Relationship with Master Hongyi
Liu Zhiping and his mentor Li Shu sympathized with the same father and son. Li became a monk in 1918, with the Buddhist name Master Hongyi. In the next 24 years, Zhiping often supported his living expenses. Master Hongyi has preserved his exquisite calligraphy works year by year, including 10 screen strips, 10 scrolls in the nave, and 30 couplets. In his later years, he donated all his master's ink paintings to the country.
In August 1921, Li Shutong resigned from his teaching position at Shanghai Chengshu Girls' School at the invitation of Principal Heng Yi and transferred to Hangzhou Zhejiang Normal School (renamed Zhejiang Provincial No. 1 Normal School the following year Normal School, referred to as Zhejiang No. 1 Normal School) serves as a music and painting teacher in the graphics engineering department. Opened a new chapter in modern Chinese art education. This was an important stage in Li Shutong's life. Because of his erudition and versatility, he had great prestige: "Whenever his name is mentioned, no one in the school, teachers, students or even workers disrespects him." Liu Zhiping was lucky enough to meet his authority.
At the beginning of the year, Liu Zhizi graduated from Haining High School and was admitted to the Zhejiang Normal School with honors. After enrolling in school, due to his outstanding academic performance and poor family background, he was exempted from paying fees for academic fees, books, meals, and accommodation. He studied in the Xu major and then the normal college, which lasted five years. In September of the same year, he began to study music from Li Shutong and experienced an unprecedented teaching style: first, he was committed to being a role model and putting personality first. Make all preparations before class, sit by the piano and wait for students to start class. Two movable blackboards are filled with the key points of the lectures, and the music scores are placed on the piano cover. They just wait for the bell to ring and then teach according to the scheduled plan; secondly, they compile their own teaching materials according to local conditions. Most of the songs taught are composed of foreign tunes with lyrics, and most of the piano music taught are famous foreign songs with accompanying accompaniment scores. They are combined with lectures to impart knowledge of Western harmonic composition. Liu Zhiping suddenly fell in love with music.
On a severe winter day in 1921, with heavy snowfall and feet of snow, Liu Zhiping was alone in the piano room, repeatedly playing the piano, pondering, practicing and composing, and finally wrote his debut novel. With uncontrollable joy, at the moment He took the score to Li Shutong's dormitory to ask for correction. The teacher took the score and reviewed it without saying a word for a long time. Liu Zhiping was afraid that the teacher would blame him for being too eager for success, and he felt ashamed and said, "I am almost in a state of nowhere. Because students are never required to practice composition in music class!" Just as he was feeling uneasy, he suddenly heard Li Shutong announce: "Go to the music classroom at 8:35 tonight and have something to say in person. After saying that, he bowed slightly and sent Liu off. In the evening, the wind and snow were strong, and the campus was a silvery world. Liu Zhiping came to the music classroom in advance. He saw footprints at the door, but "the classroom door was closed, and there was no sound at all. He stood outside the door and waited. About ten minutes later, the lights suddenly turned on and the door opened. Li Shutong went out with his watch. He looked at the hour hand on the watch and said happily: "The time is correct, every minute." He slowly looked at Liu Ziping, who was covered in snow and shivering all over, and told him to go. If you have anything to say, we can talk about it tomorrow.
Little did he know that with just this one song and one appointment, he was recognized by Li Shutong as a musician cultivated by Li Shutong: he would be taught music theory for one hour and piano for one hour every week. When he went to Ningbo to take part-time lessons, Li Shutong arranged for him to take piano lessons from the American pianist Mrs. Bonnide, thus laying the foundation for Liu Zhiping's further studies in the future.
In September 1915, Li Shutong accepted the appointment of President Jiang Qian as a concurrent teacher of music and painting at Nanjing Normal University. You must take a bus to and from Hangzhou and Ningbo every week. Traveling between the two places is very tiring. But he still insisted on giving Liu Zhiping additional music theory lessons, and also helped Liu Zhiping solve problems by writing letters. For example, at the beginning of the school year, Liu Zhiping fell ill due to heavy academic work and lack of physical strength, and he was in a very depressed mood. Li Shutong wrote a letter of consolation: "Brother Zhi Ping: How can you be so close to your dignity? I really think about it. Life is difficult, and things often go wrong as expected. We should calm down and be diligent in this regard. To find joy in suffering, if you are rigid in everything and strain your brain, it will not help. My brother has been ill for a long time. If he can read the ancient self-cultivation maxims (such as "The Analects") in his spare time, he will have a different state of mind.
I will come to Hangzhou School in the second half of the year, and I hope that my brother will always be with you."
In a few words, my love for talents is vividly expressed on the page.
In the autumn of 1928, Liu Zhiping graduated from the No.1 Zhejiang Normal University. With Li Shutong's encouragement, he raised travel expenses and arrived in Tokyo, where he took extra classes and prepared to apply for the Tokyo Music School. As soon as he arrived in Tokyo, he found that many Chinese government-sponsored students were not welcomed by the school: Japanese students might make evil remarks and ridicule them. Or "funny and ridiculing", people today are confused and depressed...