Music of China

September 26, 2013 Glendale Community College Music 127

Lecture Assignment
Please

read the assigned chapter first, 4 The Music of China. Then, read through this lecture, follow any links and listen to any music I have posted. Throughout the lecture you will find questions. Please answer each question based on the reading, lecture and any outside research I ask for. Finally, send me your answers by pasting them into the body of an email. Due before Friday, October 4.
psherman@glendale.edu

Political map

China in the World

Pick

one of these topics and discuss in a short essay Chinas:

Support

of N. Korea; Support of Iran and Syria as allies of Russia; Economic Development in Africa, Central and South America; Trial of Bo Xilai;

Chapter Overview

China has a long musical tradition documented in historical and notated sources. Traditional Chinese music depends more on memorization, repetition, idiomatic realization, and embellishment of standard instrumental pieces, rather than on improvisation. The music for Peking (or Beijing) Opera contains sound codes that emphasize the drama created by combinations of instruments. While Confucianism revered proper sounding music for inducing correct social behavior in ancient times, the Communist Chinese in the 20th century exercised a similar philosophy by filling songs with propaganda. Much Chinese music and many of its instruments derived from interactions of the numerous minorities over thousands of years, and their music further developed into standard repertories.

Ethnic Population
A

Billion and a Quarter People, Includes 56 Recognized Minorities

Han

the worlds largest ethnic group that comprises more than 93% of Chinas population Putuaghua the Han language, in the West known as Mandarin Zhuang, Mongolian, Manchu, Tibetan, Hui, Uyghur, Kazak, Tarter, Kirgiz, Tajik, Uzbek peoples

Beijing

 Capital

municipality of the Peoples Republic of China Bei means, north; jing means, capital Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368), Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) based in Beijing

Important Music Terms

Jingju

literally capitol theater, Peking Opera the main type of Chinese popular musical theater that first emerged in the Chinese capital Beijing (Peking) in the late eighteenth century Liyuan literally Pear Garden, the metaphor for theater Qing chang singing without staging, costume, or make-up, practiced publicly by jingju fans Jinghu literally capital fiddle; a two-string spiked fiddle, the principal melodic instrument in jingju Nan ban zi an aria introduction played by a jinghu

 Qin

(pronounced chin) a Chinese sevenstringed zither most revered and patronized by the educated class. Originally an instrument for court music (elegant music; yayue), it later came to be played in privacy by scholars for contemplation, selfpurification, and self-regulation. It has no frets or bridges, but thirteen positionmarkers called hui.

The Qin (Quqin) and Its Music

Formal Structure of a Qin piece

Sanqi

introduction to a qin piece (0-37) Rudiao the exposition of a qin piece (37-1:40) Ruman the variations section, or development, of a qin piece (1:40-5:00) Fuqi restatement of the theme (5:00-6:56) Weisheng literally tail sounds; the short coda that concludes a qin piece, using the strings harmonics produced by lightly touching the strings (6:56-end)

Definitions
Introduction

Music that comes before the main piece to put the listener in the proper frame of mind. Exposition The first hearing of the main theme or themes. Variations Alterations to the themes stated in the exposition. Development building on the themes stated above. Coda A short ending or conclusion.

Flowing Water

Questions
Based

on your reading of the text and listening to the above example, do you think this music is composed or improvised? Please explain your answer.

The Pipa and Its Music

 Pipa

a four-stringed, fretted lute with a bent neck and pear-shaped body; an imported instrument to Han China, originally from the Kucha Kingdom (an ancient Uyghur kingdom). It developed an important repertory by the time of the Sui and Tang periods (581-618 and 618-905). It has 23 to 25 frets placed along the neck and the sound board. Its pieces have programmatic titles.

Programmatic vs Absolute Music

Programmatic

tells a story through music.

Absolute

pure music with no extra meaning.

Types of Pipa Music

Yan

yue banquet entertainment music lyrical, civil

Wen Wu

martial

Example 1

Example 2

Questions
Should

example 1 be classified as an example of yan yue, wen or wu and why? (based on slide 19 and your exploration of the example) Example 2, same question. Into which formal classification would you place the qin and the pipa? Be very specific.

Winds and Strings Ensembles in Shanghai

Jiangnan

sizhua type of Chinese chamber instrumental ensemble made up of strings and winds, popular in the areas around Shanghai Jiangnan literally means, south of the river, in reference to the Yangzi River Si literally means, silk; in reference to string instruments (strings were once made of silk, but now made of steel for louder volume) Zhu literally means, bamboo; in reference to wind instruments made of bamboo

Jiangnan sizhu ensemble

Strings
pipa (see slide 20) sanxian (three-stringed lute with long, fretless neck and oval sound box. video below)

 erhu (two-stringed fiddles with hollow wooden cylindrical sound boxes having one side covered with snake-skin) On the left in the video below qinqin (lute with a long, fretted neck) In the center in the video below

 One yangqin (a dulcimer struck with a pair of bamboo sticks)

Winds
dizi (a transverse bamboo flute with six fingerholes, a mouth hole, and another hole covered by a thin membrane that vibrates to give the instrument a reedy sound)

sheng (a free-reed mouth organ made of a series of bamboo pipes arranged in a circle, each with a reed in its lower end, and all inserted into a base made of copper, wood, or gourd, to which the mouthpiece is attached. Two or more tones may be produced simultaneously.)

 xiao (an end-blown bamboo flute with five frontal finger-holes, one hole in the back, and a blowing hole at the top) Begins at 24

Jiangnan sizhu ensemble

Jingju Theater (Capital Theater, or Peking Opera in the West)

includes

arias, recitative-like short phrases, and heightened speech Heightened speech - a stylized stage speech with steeply rising and falling contours that exaggerate the natural intonation of spoken Chinese

Questions:
Research

online or in library texts and define, Aria and Recitative. In what western art forms are they used?

Jingju Theater (Capital Theater, or Peking Opera in the West)

includes arias, recitative-like short phrases, and heightened speech a stylized stage speech with steeply rising and falling contours that exaggerate the natural intonation of spoken Chinese

Main Categories of Role

Sheng

the male role Dan the female role Jing the painted face role Chou the male comic role

Mymusiclab example 1
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/hss_n

ettl_worldmusic_6e/active_listening_guides/ index.html#nettl6e_alg13_ch04-lg

Mymusiclab example 2
http://media.pearsoncmg.com/ph/hss/hss_n

ettl_worldmusic_6e/active_listening_guides/ index.html#nettl6e_alg14_ch04-lg

The Value and Functions of Music

Musical

gratification is equated with the taste for food, the need for sex, and aesthetic satisfaction. Music is integrated into rituals, banquets, weddings, funerals, harvest celebrations, and so forth.

 Kong

Fuzi Master Kong, known as Confucius in the West (551-479 B.C.E.). He maintained that music has positive and negative powers to stimulate related behavior and desire.

Master Kongs classifications

Shi yin proper sound, features harmoniousness, peacefulness, and appropriateness Chi yue extravagant music, having attributes of inappropriate loudness, wanton noisiness, stimulating excessive and licentious behavior

 Mao

Zedong (18931976) Chairman of the Communist Party from 1949-1976, like Confucius, viewed music as an educational tool, applying it for the propaganda of state ideology

The Communists discredited scholarly music for its affiliation with feudal society, but promoted folk music as the music of the workers. Before 1949, professional musicians had low social status while the educated amateur was revered. Under Communism, the opposite was regarded.

New Musical Directions in the 20th Century

Kang

Youwei (1858-1927) and Liang Qichao (1873-1929) music educators who established classroom music in China based on Western models

 Xiao

Youmei (1884-1940) reformed Chinese music by incorporating Western elements, notably harmony

Zhao

Yuanren (1892-1982) the creator of the modern Chinese art song

 Songs

of the Masses Chinese Communist political songs

 Jiang

Qing (19131991) wife of Mao Zedong, who reformed jingju by incorporating elements of western orchestral and harmonic practice, ballet, scenic design, and replacing traditional stories with revolutionary plots

Cui Jian the most famous Chinese rock musician whose music rejected the materialism that swept China in the 1980s, culminating in the Tiananmen Square uprising in 1989

Zhong jinshu Chinese heavy metal music

Questions:
How

do you think Master Kong would classify the Communist Political songs? some examples of how western music is incorporated into the rituals of life. Weddings, funerals, festivals, etc.

Give

Key Concepts for the Unit

Importance of Written Language and History:

A

non-alphabetic ideographic script meant that Chinese could be used by neighbors with totally different languages, and that classics written centuries earlier could be understood by contemporary readers. This led to a great regard for history, high status for scholar-officials, and an imperial state system based on bureaucracy. Each dynasty had its own historical records, much of which provided musical documentation.

Highly Specific Musical Systems with Codification at Many Levels:

This

includes stock character types in theatrical genres, particular musical styles used in specific contexts, instruments used in standardized ensembles, solo instrumental traditions, each with its own special notation, repertoire, and idiomatic technique.

Question:
Name

one stock character from Chinese opera and one standard ensemble of instruments.

Music and Politics:

Music

and politics have long been interconnected. Confucius (551-479 B.C.E.) believed that proper music (i.e., ritual music played in unison with long, broad rhythms, slow tempo, and simple melodies) was capable of promoting proper behavior, while extravagant music (i.e., loud, fast music) could stimulate excessive, licentious behavior. Mao Zedong also believed in music as an important educational tool for the propagation of state ideology, rather than the expression of virtue.

Listening Skills

Heterophonic Ensemble Music:

The

Jiangnan sizhu ensemble, like Middle Eastern groups, comprises a small number of different musical instruments. The music is heterophonic, as there is no harmony, just different renditions of the same tune, each distinguished by its own sound texture and by ornamentation specific to the instrument.

Questions:
Pick

out the tune in the following video by humming it. Describe the sound characteristic of each instrument and the manner in which it ornaments the melody. How is the way in which it ornaments based on the construction or basic nature of each instrument?

Jiangnan sizhu

Summary
Chinese civilization dates back many centuries and includes many different ethnic groups, cultures, and languages. Key instruments include the qin (zither) and pipa (lute). Traditional musical performancessuch as tea house musicare found in public places, performed by amateurs and professionals alike; the audience comes and goes as it pleases, often talking during a performance; and the melodies are often highly improvised, with no announced program. Jingju (or Peking Opera) is one of Chinas best known theatrical/musical styles, featuring elaborate sets and costumes, and a richly developed sung repertory.

 Good music maintains the proper social order and underlines the beliefs endorsed by the state; bad music leads to improper behavior or to criticism of the status quo. The rise of Communism and the successful 1949 revolution introduced a new, didactic type of music meant to instill the governments core message to the citizenry, drawing on Soviet models. As Chinese society has opened up somewhat following the Cultural Revolution of the 60s and early 70s, Western art music and popular songs have become more accepted, although there remains an underground of unacceptable musical styles, many of which question the validity of the states power.

Questions:
In

what ways can we compare jingju to Western opera or a Broadway musical? How is music used for propaganda in our country? How is music used to instill values in our country? Why did the Communists, during the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), utilize Western musical practices such as orchestration, harmony, ballet, and scenic design, in spite of being anti- Western?