Just a touch late, but this entrancing take on Clarke’s Chinese Puzzle, by members of the Ulster Orchestra, popped up only this morning:

This is an arrangement—uncredited, but absolutely terrific, and one that I think Clarke would have loved. The original is for violin and piano, but she herself made arrangements for viola and piano, and for a ravishing mixed ensemble of violin, flute, viola, cello, and piano (details here), and the piece was always a winner for her in concert, so what’s one more arrangement among friends?

The tune is one that a Chinese classmate of Clarke’s brother Hans hummed while spending weekends at the Clarke home in Harrow, England, in the early 1900s. Many years later, while on tour in Peking, Clarke checked out her transcription with a native colleague, who confirmed its accuracy, but blushed to say that it had words that he could not repeat in polite company.

And on that cheerful note, we wish you happy puzzling, and a very prosperous Year of the Dragon!