CHINESE
TRADITIONAL MUSIC - One
part of the Chinese culture is their music. Traditional
Chinese music has an array of wonderful sounds, instruments
and stories in the words to songs. In fact, Chinese music
can be traced back over 8000 years. That is because, for
as long as we can see, music as always been part of the
Chinese culture. We know this from the excavations that
have been done as well as through artifacts, pictures and
paintings.
The Shang
Dynasty of 1766-1027 BC were known to have
played chimes, bells that were made of bronze, and the sheng.
During this time period, we already have the existence of
musical theory as well as a variety of musical instruments.
Ritual
Music was offered by Confucius. It was thought
that music was the right way to dispel of feelings such
as unrest and lust. It helped to control the passions within
the mind and body.
The Han Dynasty brought the Music
Bureau. It had the important task of organizing
and collecting melodies and folk songs from ancient times.
Editing and preserving these melodies was a large task to
take on.
By the Tang Dynasty, much foreign
music had been presented in China. It had made its one mark
on the type of music offered. We also find the Pear
Garden Academy during this time. This, being
one of the first Opera troupes, was a foundation for much
of Chinese music throughout time.
Most of the Traditional
Chinese Music is based on a five tone scale.
Special emphasis is placed on the deliverance of expressive
and inflection in each and every tone. We find an array
of instruments including the bowed strings, the plucked
strings, the woodwinds, and the percussion instruments.
Throughout time, we see the addition of new instruments
as well as added intricacies along the way.
We also have the existence of
the Chinese Orchestra
that combined many of these groups of instruments to provide
beautiful music that was quite unlike any other music in
the world. Traditional Chinese music still influences modern
day music in this area.
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