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Music of China

China has a long history of both vocal and instrumental music that is based on the five core tones of the Chinese scale. Traditional Chinese music was believed to influence harmony in the universe and was played on solo instruments or small ensembles. The court music, called yayue, had a rigid formal structure and was sometimes accompanied by lyrics. Traditional Chinese instruments include the dizi flute, erhu fiddle, pipa lute, and various drums and woodwinds.

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Julliane Ortiz
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28 views

Music of China

China has a long history of both vocal and instrumental music that is based on the five core tones of the Chinese scale. Traditional Chinese music was believed to influence harmony in the universe and was played on solo instruments or small ensembles. The court music, called yayue, had a rigid formal structure and was sometimes accompanied by lyrics. Traditional Chinese instruments include the dizi flute, erhu fiddle, pipa lute, and various drums and woodwinds.

Uploaded by

Julliane Ortiz
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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MUSIC OF CHINA

China is officially called People’s Republic of China. It is the world’s populous country. The
people of China call their nation Chung-Hua and Beijing is the capital of China.

Chinese music is both vocal and instrumental.

· It is one of the oldest and most highly developed of all known musical systems.
Traditional music in China is played on solo instruments or in ensembles of various
instruments.

· Vocal music is traditionally sung in a thin, nasal, non-resonant voice or in falsetto


(high-pitch). It is usually in duple meter with less heavy musical texture.

Confucius, who conceived music as a means of calming the passions and dispelling unrest
and lust rather than as a form of amusement.

· The Chinese believed that sound influences the harmony of the universe. Thus,
music is important as a means of maintaining peace in the kingdom.

Ling Lun

· The legendary founder of music in ancient China

· (In Chinese mythology) he was said to have created bamboo flutes which gave the
sound of many birds, including the mythical phoenix.

· The “Yellow Emperor” is said to have ordered the casting of bells in tune with those
flutes. The interval between those flutes is a perfect fifth. This is why the Chinese musical
system is based on overblown fifths.

The five core tones of the Chinese scales are sometimes connected with the five elements
or wuxing (earth, wood, metal, fire, and water), while the 12 pitches of the tonal system are
connected with the months of the year, hours of the day, or phases of the moon.

The court music of China is called yayue which literally means “elegant, music”. It is a form
of Chinese classical music which incorporates elements of early Chinese folk music and
religious traditions.

Yayue may be divided into:

1. T’ang Ko or chamber song - performed inside the hall in ceremonies that honor heaven
and earth, the gods, or the ancestors
2. Yiieh-hsuan or chime music - performed in the garden fronting the halls during rituals. It is
accompanied by two dances, the wen-wu (civil dance) and the wu-wu (military dance).

The yayue has a rigid form and should be stately and formal when performed. It is also
sometimes accompanied with lyrics, some of which are preserved in the Book of Songs.

Chinese Traditional Instruments

Another important ancient system called the eight sounds bayin was used to classify many
kinds of instruments played in imperial orchestras. This system was based on the material
used in the construction of the instruments the eight being stone, earth (pottery), bamboo,
metal, skin, silk, wood, and gourd.

1. Dizi - Chinese flute played transversely with six finger holes. It is a major Chinse musical
instrument widely used in many genres of Chinese folk music, Chinese opera, and the
modern Chinese orchestra.

2. Hsiao – vertical end-blown generally made of bamboo. They can be made plain or have a
horn inlay at the end with various inscription along the shaft.

3. Pipa - four-stringed Chinese lute with a pear-shaped wooden body with a varying number
of frets ranging from 12 to 26.

4. Erhu - two - stringed bowed musical instrument also known as Chinese violin. It is used
as a solo instrument as well as in small ensembles and large orchestras.

5. Suona - an oboe with a distinct loud and high-pitched sound used frequently in Chinese
traditional musical ensembles, especially those performed outdoors. It is used in
combination with sheng mouth organs, gongs, drums, and ‘sometimes other instruments, in
wedding and funeral processions.
6. Yueh Chin or Chinese moon guitar - a lute with a round, hollow wooden body. It has a
short-fretted neck and four strings. It is an important instrument in the Beijing opera
orchestra, often taking the role of the main melodic instrument.

7. Bolang Gu - a traditional Chinese pellet drum

8. Hsiao ku - a shallow drum with a core of wood.

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