Shao-yun Yang challenges assumptions that the cultural and socioeconomic watershed of the Tang-Song transition (800–1127 CE) was marked by a xenophobic or nationalist hardening of ethnocultural boundaries in response to growing foreign threats. In that period, reinterpretations of Chineseness and its supposed antithesis, “barbarism,” were not straightforward products of political change but had their own developmental logic based in two interrelated intellectual shifts among the literati elite: the emergence of Confucian ideological and intellectual orthodoxy and the rise of neo-Confucian (daoxue) philosophy. New discourses emphasized the fluidity of the Chinese-barbarian dichotomy, subverting the centrality of cultural or ritual practices to Chinese identity and redefining the essence of Chinese civilization and its purported superiority. The key issues at stake concerned the acceptability of intellectual pluralism in a Chinese society and the importance of Confucian moral values to the integrity and continuity of the Chinese state. Through close reading of the contexts and changing geopolitical realities in which new interpretations of identity emerged, this intellectual history engages with ongoing debates over relevance of the concepts of culture, nation, and ethnicity to premodern China.

Anyone who's gotten so mad they could scream, or let out a mellow sigh of relief, knows that the voice is a powerful tool for releasing emotions. In this beautifully written guide, singer and teacher Shawna Carol shows how to harness the power of the voice as a means of self-expression and spiritual growth. Using her SpiritSong method, Carol encourages you to sing-whether or not you have what is commonly considered a "good voice." Stripping away the mystique, fear, and perfectionism that so often surround singing, she begins with simple breathing exercises and builds to simple toning, followed by more complete songs. The goal is a feeling of openness, connection, and freedom that comes from self-expression. The singing itself can be done with or without words, alone or in a group. Whether or not you can read music, or even carry a tune, The Way of Song illuminates a sure path to reconnecting with the joy and the power of singing.

'Jana Chan has produced a wonderfully lush and atmospheric odyssey of survival against all odds' Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author of Girl, Woman, Other 'A strong picaresque element powers this saga' Daily Mail 'Michelle Jana Chan brings a world of equal peril and possibility to life with her rich, radiant prose' Tatler 'A beautifully told tale with fascinating historical insight' Vanity Fair Song is just a boy when he sets out from Lishui village in China. Brimming with courage and ambition, he leaves behind his impoverished broken family, hoping he’ll make his fortune and return home. Chasing tales of sugarcane, rubber and gold, Song embarks upon a perilous voyage across the oceans to the British colony of Guiana, but once there he discovers riches are not so easy to come by and he is forced into labouring as an indentured plantation worker. This is only the beginning of Song’s remarkable life, but as he finds himself between places and between peoples, and increasingly aware that the circumstances of birth carry more weight than accomplishments or good deeds, Song fears he may live as an outsider forever. This beautifully written and evocative story spans nearly half a century and half the globe, and though it is set in another century, Song’s story of emigration and the quest for an opportunity to improve his life is timeless.

Washington Post national arts reporter Geoff Edgers takes a deep dive into the story behind “Walk This Way,” Aerosmith and Run-DMC's legendary, groundbreaking mashup that forever changed music. The early 1980s were an exciting time for music. Hair metal bands were selling out stadiums, while clubs and house parties in New York City had spawned a new genre of music. At the time, though, hip hop's reach was limited, an art form largely ignored by mainstream radio deejays and the rock-obsessed MTV network. But in 1986, the music world was irrevocably changed when Run-DMC covered Aerosmith's hit “Walk This Way” in the first rock-hip hop collaboration. Others had tried melding styles. This was different, as a pair of iconic arena rockers and the young kings of hip hop shared a studio and started a revolution. The result: Something totally new and instantly popular. Most importantly, "Walk This Way" would be the first rap song to be played on mainstream rock radio. In Walk This Way, Geoff Edgers sets the scene for this unlikely union of rockers and MCs, a mashup that both revived Aerosmith and catapulted hip hop into the mainstream. He tracks the paths of the main artists—Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Joseph “Run” Simmons, and Darryl “DMC” McDaniels—along with other major players on the scene across their lives and careers, illustrating the long road to the revolutionary marriage of rock and hip hop. Deeply researched and written in cinematic style, this music history is a must-read for fans of hip hop, rock, and everything in between.

"Embedded in my soul forever." A time-travel adventure powered by the mysterious musical forces that connect two women across time through their cello. The two gifted composers are transposed into each other's world and find their souls have somehow intertwined. In 2018, an aspiring young cellist dreams of joining the National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa. But after a crushing rejection, a new hope emerges in the form of a long lost music score from her dying grandmother in Scotland. In Book I of the Song for a Lost Kingdom series, Adeena Stuart plays this music on the oldest surviving cello made in the United Kingdom, and she's connected to another woman from the past, Katharine Carnegie. Katharine living in 18th century Scotland is also a cellist and a composer. Their connection is augmented by the love of the same man doomed to die after the Battle of Culloden in 1746. In Book II, James Drummond fights alongside Prince Charles Edward Stuart in the 1746 Jacobite uprising. Though their cause is doomed, and James is destined to die shortly after the Battle of Culloden, Adeena's determination to save him never wavers. Left behind in the present, Adeena's friends and families are equally determined to return her to 2019 before the expanding growth in her head becomes fatal. But even they are deceived by the truth of what is about to unfold. In Book III, the final instalment of the series, Adeena and Katharine Carnegie search for the music that neither can complete on their own. Finding themselves living three centuries apart and each assuming the identity of the other, they must overcome their own unique challenges, all the while hiding the truth of who they really are from those around them. The box set is specially priced and also includes the Prequel to the series plus bonus goodies such as the sheet music and lyrics to three original songs featured in the books. (Song for a Lost Kingdom, The Heart Beats in Time and A Foolish Man). Other bonus features include character profiles and a forward by series editor Lara Clouden. The Song for a Lost Kingdom boxset includes: Book I: Music is Not Bound by Time Book II: Love Never Surrenders Book III: The Heart Beats in Time The Prequel: A Kingdom is Lost, A Song is Born. Get swept away in this historical time-slip fantasy-adventure powered by classical music that refuses to be bound by time - and an impossible love that defies the tragic fate already determined by history.

What is music in the age of the cloud? Today, we can listen to nearly anything, at any time. It is possible to flit instantly across genres and generations, from 1980s Detroit techno to 1890s Viennese neo-romanticism. This new age of listening brings with it astonishing new possibilities--as well as dangers. In Every Song Ever, the veteran New York Times music critic Ben Ratliff reimagines the very idea of music appreciation for our times. In the age of the cloud, the genre of the recording and the intention of the composer matter less and less. Instead, we can savor our own listening experience more directly, taking stock of qualities like repetition, speed, density, or loudness. The result is a new mode of listening that can lead to unexpected connections. When we listen for slowness, we may detect surprising affinities between the drone metal of Sunn O))), the mixtape manipulations of DJ Screw, and the final works of Shostakovich. And if we listen for more elusive qualities like closeness, we might notice how the tight harmonies of bluegrass vocals illuminate the virtuosic synchrony of John Coltrane's quartet. Encompassing the sounds of five continents and several centuries, Ratliff's book is a definitive field guide to our musical habitat, and a foundation for the new aesthetics our age demands.

WINNER OF THE 2018 JOHN BURROUGHS MEDAL FOR OUTSTANDING NATURAL HISTORY WRITING “Both a love song to trees, an exploration of their biology, and a wonderfully philosophical analysis of their role they play in human history and in modern culture.” —Science Friday The author of Sounds Wild and Broken and the Pulitzer Prize finalist The Forest Unseen visits with nature’s most magnificent networkers — trees David Haskell has won acclaim for eloquent writing and deep engagement with the natural world. Now, he brings his powers of observation to the biological networks that surround all species, including humans. Haskell repeatedly visits a dozen trees, exploring connections with people, microbes, fungi, and other plants and animals. He takes us to trees in cities (from Manhattan to Jerusalem), forests (Amazonian, North American, and boreal) and areas on the front lines of environmental change (eroding coastlines, burned mountainsides, and war zones.) In each place he shows how human history, ecology, and well-being are intimately intertwined with the lives of trees. Scientific, lyrical, and contemplative, Haskell reveals the biological connections that underpin all life. In a world beset by barriers, he reminds us that life’s substance and beauty emerge from relationship and interdependence.

Kids will read and sing along as feelings come to life in The Story of My Feelings. Growing up is a tough job, and it is important to embrace laughing, sighing, crying, and yelling. Fun and engaging illustrations by Caroline Jayne Church accompany the lyrics and add a vibrancy to the CD. You know you'll feel better after you read and sing The Story of My Feelings!

A piece of Austin music memorabilia from a musician heavily involved in the scene.

View more details of this book at www.walkerbooks.com.au.