Three periods of the development of Chinese folk music

1. The formation period of Chinese traditional music (about 21st century BC to 3rd century AD)

This period includes From Xia, Shang, and Western Zhou Dynasties to the Spring and Autumn Period, Warring States Period, and Han Dynasty. In terms of music genre, it has experienced the evolution from primitive music and dance to palace music and dance. In terms of melody tone and scale form, it has gone from the original period music that emphasized the minor third interval to the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods that emphasized the upper and lower major thirds of Gong, Shang, Zheng, and Yu. The "three-point profit and loss method" generates five tones, seven tones, and twelve tones, and initially establishes the pentatonic characteristics of traditional Chinese music melody. In terms of musical aesthetics, the debates between hundreds of schools of thought in the pre-Qin period established the theoretical endpoints of their respective theories thereafter. During this period, the most representative musical art form was the bell and drum band.

2. The new period of Chinese traditional music (about the 4th century to the 10th century AD)

This period includes the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties. The political turmoil during the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern Dynasties, as well as the migration of northern people to the south and the inward migration of ethnic minorities, constituted an impact on traditional Chinese music: First, the impact of metaphysics on Confucianism caused changes in musical thought; second, the impact of ethnic minority music and foreign countries The introduction of music introduced new factors in terms of instruments, rhythms, compositions and music theory. The result of its impact was to change China's traditional music and create a new generation of music internationalization. On the one hand, it is the Chineseization of world music, including the Chineseization of foreign music, the use of foreign instruments, the introduction of foreign tunes, the nationalization of foreign bands, and the contributions made by foreign musicians to the development of Chinese music. On the other hand, it is the globalization of Chinese music, that is, Chinese music has exerted an important influence on many countries in the world (especially neighboring countries, such as North Korea and Japan) with its brilliant achievements.

3. The period of compilation of traditional Chinese music (approximately 10th century to 19th century AD)

Including Liao, Song, Jin, Ming and Qing. Its political characteristics are: from chaos and division to relative unity, from North-South confrontation to the establishment of a unified multi-ethnic state regime, and its relative stability over a long period of time. Music culture has secular and social characteristics. The so-called secularity means maintaining a close relationship with the ordinary civilian class. The traditional music of this period has a broader social foundation in terms of performers, audiences, and audience members. In terms of music theory, it shows a tendency to inherit and clean up the previous period. The morphological characteristics of music have gradually become more solid and stereotyped. Its representative music art form is the art of opera and its music. This art form is inherited from previous generations and inherited from later generations, and has widely absorbed new achievements in contemporary music, becoming a musical treasure house that combines ancient and modern music.

The Development of Chinese Folk Music

Pre-Qin: Chime Bells Rewrite the Music History of Pre-Qin Dynasty

Professor Li believes that the chime bells of Marquis Yi of Zeng unearthed in Hubei Province during the Warring States Period are The most representative musical instrument in the pre-Qin period. Its excavation changed the view that pre-Qin music only had pentatonic scales in the field of national music for a period of time, and completely rewrote the entire pre-Qin music history.

It is understood that after the tomb of Zeng Houyi was excavated, 64 bells were buried with it. Judging from the content reflected in the chimes and the inscriptions on the bells, China was able to produce chimes with seven tones and 12 rhythms, and the ability to rotate the palace more than 2,000 years ago. Therefore, these chimes are regarded as an important part of archaeological circles and national music. Historic symbols. Chime bells had many social functions in the society at that time. They were not only a symbol of social status, but also a sacrificial item for praying for peace.

Tang Dynasty: The era of gorgeous and romantic folk music with plucked music as the main body

With the improvement of social living standards and the impact of foreign culture, the manufacturing of musical instruments has also undergone profound changes. change. The music of the Tang Dynasty is characterized by plucked plucked music. Professor Li believes that the Tang Dynasty was an important cultural period in Chinese history, and its economic level was unprecedentedly improved compared to the Qin Dynasty. Correspondingly, in the field of national music, the relatively crude chimes played outdoors in the Pre-Qin period gradually declined, while romantic and gorgeous plucked music and song and dance bands developed rapidly. In addition, under the influence of foreign cultures, music from Goryeo, Hu people, and the Western Regions began to spread to the Central Plains, greatly enriching the variety of Chinese national musical instruments.

After entering the Song Dynasty, plucked music began to go downhill and orchestral music developed. This was also related to the historical background at that time. This trend had a lot to do with the constant wars in the Song Dynasty. relation. "In fact, music is actually a microcosm of economy, culture, and society." Professor Li came to the above conclusion.

Yuan Dynasty: The era of prosperous Yuan opera driven by literati

The Yuan Dynasty did not have an imperial examination system, so a large number of literati turned to the creation of folk art. Therefore, Yuan opera has a strong storyline, attracting many audiences and further promoting its prosperity. On this issue, Professor Li particularly emphasized that the difference between Chinese Yuan opera and foreign operas lies in the fact that Chinese Yuan opera has formed a series of opera names, and every new creation uses the already formed opera names. There is no such "format" for foreign operas, and all creative structures are completely new.

After the Qing Dynasty, China’s ethnic minority musical instruments flourished. The Erhu that appeared in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties is a microcosm of the development of ethnic musical instruments in this era. The music of the Han people has always been dominated by "single characters", such as Xiao, flute, qin, bell, etc. that we are familiar with. The two-character musical instruments that usually appear in musical instruments are mostly introduced into Chinese folk music from foreign countries, such as the suona and erhu that we are familiar with.

Modern times: The development of national music is difficult

Blind A Bing's "Two Springs Reflect the Moon" is familiar to most audiences, but Professor Li believes that in the development period of modern China, national music The development of China has entered a faltering stage. The two iconic figures in this period are A Bing and Liu Tianhua.

Liu Tianhua is a famous national musician in my country, a professor at Peking University, and the younger brother of the poet Liu Bannong. He is a famous erhu player and composer at the same time as Blind Abing. His classic masterpieces include "Moonlight Night" ", "Birds on the Empty Mountain", "Good Night", "Bright Journey", etc. Professor Li particularly emphasized the contribution of this master of national music to Chinese national music, believing that he was the first person in the development of Chinese national music. Since him, Chinese folk music has entered a period of development in the form of schools, which has brought about qualitative changes in Chinese folk music.

After the founding of the People's Republic of China: National music has grown rapidly

After the founding of the People's Republic of China, a new and prosperous atmosphere appeared in Chinese society. The atmosphere of China's construction war has excited people at all levels of society, and the development of Chinese national music has reached unprecedented heights. With the development of the revolutionary cause and the widespread development of agricultural production, a large number of national music with the characteristics of the times appeared. Works such as "Horse Racing" and "Watching the Waves in the Wheat Field" that many people are familiar with are representative works of this period. . During this period, some old concepts of national music were eliminated, and many new elements in Western music were borrowed.

During the Spring Festival of 2005, Tianjin Song and Dance Theater held the "Year of the Rooster Chinese National Concert" at the Golden Hall in Vienna, Austria, which was a great success. The concert was not only transmitted to the country through satellite live broadcast, but was also provided free of charge by the Houston Audio and Video Company in the United States. The recording of the concert will be produced on CD and distributed around the world.

Since the China National Traditional Orchestra represented Chinese folk music on the stage of the Golden Hall in Vienna for the first time in 1998, in the past eight years, the "Chinese Spring Festival National Concert" held in the "Golden Hall" has become the highlight of Chinese national music. Famous brands.

From the song "Jasmine" and the Erhu performance at the closing ceremony of the Athens Olympics, to the rave reviews of modern folk music groups such as "Twelve Girls Band" in Southeast Asia, to the international and domestic performances of Chinese ethnic groups The performance market is becoming increasingly active. In China, where the economy continues to grow at a rapid pace, the accumulation of economic power is gradually transforming into national self-confidence, which has also brought about the return of national music - Chinese folk music is heading towards a renaissance through exchanges and innovations.