The author of "Happy Days" is Zhu Jian'er.

About the author

Zhu Jian'er (October 18, 1922 - August 15, 2017), male, Han nationality, real name Zhu Rongshi, courtesy name Pu Chen, composer, music Jia, a native of Jingxian County, Anhui Province, was born in Tianjin on October 18, 1922 and grew up in Shanghai. In middle school, he taught himself piano and composition. In 1945, he joined the Frontline Theater Troupe of the Central Soviet Military Region of the New Fourth Army. In 1947, he served as the band leader and conductor of the East China Military Region Art Troupe. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he worked as a composer in Shanghai, Beijing and other film studios. Since 1949, he has served as a full-time composer for Shanghai Film, Beijing Film, New Film, Shanghai Opera House, Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, etc. In 1955, he went to the Soviet Union to study composition at the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory. After graduating in 1960, he returned to China and worked as a composer at the Shanghai Experimental Opera House. In 1975, he was transferred to the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra to engage in composition. In 1985, he was elected as the fourth executive director of the Chinese Musicians Association.

On August 15, 2017, he died in Shanghai Ruijin Hospital due to illness at the age of 95.

Classic Appreciation

The whole song consists of three parts, an introduction and an ending. First, the band played a warm and joyful introduction, and then the banhu played a theme rich in northern Shaanxi flavor, which was bright and lively. Erhu is added to the theme as it changes over and over again, expressing uncontrollable joy. The last sentence of the theme is repeated once by the band, creating a vivid effect of one chorus and a hundred responses. The theme of the second part adopts the tune of Shandong Lu Opera, and is led by the Guanzi, who also responds to the orchestra. It is humorous and full of interest. The melody of the third part draws on the development techniques of Hebei blowing songs. The band is divided into two groups, echoing each other, and the length of the sentences decreases; after that, the pipes and flutes continuously play changing long tones, and the band plays short short notes that revolve around these long tones. The sound pattern sets off and echoes, and this technique of "tightening and slow singing" commonly used in folk music makes the music unfold in layers, expressing the farmers' enthusiastic emotions of celebrating their turn over. The ending is the reappearance of the changes in the introduction, corresponding to the beginning and the end, and it is full of joy. This piece has been adapted as a piano solo.