The name of Kunqu Opera comes from Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. It, Haiyan Opera, Yu Yaoqiang Opera and Yiyang Opera, which originated in Zhejiang Province, are called the four major vocal operas in Ming Dynasty and belong to the Southern Opera system.
Kunqu opera is an ancient opera tune and genre in China, formerly known as "Kunshan Opera" or "Kunqu Opera" for short. It has been called "Kunqu Opera" since the Qing Dynasty, and now it is also called "Kunqu Opera". The accompaniment instruments of Kunqu Opera are mainly Qu Di, supplemented by Sheng, Xiao, Suona, Sanxian and Pipa (percussion music is available).
The performance of Kunqu Opera also has its own unique system and style. Its greatest characteristics are strong lyricism, delicate movements, and ingenious and harmonious combination of singing and dancing. On May 18th, 21, this drama was named as "masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage of mankind" by UNESCO.
The state attaches great importance to the protection of intangible cultural heritage. On May 2th, 26, Kunqu Opera was approved by the State Council to be included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage lists. Qupai is the most basic singing unit in Kunqu Opera.
According to the statistics of Wu Mei, a master of Quxue during the Republic of China, there were more than 4, southern Qupai and more than 1, northern Qupai. There are only more than 2 commonly used ones.
The most popular Nanqu tunes are [Bu Bujiao], [Soap Robe], [Good Sister] and [Lazy Thrush] and [Chao Yuan Song] in Garden. These two plays are also used to lay the foundation for actors and actresses.
Therefore, there is a saying in Kunqu that women learn the Garden and men learn the Qintiao. The singing of Kunqu Opera is characterized by "singing according to the word", which follows the word and has a certain style in singing. Different from other operas, it can be played at will according to the individual conditions of the actors, but there are four strict settings: tuning, tuning, setting the board and setting the score.
In singing skills, Kunqu opera pays attention to the control of voice, the speed of rhythm and the pronunciation of articulation, and has the distinction of "gap", "overlap", "bang" and "ho" as well as the personality singing methods of various roles. The musical instruments of Kunqu Opera are relatively complete, which are generally composed of wind instruments, stringed instruments and percussion instruments. The main instrument is flute, as well as sheng, xiao, sanxian and pipa.
The greatest feature of Kunqu Opera performance is its strong lyricism and delicate movements, and its clever and harmonious combination of singing and dancing. Kunqu Opera is a comprehensive art in which all kinds of performing means, such as singing, dancing, introducing and speaking, cooperate with each other.
The intonation of Kunqu Opera is also very distinctive. Since Kunqu Opera was developed from Wuzhong, its pronunciation has the characteristics of soft language of Wu Nong. Among them, the clown also has a kind of local white based on Wu dialect, such as Su Bai and Yangzhou Bai. This kind of street language in Wuzhong area has a strong flavor of life, and it often uses Allegro rhyme white, which is very distinctive.
Because the early Kunqu Opera belongs to the southern opera system, it inherits the role system of the southern opera, and at the same time absorbs the strengths of the northern zaju, taking life, Dan, purity, ugliness, ugliness and pasting as the basic roles. The early work "Huansha Ji" reflects the role division method of the early Kunqu Opera, that is, it not only follows the seven lines of the southern opera, but also draws lessons from Xiao Mo and Xiao Dan of the Yuan zaju. With the development of performing arts, the division of roles in Kunqu Opera has become more and more detailed.
between Jia and Dao, the role business of Kunqu Opera combines the original "twelve roles in Jianghu" with the later finer division of labor, and under the five major businesses of "life, Dan, purity, ugliness", it is subdivided into twenty small lines, which are called "twenty families". In Chinese mainland, there are six professional Kunqu Opera troupes, namely Jiangsu Sukun Troupe (founded in 1956 and renamed Suzhou Kunqu Opera Troupe in Jiangsu Province in 21), Jiangsu Kunqu Opera Troupe, Shanghai Kunqu Opera Troupe, Hangzhou Kunqu Opera Troupe, Beijing North Kunqu Opera Troupe and Chenzhou Hunan Kunqu Opera Troupe, as well as Zhejiang Yongjia Kunqu Opera Studio, which is called "No.1 Sixth Troupe (Academy)".
in the long-term performance practice, Kunqu opera has accumulated a large number of staged plays. Among them, influential and frequently performed plays are: Wang Shizhen's Ming Feng Ji, Tang Xianzu's Peony Pavilion, Purple Hairpin Ji, Handan Ji, Nanke Ji, and Shen Jing's Yi Xia Ji.
Gao Lian's The Jade Hairpin, Li Yu's Kite Mistake, Zhu Suchen's Fifteen Passes, Kong Shangren's Peach Blossom Fan, Hong Sheng's Palace of Eternal Life, and some other famous discount plays, such as A Dream in the Garden, Yangguan, Sanzui and Qiu Jiang. Wei Liangfu, Yu Zhenfei, Tian Ruiting and other famous Kunqu actors.
Hua Dan Jin Wang, the head of the Northern Kunqu Opera Theatre, is famous now. Kunqu opera can't be a big hit in today's world because of its characteristics, and it can't be restored to its former glory. However, as a treasure of Chinese culture and a world heritage, we have the responsibility to pass it on and continue to carry it forward.
Note: The above is reproduced from Baidu Encyclopedia for your reference. .
2. Basic knowledge of Kunqu Opera
Kunqu Opera art has been accumulated for hundreds of years, and it is one of the oldest operas with national influence in China. The research, materials and discussions about it are vast. On May 18th, 21, UNESCO awarded the first batch of 19 cultural expressions in different regions of the world with the title of "representative works of oral and intangible heritage of mankind", and China Kunqu Opera ranked first with unanimous votes.
Kunqu Opera, formerly known as "Kunshan Opera" or "Kunqu Opera" for short, has been called "Kunqu Opera" since the Qing Dynasty, and now it has been called "Kunqu Opera". "Kunshan dialect" was produced in Kunshan, Jiangsu Province in the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty (mid-14th century), and it has a history of more than 6 years.
at first, "kunshan dialect" was just folk songs and small songs. Wei Liangfu, an outstanding opera musician in Jiajing and Jiaqing years of Ming Dynasty (1522-1572), reformed Kunshan Opera to make it more euphemistic, delicate, fluent and distant, and was called "Shuimo Opera".
After that, Liang Chenyu, a musician and dramatist, created the first Kunqu legend "Huansha Ji" according to the characteristics of Kunshan dialect. Therefore, it also expanded the influence of Kunqu Opera.
Some literary figures strive to write legends with the new voice of Kunqu Opera, and Kunshan Opera became famous for a while. By the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, Kunqu Opera had spread from Wuzhong to Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces and then to the whole country, forming a national drama, which was then called "official opera". From the "Ming-Apocalypse" to the last year of "Qing-Kangxi" (1621-1722), Kunqu reached its peak and became a popular song at that time.
The phrase "Every family [tidies up], every household [does not watch out]" is a true portrayal of the popularity of Kunqu opera among the masses at that time. That is to say, at that time, every family loved to listen to and sing Kunqu opera.
the so-called "pick up" is the first sentence of "pour a cup of jade hibiscus" sung by Emperor Jianwen, who fled from home, in Kunqu Opera "Thousand Bells Slaughter and Bad Gambling". The word "don't be wary" in "Don't be wary" is the first sentence of "Don't be wary of the value of surplus years" in the eclectic tune of "playing the word" sung by Li Guinian, a legendary musician in the Palace of Eternal Life, which tells about the "Anshi Rebellion" during the reign of Tang Tianbao.
kunshan cavity integrates northern music, Yiyang cavity and Haiyan cavity into one furnace, and is refined and processed. its artistic achievement in music is unprecedented. Its music was later absorbed and digested by Peking Opera and many local operas, such as Sichuan Opera, xiang opera Opera, Guangdong Cantonese Opera, Guangxi Opera, Han Opera and Wu Opera. What's more, some operas simply performed Kunqu Opera as it was.
Of course, their languages are full of local accent, which is the biggest feature of local operas. Because Kunqu Opera plays an extremely important role in the development of China opera, it has the reputation of "the mother of hundreds of operas".
Appreciation of Kunqu Opera Tune and Banqiang Opera Music in China can be roughly divided into two categories: Quqiang Opera and Banqiang Opera. If Peking Opera is an outstanding representative of Banqiang Opera, Kunqu Opera is an excellent model of Quqiang Opera. "Qupai", also known as "brand", is a general term for tunes with relatively fixed melodies that have been gradually preserved through the ages.
each qupai has a nice name, such as "point the lips, straighten the lips, make a new water order, get drunk in the shade of flowers, butterfly, a flower" and so on. In the eighth year of Qing Qianlong's reign, the Book of Jiugong Dacheng Nanbei Palace collected 1513 Nanqu songs and 581 Beiqu songs.
so many qupai have left a rich cultural heritage for Chinese traditional opera music. The aria music of traditional Chinese opera always serves for the lyrics and is closely combined with the lyrics. Because of the different structural forms, the lyrics of "Qupai Style" and "Banqiang Style" also determine the different musical structures. Take the national opera Beijing Opera with "Banqiang Style" as an example, its lyrics are mainly composed of seven words of two, two and three, three and four crosses, and occasionally "two, three".
For example, seven sentences (Su San left Hongdong County and came to the front of the street, but his heart was miserable, and gentlemen in the past listened to slave words ...), a cross sentence (Seeing that the king was sleeping soundly in his tent and clothes, I was out of my tent and dispersing my worries ...), and a five-sentence sentence (Angry at Yang Yanzhao, stupid son listened to the root seedling, ordered his son to patrol the whistle, and privately confessed his relatives ... This kind of singing that matches the lyrics of Beijing opera is also a sentence structure.
It is true that in order to overcome the rigidity of the upper and lower sentence structure, in some Huilong tunes and a lower sentence, the lyrics are also punctuated with overlapping sentences or interlining from time to time, so as to make a breakthrough in the singing melody. But generally speaking, Beijing opera lyrics are even sentences, that is, if there is an upper sentence, there must be a lower sentence. If there is a plot that does not need a lower sentence, use percussion to "sweep the head" to sweep it away.
This is a special case. The so-called "four, six and eight sentences" shows that Beijing opera lyrics are even-numbered sentences. As a "Qupai Style", the lyrics structure of Kunqu Opera is a long and short sentence inherited from Song Ci.
The "Dianjiang Lip" qupai of "Running at Night" in Kunqu Opera is a singular five sentences. "count more, listen to the residual jade, escape from relatives and friends, and it is difficult for the country to vote, so answer for help."
The number of words in these five sentences is 4, 4, 3, 4 and 5. What needs to be explained is that the difference between Kunqu lyrics and real words (such as Song lyrics) is that there is no interlining in Song lyrics, but Kunqu lyrics can be interlined. The fourth sentence of the "Dianjiang Lip" which was appreciated earlier is preceded by five interlining words "Ah, good, good to call me" and the fifth sentence is also added with the word "empty word".
Many great performers in Beijing Opera sing "Dianjiang Lip" in the official audience: "Heroes and soldiers, children and tigers, herald, shake the earth, and sweep away the wolf smoke". Its structure is standard 4, 4, 3, 4, 5.
Another example is the "Mountain Sheep" in the Kunqu Opera "Peony Pavilion-Dream", which consists of 14 sentences. The order of words in each sentence is 7, 7, 7, 8, 3, 5, 4, 4, 4, 5, 2, 6, 2 and 6. Appreciation of Kunqu Opera Tune Nanqu and Beiqu (I) are the same Kunqu Opera brand with long and short sentences, which can be divided into two categories in nature, namely Beiqu and Nanqu.
they have their own characteristics. How to distinguish? Mainly by the following points to distinguish.
First, Beiqu has many words but few cavities. The words are dense but few cavities, and the tunes are high-pitched, generous and simple. In Qu Zao written by Wang Shizhen in the Ming Dynasty, it is said that "the northern part of the poem is full of vigor and beauty", "there are many words in the northern part of the poem, but the words in the northern part are promoted, and the words in the northern part of the poem are full of emotion but little sound and emotion" and so on.
Nanqu, on the other hand, has fewer words and more cavities, scattered words, fluent melody, lyrical and soft tunes, and is good at expressing deep and subtle inner feelings. Second: the scales are different. Beiqu has seven tones, namely, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, and all seven tones are found in Qupai.
3. Little knowledge of drama
Introduction to drama) [drama; Play] used to refer to traditional Chinese opera, but later it was used as a general term for traditional Chinese opera, drama, opera, ballet, poetic drama, etc.
Greek drama refers to the stage performance art that achieves narrative purpose in the form of language, action, dance, music and puppets. The concept of drama in literature refers to the script created for drama performance, that is, the script.
There are various forms of drama, including drama, opera, ballet, musical, puppet show and so on. A kind of comprehensive art with specific meaning.
There are two meanings: in a narrow sense, it refers to a stage performance form that started with ancient Greek tragedies and comedies, first developed in European countries and then became popular all over the world. drama is called in English, and drama is called in China. Broadly speaking, it also includes the traditional stage performances of some countries and nationalities in the East, such as China's operas, Japanese kabuki, Indian classical dramas, and Korean singing dramas.
the essence of drama. In the 4th century BC, Aristotle expressed his understanding of the essence of drama in his Poetics. He believes that all art is imitation, and drama is imitation of human actions.
Two centuries later, India's first drama theory work, Dance Theory, also pointed out: "Drama is imitation." After the 19th century, there have been different opinions on the study of the essence of drama, including audience theory, conflict theory, radical change theory, situation theory and laboratory theory.
The audience said: Identifying the audience is a necessary condition of drama, and it is also the essence of drama. French drama theorist F.
Sasai is the representative of this concept. He asserts that no matter what kind of drama works are, they are all for the audience. "Without the audience, there would be no drama", therefore, all the organs of drama must be adapted to the audience's appreciation.
conflict theory: represented by the French drama theorist Brentre. At the end of 19th century, Brentre pointed out: The stage is the place where people's conscious will is exerted, and the exertion of characters' conscious will is bound to encounter obstacles, and the subject must fight against them in order to overcome the obstacles, which constitutes a "conflict of will", and this is the essence of drama.
American drama theorist J. H。
Lawson attributes the essence of drama to "social conflict in which conscious will plays a role". He believes that because drama deals with social relations and people's conscious will must be restricted by social inevitability, the real dramatic conflict must be social conflict.
This concept can be expressed in one sentence: "There is no drama without conflict." Radical change theory: British drama theorist W.
Archer denies Brentre's theory of "conflict". He compares novels with dramas, and thinks that novels are "gradual" art, while dramas are "crisis" art, and dramas deal with a drastic change in people's fate and environment, which is the essence of drama. Situation and laboratory theory: as early as the 18th century, French philosopher D.
Diderot once regarded "situation" as the basis of dramatic works. When Hegel talked about the characteristics of drama, he also linked "situation" with "conflict" and emphasized the ontological meaning of situation.
J. existentialist philosopher and playwright. -P。
Sartre called his script "situational drama" and described the object of the drama as people's choice behavior in the situation. B。
Brecht regards drama as a scientific method, and thinks that theater is a laboratory to test human behavior in specific situations. This concept also defines the essence of drama from a specific angle.
the origin of drama 1. the theory of singing and dancing can be divided into two kinds: (1) the theory of court music and dancing, and the miscellaneous knowledge of the Qing dynasty's "Lushui Pavilion" by Nalan Xingde.