On the basis of inheritance from the previous generation, the court music of the Yuan Dynasty made new developments. The court music of the Yuan Dynasty was divided into Yale and Yanle. Yale is basically a continuation of the previous generation, while Yanle has various national and cultural components, reflecting the characteristics of the times at that time.

The establishment of court music in the Yuan Dynasty is closely related to the implementation of Han law by Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan Dynasty, and is an important aspect of Han law. Court music is an indispensable part of ancient Chinese court etiquette and occupies an important position in ancient Chinese music.

In the Yuan Dynasty, there was a Jiaofangsi in Dadu, which mainly managed and trained artists to perform music and drama. During this period, the Jiaofang, as an art organization supported by the state, absorbed and trained a large number of artists.

On the one hand, it brought folk music to the court, and on the other hand, it also contributed to the improvement of the artist's artistic level. Sometimes, many artists often flowed into the folk from the church, and also introduced the original palace music into the court. folk, promoting the further development of folk music.

Later, the Jiaofang was renamed "Taichang Temple", and then renamed "Taichang Ceremony House". This institution was specially used to manage rituals and music, worship ancestral temples, and other matters.

In the early Yuan Dynasty, when Kublai Khan came to the throne, he summoned the Dongping ritual music people to Yanjing to use the newly made Yale to worship their ancestors.

In the early Yuan Dynasty, after Kublai Khan came to the throne, he actively promoted the "Han Method" and also set up court music and dance consisting of Yale and Yanle according to the tradition of the previous dynasty. According to the "History of the Yuan Dynasty":

The national music and songs are majestic and grand enough to show the prosperity of the king. The ancestral temple in Jiaoshe, the temple of Confucius, and the altar of Xiannong all use ancient music. In the court meeting, Yan's feast will be served, and Yan's music will be used. So the sounds of ancient and modern times are ready.

In 1264, Kublai Khan named Yale "Dachengle" and set up the "Dachengle Department" to take charge of 479 households of ritual students and musicians. The Music Department is affiliated to Taichang Temple, and its band of musicians is based on the musicians of Dongping, and is divided into two bands: Dengge and Gongxuan.

The Dengge band performs in the hall, while the Gongxuan band is larger and performs in the hall. The musical instruments used in Dengge and Gongxuan are ancient bells, chimes, harps, zithers, etc., but the number of various instruments is different between the two. For example, there are a large number of bells and chime instruments in the palace, but there are very few singing songs. Both played traditional music with new words added.

The two bands are mainly composed of musicians, as well as singers and dancers. The dances they perform are called "civil and martial arts dances" and are performed alternately. In fact, as early as the Northern Song Dynasty, the court band already had Dengge, Gongxuan, and civil and military dance teams. In the Yuan Dynasty, the palace band was established on this basis, which was also divided into Dengge, Gongxuan, and civil and military dance teams.

The Deng Ge, Gong Xuan and Civil and Military Dances of the Yuan Dynasty Da Le Department system are collectively called Ya Le. Within the Zhongshu Rites Department, there are the Yifeng Division and the Jiaofang Division, which belong to the "Yan Le" system.

In the early years of the Unification of China, the Yuan Dynasty court established two institutions, the Yifeng Division and the Jiaofang Division. Since then, the personnel and structures of the Yifeng Division and the Jiaofang Division have been continuously adjusted. The Jiaofang Division "takes charge of Yingle people and manages 500 households in Xinghe and other departments."

The "entertainment instruments" of the Yuan Dynasty court include sheng, pipa, zither, huqin, fangxiang, dragon flute, head pipe, sheng, harp, yun'ao, Xiao, opera bamboo, drum, stick drum, Zhagu, Hegu, Zhen, Qiang flute, clapper, water lamp, etc.

There is a big difference between these "entertainment instruments" and "graceful music" instruments. The music played by the musicians of Yifengsi and Jiaofangsi is different from the "Yale" system of Da Le Department.

Because the "grace music" of the Yuan Dynasty included civil and military dances, and the music and dance performed by Yifengsi and Jiaofangsi included the Music King Team, the Birthday Team, the Ceremony Band, etc., the music played included "Wanwan" "New Year's Eve", "Evergreen Willow", "Auspicious Teeth", etc. These types of music are used repeatedly and are all popular folk tunes in the Song and Yuan Dynasties.

Also, the Yuan Dynasty was a unified multi-ethnic country. During this period, there were frequent economic and cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries. The "Yan Music" of the Yuan Dynasty also contained new non-Central Plains music components.

Yifeng Division is affiliated with three types of fine music: Hanren music, Hexi music, and Huihui music. Hanren music refers to the folk music of the Central Plains, Hexi music refers to the original Western Xia music, and Huihui music refers to the music of various Islamic ethnic groups.

In addition, there is a famous song "Haitongqing catches swans" in the court music of the Yuan Dynasty. Because the emperor of the Yuan Dynasty went to the willow forest in the suburbs of Dadu every spring to hunt, they released Haidongqing to catch swans. , this song expresses this content, and it should undoubtedly be the work of Yifengsi or Jiaofangsi at that time.

In the Yuan Dynasty, musicians from the Dalue Department were used for sacrifices in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, Sheji, Jiaotan, and Xiannongtan. In Dadu and Qufu Xuansheng Temple, you can also use singing and music to pay tribute. Later, various roads and Fu Xuansheng temples were also allowed to install "Yale". Musicians from the Yifeng Division and the Jiaofang Division were mainly used for major court ceremonies, banquets, and guard of honor when the emperor was on tour.

In general, the activities undertaken by the Yifeng Division and the Jiaofang Division of the Yanle Organization in the Yuan Dynasty were much heavier than those of the DaLe Department of the Yale Organization. In other words, in the Yuan Dynasty, the "Yanle" The actual status and influence are much greater than "Yale".