In the Confucian cultural circle it is believed that the efficiency and quality of one’s actions is closely determined by the quality of one’s “work with qi.” This belief is found equally in philosophical writings, texts on aesthetics, and notes of masters of the martial arts, as well as within the so-called “folk/common wisdom.” The phenomenon of “working with qi” is related to working on one’s mind, and on closer examination seems adaptable and applicable in contexts other than that of Chinese culture. In this article I will try to explain what the “work with qi” consists in on the example of Taijiquan martial art, and then sketch a theoretical possibility of “working with qi” in the practice of free improvisation in contemporary music.
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