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Two cyclists pedaling down a road in front of the Mingsha Shan (or "Singing Sand Dunes") in China

© ALEX SIEVERS

Why the Silk Road?
The historic Silk Road trade network provides a namesake-worthy metaphor for the Silk Road Project’s vision of connecting artists and audiences around the world. Yo-Yo Ma has called these routes, which resulted in the first global exchange of scientific and cultural traditions, the “Internet of antiquity.” The Silk Road Project takes inspiration from this age-old tradition of cross-cultural exchange.

Books for Adults

These readings provide information on the expressive and material culture of Silk Road inhabitants, past and present. They represent some of the most astute, culturally sensitive and accessible research available on the folk life of the Silk Road region. Many of the authors are affiliated with the Silk Road Project.

The Silk Road and Beyond: Travel, Trade and Transformation

  

The Silk Road and Beyond: Travel, Trade, and Transformation

Karen Manchester (editor)
James Cuno, Yo-Yo Ma, Milo Beach (contributors)
Art Institute of Chicago, 2007

     
The Silk Road: Xi'an to Kashgar (Eighth Edition)  

The Silk Road: Xi'an to Kashgar (Eighth Edition)

Judy Bonavia, Sarah Jessup and Edward Juanteguy
Odyssey, 2007

     
Soundscapes: Exploring Music in a Changing World (Second Edition)  

Soundscapes: Exploring Music in a Changing World (Second Edition)

Kay Kaufman Shelemay
Silk Road Project featured
W.W. Norton, 2006

     
Where Rivers and Mountains Sing: Sound, Music, and Nomadism in Tuva and Beyond  

Where Rivers and Mountains Sing: Sound, Music, and Nomadism in Tuva and Beyond

Theodore Levin and Valentina Suzukei
Indiana University Press, 2006

     
Silk Road: Monks, Warriors & Merchants  

Silk Road: Monks, Warriors & Merchants

Luce Boulnois
Odyssey Publications, 2005

     
Sounds of the Silk Road: Musical Instruments of Asia  

Sounds of the Silk Road: Musical Instruments of Asia

Mitchell Clark
MFA Publications, 2005

     
China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200-750 A.D.  

China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200-750 A.D.

James C. Y. Watt
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2004

     
The Silk Road: Trade, Travel, War and Faith  

The Silk Road: Trade, Travel, War and Faith

Susan Whitfield and Ursula Sims-Williams (editors)
Serindia Publications, 2004

     
 

Along the Silk Road: Asian Art and Culture, V. 6

Yo-Yo Ma
Elizabeth ten Grotenhuis (editor)
University of Washington Press, 2002

     
 

The Tarim Mummies: Ancient China and the Mystery of the Earliest People from the West

J.P. Mallory and Victor H. Mair
Thames & Hudson, 2000

     
 

Life Along the Silk Road

Susan Whitfield
University of California Press, 2000

     
From Manchuria to Tibet  

From Manchuria to Tibet

How Man Wong and Julie Gaw
Odyssey Publishing, 1998

     
 

When China Ruled the Seas: The Treasure Fleet of the Dragon Throne, 1405-1433

Louise Levanthes
Oxford University Press, 1997

     
 

The Hundred Thousand Fools of God: Musical Travels in Central Asia (And Queens, New York)

Theodore Levin
Indiana University Press, 1997

     
 

Turkish Traditional Art Today

Henry Glassie
Indiana University Press, 1993

     
 

The Golden Peaches of Samarkand: A Study of T'ang Exotics

Edward H. Schafer
University of California Press, 1985

 

“We are the best teachers when we are active learners.”
- YO-YO MA