Zy's DCoM Blog

  The World of Chinese Opera  For my final big blog, I decided to dive into the history of Chinese Opera . Prior to any research, I had no knowledge of the topic, and learned a great deal about the start of Chinese opera, as well as what it has become now. I hope through this blog, you are able to learn more about the wonders of Chinese opera.  Where it Began  The history dates all the way back to A.D. 220-265, which was the period of the three kingdoms. Under the rule of Emperor Li Longji, during the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 712-756), Chinese opera was “formalized”. He was the founder of the first known opera troupe called the Pear Garden . “... today's opera professionals are still referred to as "Disciples of the Pear Garden". (link)  There are several different forms of Chinese opera, stemming from various different regions and time periods in China. These different forms give inspiration and tradition to modern professionals. For starters, there is the Nanxi for...

  For my blog, I decided to dive into the depths of Japanese music and culture. Going into this I knew absolutely nothing about the topic, so this was quite interesting for me to research.  Brief History  I found a good bit of information on the history/origin of Japanese music. To sum it up, Chinese music had a great influence on the music and instruments that were in Japan. The oldest Japanese folk music, being one of the results of China’s influence, also called Traditional Japanese music contains two of the oldest types of folk music. “shōmyō, or Buddhist chanting, and gagaku, or theatrical court music.” ( History of Japanese Music)  Shômyô - Buddhist liturgical chants, Shingon sect (Japan) “Shōmyō is a ritual music sung in a Buddhist ceremony by a group of Buddhist monks” ( History of Japanese Music ). The other form, gagaku, is the oldest form of traditional music in Japan. It accounts for two types of music: Kigaku (instrumental) and Seigaku (vocal). T...