Meditation on the Mantra of the Heart Sutra
for singer with metallic bowl · 2004 · ca. 5–8 minutes
为歌者与金属钵而作 · 2004 · 约五至八分钟
A singer circles the mantra’s vowels, tuned to the resonance of a ritual bowl.
歌者在真言的元音之间绕行，随着法器钵的余韵定音。
| Dedication 题献 | In memory of Seung Sahn Soen Sa (1927–2004) 纪念崇山行愿禅师（1927–2004） |
|---|---|
| Text 歌词 | Gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha — ‘Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone altogether beyond: enlightened! All hail!’ 揭谛揭谛，波罗揭谛，波罗僧揭谛，菩提萨婆诃 |
About the work 关于作品
乐谱中的元音图：围绕真言元音、越来越大的圆圈。
‘Mantra’ is a Sanskrit word meaning, literally, ‘a tool for the mind’. In a mantra, the sound carries more importance than its meaning: in chanting, focusing on its unique phonetic qualities attunes the heart and mind to the meaning of the holy moment.
“真言”（mantra）是梵文，字面意思是“心的工具”。在真言中，声音比其语义更重要：念诵时专注于它独特的语音特质，便能使心与意契合于那神圣时刻的意义。
This piece is a meditation on the mantra through circumambulations of its phonetic structure. All its vowels come from the mantra, and the work moves through ever-widening circles across the space of the mouth, with the mantra’s vowels as their centres. The first three lines of the mantra are about movement — going somewhere — and at each stage the pattern of consonants and vowels shifts. The last line, the arrival, introduces new vowels and consonants, and the piece ends on the arrival of a single vowel.
这首作品透过绕行真言的语音结构，对真言进行冥想。所有元音都取自真言，作品以真言的元音为中心，在口腔空间中画出越来越大的绕行圆圈。真言的前三句关于移动——往某处去——每个阶段，辅音与元音的组合都随之变化。最后一句是抵达，引入新的元音与辅音，作品终止于唯一一个元音的抵达。
The singer strikes a metallic bowl — ideally a Buddhist ritual bowl — whose resonance determines the length of the work. Its natural ebb and swell sets the tempo, and the vocal pitches are drawn from its harmonic spectrum, so the voice is tuned to the bowl’s own, often inharmonic, sound.
歌者敲击一只金属钵——最理想的是佛教法器钵——钵的余韵决定作品的长度。其自然的起伏为速度定调，人声的音高也取自钵的泛音谱，于是人声便依着钵自身、往往并不和谐的声音来定音。
Performances 演出
2004 — Nicholas Isherwood, baritone, 38e Rugissants, Grenoble, France.
2004——Nicholas Isherwood（男中音），法国格勒诺布尔 38e Rugissants 音乐节。
27 April 2005 — Nicholas Isherwood, baritone, Radar Festival, Mexico.
2005年4月27日——Nicholas Isherwood（男中音），墨西哥 Radar 音乐节。
20 April 2013 — Nicholas Isherwood, baritone, East Meets West: The Alchemy Suite, Monk Space, Los Angeles, USA.
2013年4月20日——Nicholas Isherwood（男中音），《East Meets West: The Alchemy Suite》，美国洛杉矶 Monk Space。
Literature 文献
Nicholas Isherwood, The Techniques of Singing / Die Techniken des Gesangs (Kassel: Bärenreiter, 2013).
Nicholas Isherwood，《The Techniques of Singing / Die Techniken des Gesangs》（卡塞尔：Bärenreiter，2013）。
For scores, performance materials and other enquiries:
chungshih@chungshih.info
乐谱、演出资料及其他查询：
chungshih@chungshih.info