https://stephenjones.blog/
@stevejonesblog.bsky.social
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Daoism—lives—language—performance. And jokes
pinned post!
Roundup for 2024: China, world music, modern Europe, West/Central Asia, jazz, Western Art Music, language and drôlerie, film, fiction, sport...
stephenjones.blog/2024/12/31/r...
9 months ago
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As well as this sketch of Shan Fuyi, another main source for our material on the early and modern history of Gaoluo
stephenjones.blog/2019/09/25/v...
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1 day ago
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A village elder, before and after Liberation
stephenjones.blog/2019/07/11/v...
Part of my series on the modern history of Gaoluo
2 days ago
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A new collection of essays on rebetika
stephenjones.blog/2025/09/21/n...
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A new rebetika volume
After my dabblings with Songs of Asia Minor, Road to rebetika, and Folk traditions of Greece, I’m browsing the new volume The SOAS rebetiko reader: a selection of papers associated with the H…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/09/21/new-rebetika-vol/
4 days ago
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In memory of the great ethnomusicologist David Hughes
stephenjones.blog/2025/09/16/i...
9 days ago
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Recopying the Li family Daoist ritual manuals
stephenjones.blog/2018/12/31/r...
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11 days ago
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Li Qing’s Daoist uncle Li Peisen had already anticipated the ravages of Maoist campaigns by moving to the safety of his wife’s natal village, preserving the family ritual manuals—as explained in this post on Women of Yanggao
stephenjones.blog/2017/06/13/w..
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add a skeleton here at some point
12 days ago
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Nuances of Maoist society: the great Daoist Li Qing takes refuge from the famine by joining a state Arts Work Troupe
stephenjones.blog/2019/01/19/d...
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A Daoist serves a state troupe
My post on the folk–conservatoire gulf reminds me of the brief sojourn of the great household Daoist Li Qing in the grimy coal city of Datong as a state-employed musician. Indeed throughout China, …
https://stephenjones.blog/2019/01/19/daoist-in-state-troupe/
12 days ago
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Since my film on the 1995 New Year's rituals in Gaoluo won awards at the Chinese Musics Ethnographic Film Festival in Shanghai, I reflect further on the gulf between ethnography and reified glamorisation, and issues in discussing politics
stephenjones.blog/2025/09/11/g..
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Prizes for Gaoluo film!
I’m most gratified that my film Seated at the altar, on the 1995 New Year’s rituals in Gaoluo village, was awarded two prizes at the Chinese Musics Ethnographic Film Festival (CMEFF) In…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/09/11/g..
14 days ago
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An upcoming international conference at Oxford in honour of Craig Clunas brings together leading scholars in the field of Ming studies and art history
stephenjones.blog/2025/09/07/e...
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Echoes of Great Brightness
An international conference in honour of Craig Clunas will be held on 16–17 September at Lincoln College, Oxford, bringing together leading scholars in the field of Ming studies and art history. Fr…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/09/07/echoes-of-great-brightness/
18 days ago
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2) for Gaoluo village, subject of my most detailed historical ethnography:
stephenjones.blog/2025/04/30/d...
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Donors’ lists 2: Gaoluo
Towards a dynamic approach to material artefacts in diachronic social context Further to my previous post giving background on material support for amateur ritual associations on the Hebei plain, I…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/04/30/donors-lists-2/
5 months ago
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Thor Benson
24 days ago
It's often been debated if Trump could pull off a fascist takeover of the United States, because he's clearly not very smart. I talked to
@anneapplebaum.bsky.social
about that for my newsletter
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Fascism and stupidity are not mutually exclusive
People have often said Trump is too stupid to lead an effective fascist takeover of the United States. Not so fast.
https://madness.ghost.io/fascism-stupidity-not-mutually-exclusive/
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Djokovic's celebration reminds me to document some of the diverse ways of playing the violin
stephenjones.blog/2024/08/31/w...
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Ways of playing the violin
A companion to Indian and world fiddles. Image: Paul Childs/Reuters. Source. This summer, after yet another victory, Novak Djokovic paid homage to his daughter’s early steps learning the viol…
https://stephenjones.blog/2024/08/31/ways-of-playing-violin/
25 days ago
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Survey of village ritual associations on the Hebei plain
stephenjones.blog/sects-hebei/
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4 months ago
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Collected posts on Mahler, soundtrack to all the anguish and elation of the 20th century: symphonies, chamber arrangements, piano rolls, Alma and Anna...
stephenjones.blog/2022/09/06/m...
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30 days ago
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Mahler at this year's Proms!
stephenjones.blog/2025/08/26/m...
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Mahler at this year’s Proms!
By way of reminding you of my series on the great Gustav Mahler, some brief comments on the three symphonies of his performed at this year’s Proms, while I consult Norman Lebrecht’s han…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/08/26/mahler-2025-proms/
about 1 month ago
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A noir plot suggested by a Japanese phrasebook!
stephenjones.blog/2017/01/21/j...
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That is the snake that bit my foot
If you’re thinking of dabbling with Japanese, then as a more practical guide than the sketch “How to learn Japanese in three easy lessons” (freezing cold, constipated, and absent-minded—available o…
https://stephenjones.blog/2017/01/21/japanese/
3 months ago
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*Don’t miss* the late lamented Nicolas Robertson's astounding series of anagram tales, based on composers’ names, Mozart operas, and so on!!! My index can only hint at the riches contained within them…
stephenjones.blog/2021/08/30/a...
about 1 month ago
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Ravel and Stravinsky at the Proms, with copious links—and a party game...
stephenjones.blog/2025/08/16/p...
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Proms: Ravel and Stravinsky
Ida Rubenstein leading the original 1928 production of Boléro. Source. Ravel’s Boléro and Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring have become concert “classics”, but they are challe…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/08/16/proms-ravel-stravinsky/
about 1 month ago
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www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...
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David Watkin obituary
Cellist who co-founded the Eroica Quartet and won awards for his recording of Bach’s six solo Suites
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2025/jun/19/david-watkin-obituary
about 2 months ago
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The catchy Taco taco no fubá, including versions by Orquestra Colbaz (1931, Ethel Smith, Carmen Miranda, the Andrews Sisters, and the Bahia Youth Orchestra!!!
stephenjones.blog/2025/08/01/t...
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Tico tico
Earworms can be most insistent. For some reason my current one is Tico tico no fubá, composed in 1917 by Zequinha de Abreu. I first got to know it via the Nimbus CD Choros from Brazil by Os Ingênuo…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/08/01/tico-tico/
about 2 months ago
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Articles on ritual under Communist regimes—Peruvian Andes, Cuba, Vietnam, China, Hungary
stephenjones.blog/2025/07/27/r...
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Red ritual
Before my diachronic ethnography of Gaoluo village was published, I surveyed the modern fortunes of amateur village ritual associations on the Hebei plain south of Beijing in “Ritual music un…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/07/27/red-ritual/
2 months ago
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*MUST-WATCH* film on the 1995 New Year's rituals in Gaoluo village south of Beijing!!!
stephenjones.blog/2024/11/19/g...
1995年南高洛村音樂會正月儀式 Do share!
9 months ago
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RIP Cleo Laine
stephenjones.blog/2017/04/19/y...
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You must believe in spring
After blithely adducing French film music for Bach’s Zerfließe, I’m reminded of You must believe in spring—for those tricky moments when you seek inspiration and the Resurrection of Our Lord …
https://stephenjones.blog/2017/04/19/you-must-believe-in-spring/
2 months ago
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China Books Review
2 months ago
The Dalai Lama, who just turned 90, writes in his memoir that he will reincarnate in the “free world.” But will his political, religious and moral power transfer with him? Read
@tshakya.bsky.social
review of "Voice for the Voiceless" by the Dalai Lama:
chinabooksreview.com/2025/07/24/d...
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Who Will Be the Next Dalai Lama? | China Books Review
The Dalai Lama, who just turned 90, writes in his memoir that he will reincarnate in the “free world.” But will his political, religious and moral power transfer with him?
https://chinabooksreview.com/2025/07/24/dalai-lama/
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https://stephenjones.blog/
Reminder of the Chinese-subtitled version of my film on the 1995 New Year's rituals in Gaoluo village!
add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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Stimulating perspectives on the lives of musical instruments in society
stephenjones.blog/2025/07/12/i...
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Instrumental lives
I’ve been admiring Instrumental lives: musical instruments, material culture, and social networks in East and Southeast Asia (2024), edited by Helen Rees, professor of ethnomusicology at UCLA, who,…
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/07/12/instrumental-lives/
2 months ago
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stephenjones.blog/2022/09/08/o...
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3 months ago
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Iga’s first Wimbledon final makes a pretext to remind you of this post on wacky diacritics and nasal vowels: Polish ogonek and Portuguese til—with matching anagram and limerick!
stephenjones.blog/2022/09/08/o...
3 months ago
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reposted by
https://stephenjones.blog/
Joseph Torigian
3 months ago
Thanks
@robbiebarnett.bsky.social
for referring to work by
@bennoweiner.bsky.social
and me for this ChinaFile discussion on the Dalai Lama’s succession
www.chinafile.com/conversation...
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Beethoven's Wimbledon adventure, apud Monty Python
stephenjones.blog/2017/01/21/j...
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3 months ago
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A remarkable world music playlist celebrating Emma Raducanu's 2021 US Open victory!
stephenjones.blog/2021/09/12/e...
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A playlist for Emma and Leylah
Photo: Timothy A. Clary/AFP. The fairy-tale dénouement of the US Open women’s singles was an even more intense and moving contest than anyone dared imagine. Just exhilarated by this rare mome…
https://stephenjones.blog/2021/09/12/emma-leylah-playlist/
3 months ago
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The Guardian
3 months ago
Dalai Lama says there will be search for his successor after his death, ending years of speculation
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Dalai Lama says there will be search for his successor after his death, ending years of speculation
Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader releases video statement in run-up to 90th birthday celebrations The Dalai Lama has said the centuries-old Tibetan Buddhist institution will continue after his death, ending years of speculation that started when he indicated that he might be the last person to hold the role. Speaking at prayer celebrations ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday, the Nobel peace prize-winning spiritual head of Tibetan Buddhism said in a recorded statement that the next Dalai Lama should be found and recognised as per past Buddhist traditions. Continue reading...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/02/dalai-lama-says-there-will-be-search-for-his-successor-ending-years-of-speculation?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=bluesky&CMP=bsky_gu
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www.theguardian.com/world/2025/j...
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The spiritual economy: young Chinese turn to fortune tellers as anxiety about the future rises
Growing popularity of mysticism can also be connected to increasing sense of cultural confidence as Chinese brands and products go global
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/01/china-fortune-tellers-young-people-mysticism
3 months ago
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Changing times: Daoist and Buddhist groups at Daxing funerals 1995
stephenjones.blog/suburban-bei...
add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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Reminder of the Chinese-subtitled version of my film on the 1995 New Year's rituals in Gaoluo village!
add a skeleton here at some point
3 months ago
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reposted by
https://stephenjones.blog/
Sixth Tone
3 months ago
Across China, temples are quietly transforming into destinations for lifestyle consumption. Brand crossovers, cafés, vegetarian cuisine, and even venture capital activities now form what some call the “temple economy.” Read more:
ow.ly/Gvlb50WhoUT
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Some comments on the (possibly welcome) paucity of posts on my blog of late...
stephenjones.blog/2025/06/25/p...
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Paltry reflections
Having not exactly been hibernating, I now find myself in what doesn’t merit the term of “sabbatical”. It’s partly that I’m beset by a lack of focus; while it’s …
https://stephenjones.blog/2025/06/25/paltry-reflections/
3 months ago
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Society and soundscape, some sample posts
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3 months ago
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https://stephenjones.blog/
China Heritage
3 months ago
chinaheritage.net/journal/resi...
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Resisting the Trump Regime — a how-to handbook
Contra Trump 抗心希古 Sixty years ago, Li Ao, a Taiwan-based popular historian and mud-racker, published ‘The Art of Survival’. It was, as he put it, about ‘the art of living in the chaotic world while
https://chinaheritage.net/journal/resisting-the-trump-regime-a-how-to-handbook/
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https://stephenjones.blog/
Marc Gilbert
3 months ago
The Robert van Gulik Archive at Leiden University Libraries is now fully described and accessible online:
edu.nl/d7p3m
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https://stephenjones.blog/
Do foreigners really choose images that expose the “ugliness” of China (and is that what my films do)?! Please feel free to circulate articles on the topic!
add a skeleton here at some point
4 months ago
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reposted by
https://stephenjones.blog/
Many posts on north Indian raga collected here
stephenjones.blog/2021/09/16/g...
add a skeleton here at some point
6 months ago
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A noir plot suggested by a Japanese phrasebook!
stephenjones.blog/2017/01/21/j...
loading . . .
That is the snake that bit my foot
If you’re thinking of dabbling with Japanese, then as a more practical guide than the sketch “How to learn Japanese in three easy lessons” (freezing cold, constipated, and absent-minded—available o…
https://stephenjones.blog/2017/01/21/japanese/
3 months ago
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Sooo happy for Coco!!!
stephenjones.blog/2019/07/09/c..
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add a skeleton here at some point
4 months ago
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The artistry of the craftsman in Istanbul
stephenjones.blog/2023/06/20/s...
4 months ago
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Public memory of the righteous student protests of 1989 still suppressed within China
stephenjones.blog/2020/09/30/b...
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Tiananmen: bullets and opium
Within China, as for the whole of the Maoist era, public memory of the righteous student protests of 1989 in China continues to be repressed. A valuable recent addition to the extensive literature …
https://stephenjones.blog/2020/09/30/bullets-and-opium/
4 months ago
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中国民间档案馆 | China Unofficial Archives
4 months ago
又到六四纪念日。关于六四的书,你最近打算读哪部? 欢迎参考民间档案馆六四档案推荐,所有推荐档案的全文均可在民间档案馆网站查看下载:
chinaunofficialarchives.substack.com/p/58f
On the eve of another anniversary of June Fourth, please check out our editors' recommendations on books to read on what happened in 1989. (See link above.)
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Chinese-subtitled version now available both on my sites and in China!
stephenjones.blog/2025/05/31/g...
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4 months ago
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Do foreigners really choose images that expose the “ugliness” of China (and is that what my films do)?! Please feel free to circulate articles on the topic!
add a skeleton here at some point
4 months ago
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Growing body of articles under the Gaoluo Menu of my site!
4 months ago
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