Born in Fujian, China (1911-1999), Pan Shou arrived in Singapore in 1930 and took up the post of principal of Chung Cheng School in 1931. He was the founding secretary-general of the Nanyang University until his retirement in 1960. Coming from a scholarly family, Pan was well versed in Chinese literature and calligraphy from a young age. Pan was awarded the French Artists Salon Gold Medal in 1985 and the Singapore Cultural Medallion in 1986. In 1994, Pan was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal by the Singapore government for his contributions to the arts and education field in Singapore.Pan was inspired to compose this poem after listening to a musical piece played on a zither. Originally written on a smaller scale, this larger work was completed on the urging of fellow artist Chen Kezhan, who felt that the small size did not match the mood of the musical piece. This work is a good representation of Pan’s virtuosity as a calligrapher and poet.
