Music in China

Today I talk about music in China in 20th century. Also I want to introduce some Chinese national music, Chinese traditional opera.

 Because of the New Culture Movement in 1910s and 1920s, a number of Chinese musicians returned from studying abroad to perform Western classical music. The Kuomintang tried to sponsor modern music adoptions via the Shanghai Conservatory of Music despite the ongoing political crisis. Twentieth-century cultural philosophers like Xiao Youmei, Cai Yuanpei, Feng Zikai and Wang Guangqi wanted to see Chinese music adopted to the best standard possible. There were many different opinions regarding the best standard.
A Famous Song in 1920 in Shanghai.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adZTK8tCL3s

Next I talk about Peking opera. I just want to show you more and more Chinese culture.

Peking opera or Beijing opera is a form of traditional Chinese theatre which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose in the late 18th century and became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century. The form was extremely popular in the Qing Dynasty court and has come to be regarded as one of the cultural treasures of China. Major performance troupes are based in Beijing and Tianjin in the north, and Shanghai in the south. The art form is also preserved in Taiwan, where it is known as Guoju. It has also spread to other countries such as the United States and Japan.
Peking opera features four main types of performers. Performing troupes often have several of each variety, as well as numerous secondary and tertiary performers. With their elaborate and colorful costumes, performers are the only focal points on Peking opera's characteristically sparse stage. They utilize the skills of speech, song, dance, and combat in movements that are symbolic and suggestive, rather than realistic. Above all else, the skill of performers is evaluated according to the beauty of their movements. Performers also adhere to a variety of stylistic conventions that help audiences navigate the plot of the production. The layers of meaning within each movement must be expressed in time with music. The music of Peking opera can be divided into the Xipi and Erhuang styles. Melodies include arias, fixed-tune melodies, and percussion patterns. The repertoire of Peking opera includes over 1,400 works, which are based on Chinese history, folklore, and, increasingly, contemporary life.
 Peking opera was denounced as 'feudalistic' and 'bourgeois' during the Cultural Revolution, and replaced with the eight revolutionary model operas as a means of propaganda and indoctrination. After the Cultural Revolution, these transformations were largely undone. In recent years, Peking opera has attempted numerous reforms in response to sagging audience numbers. These reforms, which include improving performance quality, adapting new performance elements, and performing new and original plays, have met with mixed success.

The Vedio of Peking opera
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2shLJc4Z_Yk

Chinese national music

Guoyue is a modernized form of Chinese traditional music written or adapted for some form of grand presentation, usually through a large orchestra of Chinese instruments. It was created in mainland China beginning in the early 20th century and is frequently broadcast on radio and television in the People's Republic of China. It is also the primary form of Chinese music taught in conservatories in China, as well as in Taiwan and Singapore.

Style:

 Patriotic Songs
 Guoyue patriotic songs ensembles range from chamber groups to quite large orchestras which are led by a conductor. Orchestral guoyue compositions are often arranged in concerto-like form, for solo instrument and orchestra, and often incorporate some use of Western harmony.
 Usually it combines traditional instruments with western ones. Like in The East is Red, melodies of traditional instruments like erhu and sheng are combined with western ones such as Violin and trumpets.

Revolutionary songs
 Agiven patriotic song can be performed for a revolutionary cause. Sometimes compositions are done to reflect a legacy. An example is compositions by Zhang Guangtian's (張廣天) in 1993 idolizing the Cultural Revolution. The lyrics did get censored by the government to some degree for being too extreme. But it demonstrates how far the lyrics can go.

 Chinese national music:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_p5FXd5qOFI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKIF6vkPC8E

Last, I will show you some music that we listen now.

Pop music

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URz-wKttvWQ