on the Shanghai Tower. The elevator was probably the fastest in the world — it took within 10 seconds to go from ground zero to this floor. I think that every musician would play something extraordinary once s/he gets here. That would be a heck of a concert! Wu Fei 吴非...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today’s solo guzheng improvisation is for all the couples who may be going through difficult times. The Chinese title of this piece “美人虹” means “Beautiful Lady Rainbow.” It comes from a Chinese folklore documented in 《异苑》 (Yì Yuàn), a book of supernatural tales from the Southern Dynasties period, written by Liu Jingshu (刘敬叔) in the 5th century. The e...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today’s three-track guzheng composition was recorded on all harmonics. During my visit to Yunnan, China last month, I saw many Buddhist temples. Every temple had the four heavenly kings 四大金刚 at the entrance. They are Dharma protector statues that guard the Buddhist temples. One of them holds a pipa (four-string or five-string lute, in the photo). He is my...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today is the beginning of a new week. I would like to share this new piece called Dali. It was inspired by my memory of driving with my family next to Erhai Lake in Dali City, Yunnan Province, China. Erhai 洱海 is a lake that feels like an ocean. It is situated at 1,972 meters (6,470 ft) above sea level. There is a famous folklore about the lake: a princess of...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today’s guzheng composition is inspired by my visit to Yangzhou, China, last month. Every morning, I took quiet walks along Slender West Lake, absorbing the city’s elegant landscape and rich history. I felt like I was living inside a painting—every direction I turned offered another view. Yangzhou is considered the birthplace of the Grand Canal. In 486 BC, Kin...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, How have you all been? Hope you are all having a restful and fun summer or winter! I’m back home in Nashville now after my time in China. It was an amazing trip traveling through several provinces. The absolute highlight was visiting the Jinyun 金韵乐器 Guzheng company in Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province. Jinyun is one of the most prominent and respected guzheng man...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Hope you are all having a wonderful summer (or winter)! This composition is my last one until the end of June. I will be traveling with family to China for the summer holidays. It’ll be my children’s first time returning to their birth city, Beijing, since they were a toddler and an infant when we moved to the U.S. in 2015. We are all very excited about seeing...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, I just recorded this Guzheng improvisation in my Nashville studio. It’s nearly 10pm here. Sometimes night time is perfect to clear my brain and unleash the stress from the daytime. Tonight was the night. I’m a big fan of music from India, the Middle East and Central Asia, especially their string instruments and the structure of their compositions. This improvi...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, This new composition was composed and recorded today. I was inspired by the Great Spangled Fritillary resting on the Haas Halo blossom by the creek in the forest in Nashville (photo above). I paused and enjoyed the beauty of these two creatures’ intimate moment. It reminded me of this poem by Su Shi (1037–1101 AD): 苏轼《蝶恋花·记得画屏初会遇》 记得画屏初会遇...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, I composed and recorded this three-track guzheng piece today while it was raining outside in Nashville. It was inspired by the white Haas Halo blooms wild in the west Nashville forest (photo above by me). It fascinates me that the lace-capped blooms and the white flowers are one plant. Each white “petal” is actually a sepal. They look elegant yet can stand thr...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Hope you all had a restful weekend. Late spring and early summer is among my favorite times in Nashville. The bugs are not fully out yet. Wild fruits are starting to show up in the forest. I ate one wild blackberry on the hill today (photo above). It was still sour, though I loved the strong flavor that only wild fruit can give to your taste buds. It instantly...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, This instrument is the valiha — a tube zither from Madagascar 🇲🇬 I’ve never quite figured out how to hold it comfortably. As a guzheng (古筝) musician and pianist, I’m used to having my fingers free while playing. Today, I finally found a way to play the valiha without having to hold it with my hands. With the birds chirping and my neighbor cutting the lawn in...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, I just did a guzheng improvisation. I was inspired by a small hatched egg I found on my driveway a few days ago (photo above.) While I was improvising, I was wondering what happened to the chick - did the parent bird take it away to hide it? Did the chick leave on its own? Or did a predator break the egg and eat the chick? Hope this piece brings a moment of jo...

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, This two-track prepared guzheng night song was recorded today. Last month, I played two concerts at the Big Ears Festival in Knoxville, Tennessee in the U.S. It was my third time playing at this amazing festival. Photographer Cora Wagoner took my photos when I debuted at this festival in 2017. Her photos have remained some of my favorite moments in my solo car...

Improvising on a mini valiha, a tube zither from Madagascar. A full size valiha is twice as long. This little one is a gift from my mother-in-law :) Playing the valiha makes me miss Africa. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit wufeimusic.substack.com/subscribe

Good morning, afternoon, and evening, Today, I recorded a guzheng solo improvisation inspired by the wild pink azalea in the forest near my home in Nashville. They look innocently beautiful and smell incredible — but here’s the twist: the wild pink azalea is highly toxic to humans and animals, including the honey made from its flowers. This “mad honey” can cause poisoning if consumed. So, as lovel...