Bridging literati and artist traditions: the qin daizhao in Han and Tang China

This article examines the relatively understudied role of the qin daizhao—that is, specialist court qin players—during China’s Han (206 Bce–220 Ce) and Tang (618–907 Ce) dynasties. It analyses their position in the context of the distinction between the literati (wenren) and artist (yiren) qin traditions. Selected specifically for their specialized skills on the qin and tasked with serving the court through these abilities (encompassing performance, composition, theoretical writing and even instrument building), these players demonstrate the professionalism that is characteristic of the artist qin tradition, which sets them apart from literati amateurs. However, they also engaged with key literati aesthetics, such as the Confucian ideals of elegance, self-cultivation and moral restraint. Furthermore, their social identity often aligned more closely with that of the literati and scholar-officials than with that of typical court musicians. By examining their appointments, duties, performance, aesthetics, scholarship and identity, this article demonstrates how qin daizhao synthesized elements from both the literati and artist qin streams. They not only enriched the qin’s cultural legacy, but also revealed an early fluidity between these ostensibly distinct categories.