One Last Music Culture

 

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 form which comes from southern China. . This form is sung or has a spoken dialogue that includes rhymes. Another form is Yuan Zaju, it differs because it is split into three main roles that sing, while the previous has only one. Along with these, there are several other forms that my sources covered that range from the 12th to 18th century. 

The most recent form, Beijing Opera, was born during the late 18th century. However, due to the cultural revolution in China at the time, it was banned. Never to be performed again until 1978. 

“The famous Eight Model Plays — which depicted Communist activities during the war with Japan and the civil war with the Nationalists, as well as the class struggles that followed the founding of the People's Republic of China — were developed during this time.” 

Unfortunately, youtube had little to no coverage of these older forms of Chinese opera. 

The instruments 

There are several types of traditional instruments you’ll see within the opera, even in today's modern operas these instruments will usually be the accompaniment of the performers. I will just be going over a few of the most common instruments. 

• Gaohu 

• Bowed instrument

• High pitched 

  

  
  
  
  
  

• Erhu 

• Two-stringed fiddle 

• Long-necked & snakeskin box 

• Pipa 

• Pear shaped 

• 4 strings & 32 frets 

• One of the oldest instruments

• Suona 

• Resembles an oboe 

• Double reed

                                                         

• Dizi

• Bamboo flute

• Bright sound

• 6 or more finger holes 

                                                          

These are just a small selection of the various instruments you would find in a Chinese opera. There are far more such as the Bo, Yangqin, etc. 

The roles 

The roles and characters of the opera can vary based on the form and region of origin. Making it somewhat hard to narrow down the overarching theme. Although, we can categorize four main roles. 

1. Chou                                                                    This role is more of a broad term and can be further divided into the male (Nan Chou)  and female (Nu Chou) roles. It is also referred to as the clown role. “Clowns normally improvise and often make reference to local current events.” 

2. Sheng                                                                  

This role is a broad term for male roles. It also is subdivided into a few different roles: 

• Xiao Sheng Young man role 

• Lao Sheng Old man role 

• Wu Sheng Warrior man

3. Dan 

Similar to Sheng, this role is a board term for the female roles.

It also has subdivisions: 

• Hua Dan Young woman role

• Lao Dan Old woman role 

• Wu Dan Warrior Woman

• Qing Yi Graceful young maiden

• Guimen Dan High-born woman 

Both the Sheng and Dan categories both have different variations based on region/style. 

4. Jing         Roles that involve heavily painted faces, this is usually a male role.    However, not all people with painted faces fall into this category. 

All of these roles contain subtypes for their subtypes, so it really depends on location and a few other factors.

Modern Chinese Opera 

Beijing (Perking) Opera is the most popular form today, along with a few other forms

that were also revived. Since 1976, there have been traditional opera

performances, although a few have been censored and criticized. There

are more than 30 forms being performed throughout the country. 

The makeup used in these operas has a deeper meaning than just vibrant colors.   

• Red = brave and loyal

• Black = bold and impartiality

• Yellow = ambition

• Pink = cool-headedness and sophistication 

• Blue = fierce and far-seeing

• Green = Wild and Impulsive 

• White = treacherous and cunning (villians) 

• Little makeup in the center of the face (xiaohualian)  = clown role

The plots of these plays can range tremendously from twisted plots

to folk tales, again depending on the style. 

   

 

Work Cited