Tea culture often embodies the unique lifestyles and spiritual pursuits of different nations and regions. In the summer of 2024, two events—the “Tea and Qin Music Yaji” at SOAS, University of London, and the “Cambridge Garden Tea Gathering” at King’s College, Cambridge—celebrated the fusion of guqin music, poetry, arts exhibition, and Chinese tea ceremony, offering people from around the world a glimpse into the distinctive cultural phenomena of China, and fostering intercultural understanding.

The “Tea and Qin Music Yaji” was a special event of the 2024 London International Chinese Music Festival. It drew many musicians, cultural scholars from China and the UK, and enthusiasts of Chinese music and tea culture. Dr. Yu Cheng, a renowned pipa and guqin player, collaborated with tea master Hong Yiyuan to craft an immersive experience.

2024 Tea and Qin Music Yaji（Photography/Liu Wenfei）

And this summer, the tenth anniversary of the Cambridge Xu Zhimo Poetry & Arts Festival took place at King’s College, Cambridge, opening with a Chinese tea ceremony alongside an art exhibition entitled “Love and Imagination: Courtyards and Wilderness”. Against the backdrop of the Victorian garden filled with exotic blooms, Peter Cavaciuti, an Italian-born East Asian painter and tea master residing in Cambridge, and his student Xi Zi demonstrated the techniques of Chinese Song dynasty matcha. In addition, Ms. Sophie Song, a psychologist and tea master, showcased the brewing techniques of green and red teas, fully captured the allure of Chinese tea culture.

Peter Cavaciuti and his student Xi Zi are preparing

Song dynasty matcha（Photography/Shen Yingqi）

We had the honor of interviewing Professor Alan Macfarlane, Chairman of the Cambridge Xu Zhimo Poetry & Arts Festival, Fellow of the British Academy, and Professor of Archaeology and Anthropology at Cambridge, along with Peter Cavaciuti and Sophie Song, to explore tea’s global influence and its essential role in East-West cultural exchanges.

Professor Alan Macfarlane: Green Gold—A Cultural Ambassador Linking China and the UK

You mentioned tea’s impact on global history, trade, and culture in your book “Green Gold: The Empire of Tea” . Could you tell us more about it?

Alan Macfarlane: The title of my book Green Gold is because tea is green, but it's worth gold. It's more precious than gold.

Tea has had more effect on human beings than any other plant in history probably. The leaf itself contains more than 500 different chemicals, and they've only discovered what two or three hundred of them do. But what they did discover a long time ago was that tea contains something called tannin, and tannin is what doctors call phenolics. Phenolics are the most powerful way of killing dangerous bacteria. So when tea spread, for example, to Britain, it revolutionized the death rate. And so the British Industrial Revolution was made possible by tea. Tea didn't cause it, but without tea we could not have had an industrial revolution. And without the industrial revolution, we wouldn't be here.

What do you think is the significance of these kind of events for the local community and for China?

Alan Macfarlane: These tea events and Xu Zhimo festivals, as well as much else, have allowed me to make friends with many Chinese. They come here, and then we go back to China. We discuss many things, and of course, they always give me gifts of tea. That is part of one of the great events of my last 20 years, which is getting to know China.

The garden in King’s College is a very traditional English garden, with climbing plants and apple trees. It's something like a garden in Alice in Wonderland. When you are having a tea event, it adds to the magic of it. Tea has always promoted exchange and it also promotes understanding because it's a very peaceful drink.

Alan Macfarlane（Photography/Shen Yingqi）

Peter Cavaciuti: The Global Appeal of Chinese Tea Culture

What do you think drives people with no Asian background to develop an interest in Chinese tea culture?

Peter Cavaciuti: When I was teaching tea, I was teaching people from all over Asia. When we have a tea event, we always place poetry or scrolls in the alcove. They are generally from the Tang period, so they've got certain inscriptions. It is called "Yi qi yi hui”, one time, one meeting. We really hope to promote more people to develop more interest in tea within Cambridge, and the understanding of Asian culture through tea.

What do you think is the significance of holding such cultural exchange events in Cambridge?

Peter Cavaciuti: I think Cambridge is a very special place. People that come not just for tea, but to understand Asian culture. Some already have a background and interest in either Buddhism or philosophy, or they've been to the Far East, or they're curious. I think they just want to develop that.

Peter Cavaciuti（Photography/Shen Yingqi）

Sophie Song: The Harmonious Fusion of Chinese Tea with Eastern and Western Arts

Could you share your experience of the tea ceremony performance you presented?

Sophie Song: I was trying to integrate the ceremony into the format of music, art, and poetry. They are different formats but I believe the philosophy is the same. When we were sitting in the garden, it all demonstrated for me the idea that we have always been just part of the nature and we still are. We take from nature. On that particular occasion or in many tea ceremonies, when we gather together it always reminds me of how return to nature, how I make use of it.

You have experience in hosting tea ceremonies in the UK. What is your perspective on the tea culture events held in London and Cambridge?

Sophie Song: Cambridge and London, cities like this, are international and full of diverse tea, diverse culture and of people from all over the world. We organized several tea tasting sessions and tea ceremony occasions. I saw people from all over the whole world showing great passion and interest in tea. They want to know how to drink it, how to brew it. But at the same time, the exchange of ideas is also a chance to embrace each other's culture and to embrace each other's differences.

Sophine Song brews green tea（Photography/Y Shen）

The "Tea and Qin Music Yaji" is organized by China Arts UK, the London Youlan Qin Society, and the UK Chinese Music, with co-sponsorship from institutions such as SOAS, University of London, Goldsmiths, University of London and the YOUTH LINK project at Southwest Jiaotong University. And the "Cambridge Garden Tea Gathering" is hosted by Cambridge Asian Cultural Society, Cam Rivers Tea House, with support from institutions such as Cambridge Chinese Community Centre and School, The Zall Bookstore, MUYE Studio, Fuquan Tea House, Kara Cao Tea Collection, Chu Tea, the YOUTH LINK project at Southwest Jiaotong University.

Tea Culture Blooms in Cambridge and London Universities:

A Taste of China, A Bridge to the World