Winter is a romantic season, without music. National music is an integral part of Chinese civilization. Looking back at the history of the most commonly used ethnic musical instruments today, we can find that most of them are also related to the exchanges of other civilizations.
More than 2000 years ago, Confucius attached great importance to the role of "music education", and even believed that human learning should "thrive on poetry, stand on ceremony, and become successful in music", taking music as the highest realm of personality cultivation.
In fact, since ancient times, the Chinese civilization has not been isolated from the rest of the world, but also developed in the exchange with other civilizations. Looking back at the history of the most commonly used ethnic musical instruments today, we can find that most of them are also related to the exchanges of other civilizations.
Origin and Development of Pipa
Origin:
Around the Qin Dynasty, a round musical instrument with a long handle began to circulate. Because there are two main ways to play: to pop forward is called "batch", and to pick up backward is called "handle", so people call it "batch". Later, it was renamed Pipa in order to unify its writing with that of Qin, Se and other musical instruments at that time.
In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, a pear shaped sound box, a curved neck and four strings came from the Western Regions. Some people combined it with the Chinese pipa and made it into a new style. In terms of playing method, the horizontal holding type is changed to the vertical holding type, and the plucked pluck is changed to the five fingers of the right hand. Through the improvement of countless artists, it has become the two pipa of today's four phase thirteen grade and six phase twenty-four grade.
Pipa is also called "Pipa", which was first recorded in Liu Xi's "Shi Ming Shi Musical Instrument" of the Han Dynasty:; It is named "Piba" according to its performance characteristics. In ancient times, percussion, percussion, playing and playing were all called drums. The nomads at that time were good at playing the lute when riding on horses, so they were "drummed by horses". In the Technical Record of Wang Sengqian of the Southern Dynasty, "Empress Wei Wende is good at pipa. When the Ming Emperor tried to use the queen's clothes as music, Yang Fu was at the side and asked the emperor, 'The empress dowager, your majesty's mother, is the monarch's ceremony evil?' The emperor was ashamed to back down, and then came out. The emperor said, 'I know that you are respectful, but I sincerely worry about the injustice because of my heart. Today, from your words, you can't see the vast Xiangshui River. How can you see your wife?' The melody behind this is exquisite." It can be seen that during the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the name "Pipa" officially entered the court.
The pipa evolved from the historical Pipa with straight neck and the Pipa with curved neck. According to historical records, the Pipa with straight neck appeared earlier in China. The "Qin and Han Zi" in the Qin and Han dynasties is the Pipa with straight neck (the two sides of the resonance box are covered) with a straight handle circular resonance box, and it was developed from the chord of the late Qin Dynasty. "Ruan Xian" or "Ruan" is a wooden circular resonance box with a straight handle, four strings and twelve columns, holding the pipa played by hand vertically. Ruan Xian of the Jin Dynasty was good at playing this instrument, so he was called Ruan today.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, cultural exchanges were carried out with the Western Regions through the Silk Road, and Quxiang Pipa was introduced into China from Persia through modern Xinjiang. The lute with four strings and four phases (without pillars) is shaped like a pear. It is played horizontally with a pick. It was popular in the Northern Dynasty and spread to the Yangtze River valley in the south in the first half of the 6th century.
The Development History of Pipa Instrumental Music
Pipa, one of the musical instruments, is the first plucked instrument. Wooden, the speaker is half pear shaped, with four strings on it. It was originally made of silk thread, but now it is made of steel wire, steel rope and nylon. In the history of Chinese modern Han ethnic music, there are two major schools of pipa: "Shanghai School" (Pudong School) and "Zhejiang School" (Pinghu School). Pinghu Pipa art has considerable historical value in the study of the history of national music. Welcome to read the following information about the pipa. Let's learn about the pipa.
The earliest record of pipa appeared 2000 years ago. Liu Xi, a scholar in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 BC), wrote in the book "Interpretation of Names" that "loquat is called loquat in front of pushing the hand, but it is called loquat in front of drawing the hand, just like its drum, so it is named". However, the shape of the pipa at that time was different from that of today. Its shape was straight neck, round speakers, and the number of phonemes and chords was not fixed. The number of strings varies from four to five to six. This kind of pipa was called "Qin Pipa" or "Qin Han Zi" at that time. In fact, it is the predecessor of today's national musical instrument Zhongruan. Its name comes from Ruan Xian, one of the seven sages in the bamboo grove in the Jin Dynasty. Ruan Xian is famous for playing this kind of pipa. Later generations called this instrument Ruan Xian, or Ruan for short. The name of the pipa gave way to the later Quxiang pipa.
In the fifth and sixth centuries AD, with the strengthening of commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the western ethnic groups, a Quxiang Pipa was introduced from Central Asia, which was called "Hu Pipa" at that time. Its shape is a curved neck, pear shaped speaker, with four columns and four strings, much like the Uud or Ud commonly used in Arab countries. Hold the pipa horizontally and play it with a pick. The modern pipa is developed from this kind of pipa.
In the Tang Dynasty (7-9th century AD), the development of pipa reached a peak. At that time, the pipa was indispensable for both court bands and folk singing, and became a very popular instrument at that time, and was in the leading position in the band. This grand occasion has a lot of records in ancient Chinese poetry. For example, Bai Juyi, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, vividly described the performance of the pipa and its sound effects in his famous poem "A Line of Pipa": "The big strings are noisy like rain, the small strings are like whispers. The big strings are playing in a jumble, and the big pearls are falling on the jade plate.".
By the late Tang Dynasty, the pipa had made great progress in its performance techniques and production structure. The most prominent reform in playing techniques is the change from horizontal holding to vertical holding, and the replacement of playing with a pick by direct finger playing. The most obvious change in the structure of pipa is the increase from four phonemes to sixteen phonemes (four phases and twelve grades). At the same time, its neck is widened, and the lower resonator is narrowed from wide, so that the left hand can press the lower phoneme. Due to the above two reforms, pipa performance techniques have been developed unprecedentedly. According to statistics, there are fifty or sixty kinds of pipa fingering. To sum up, the right hand fingering is divided into two systems: one is the ring finger system, and the other is the bounce system. Left hand fingering is also divided into two systems: one is the finger pressing system, and the other is the push-pull system.
By the 15th century AD, the pipa had a number of martial arts songs represented by Ambush on All Sides and The Overlord Dismantled His Armor, as well as literary songs represented by High Moon, Spring Yearning and Zhaojun Resentment. The so-called Wuqu is characterized by realism and the use of right-handed techniques. The so-called Wenqu is characterized by lyricism and the use of left-handed techniques. These songs have become the treasure of Chinese national music and the treasures of pipa art.
Pipa is traditionally a pentatonic scale. By the time of the Republic of China, it had begun to increase the size of the lute according to the twelve tone rule. At present, the standard pipa has eight phases and thirty grades. The expressiveness and adaptability of the pipa have been greatly enhanced. It can not only play traditional music, but also play western and modern works, and is conducive to cooperation with the symphony orchestra. It created conditions for further development later. By the middle and late 20th century, the art of pipa had a new development. In the production of pipa, the original silk string was changed to nylon steel wire string, and some even used silver string, which increased the sound and resonance of pipa. The use of the left thumb and chords has greatly improved the expressiveness of the pipa. As a result, a large number of excellent solo works integrating traditional music and modern composition theory emerged, as well as duets with various instruments and pipa concertos with small bands and symphony bands. In the 21st century, the pipa not only presents a scene of recovering from the prosperous Tang Dynasty in China, but also receives more and more attention from music lovers all over the world. Many traditional music and contemporary works are loved by Chinese and foreign audiences. It can be said that pipa has begun to enter the international music world
In what dynasty was the pipa first played
The earliest instrument known as "Pipa" appeared in the Qin Dynasty.
Pipa, the first plucked string instrument, is a plucked string instrument. Wooden, the speaker is half pear shaped, with four strings on it. It was originally made of silk thread, but now it is made of steel wire, steel rope and nylon. The neck and panel are equipped with "phase" and "quality" to determine the phoneme. It is an important national instrument for solo, accompaniment, ensemble and ensemble playing. Pipa, a traditional plucked instrument in East Asia, has a history of more than 2000 years. The earliest instrument known as "Pipa" appeared in the Qin Dynasty. The word "Jue" in the word "Pipa" means "two jades touch each other and make a pleasant sound", indicating that it is a musical instrument that sounds by playing and touching the strings. Its names "Pi" and "Pa" are derived from the right hand technique of playing these instruments. That is to say, Pi and pa are the names of two playing techniques. Pi is played forward with the right hand, and pa is played backward with the right hand. Before the Tang Dynasty, the pipa was also the general name for all plucked musical instruments of the Lute Qin family (also called Liute) in Chinese. The Chinese pipa spread to other parts of East Asia and developed into the Japanese pipa, Korean pipa and Vietnamese pipa.
In the history of modern Chinese folk music, there are two major schools of pipa: "Shanghai School" (Pudong School) and "Zhejiang School" (Pinghu School). Pinghu Pipa art has considerable historical value in the study of the history of national music.
Origin:
The so-called pipa in history does not only refer to the pipa with a pear shaped resonance box, but also a variety of plucked musical instruments. Their names "Pi" and "pa" are derived from the right hand techniques of playing these instruments. That is to say, Pi and pa are the names of two playing techniques. Pi is played forward with the right hand, and pa is played backward with the right hand. Therefore, at that time, the "pipa" was similar in shape and different in size, such as Yueqin, Ruan, etc., which can be said to be a pipa instrument. Pipa is a major plucked instrument with a long history in China. Through the improvement of performers, the shape of the lute has become unified, and it has become a four string lute with six phases and twenty-four grades. Pipa has a wide range of sounds, its playing skills are the first among national instrumental music, and its expressive force is the most abundant instrument in folk music. When playing, each finger of the left hand presses the string at the corresponding grade, and the right hand wears the false nail plucked string made of celluloid (or tortoiseshell) and other materials.
Around the Qin Dynasty, a round musical instrument with a long handle began to circulate. Because there are two main ways to play: to pop forward is called "batch", and to pick up backward is called "handle", so people call it "batch". Later, it was renamed Pipa in order to unify its writing with that of Qin, Se and other musical instruments at that time.
In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, a pear shaped sound box, a curved neck and four strings came from the Western Regions. Some people combined it with the Chinese pipa and made it into a new style. In terms of playing method, the horizontal holding type is changed to the vertical holding type, and the plucked pluck is changed to the five fingers of the right hand. Through the improvement of countless artists, it has become the two pipa of today's four phase thirteen grade and six phase twenty-four grade.
Pipa is also called "Pipa", which was first recorded in Liu Xi's "Shi Ming Shi Musical Instrument" of the Han Dynasty:; It is named "Piba" according to its performance characteristics. In ancient times, percussion, percussion, playing and playing were all called drums. The nomads at that time were good at playing the lute when riding on horses, so they were "drummed by horses". The Record of Skills by Wang Sengqian of the Southern Dynasty: "Empress Wei Wende is good at pipa. When the Ming Emperor tried to use the back clothes begging as music, Yang Fu was at the side and asked the emperor, 'The empress dowager, your majesty's mother, is the monarch's ceremony evil?' The emperor was ashamed to back down, and then came out. The emperor said, 'I know that you are respectful, but I sincerely worry about injustice because of my heart. Today, from your words, I can't see your wife in the vast Xiangshui River? ’The tone after this is exquisite. " It can be seen that during the Wei and Jin Dynasties, the name "Pipa" officially entered the court.
The pipa evolved from the historical Pipa with straight neck and the Pipa with curved neck. According to historical records, the Pipa with straight neck appeared earlier in China. The "Qin and Han Zi" in the Qin and Han dynasties is the Pipa with straight neck (the two sides of the resonance box are covered) with a straight handle circular resonance box, and it was developed from the chord of the late Qin Dynasty. "Ruan Xian" or "Ruan" is a wooden circular resonance box with a straight handle, four strings and twelve columns, holding the pipa played by hand vertically. Ruan Xian of the Jin Dynasty was good at playing this instrument, so he was called Ruan today.
During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, cultural exchanges were carried out with the Western Regions through the Silk Road, and Quxiang Pipa was introduced into China from Persia through modern Xinjiang. The lute with four strings and four phases (without pillars) is shaped like a pear. It is played horizontally with a pick. It was popular in the Northern Dynasty and spread to the Yangtze River valley in the south in the first half of the 6th century.
In the fifth and sixth centuries AD, with the strengthening of commercial and cultural exchanges between China and the western ethnic groups, a Quxiang Pipa was introduced from Central Asia, which was called "Hu Pipa" at that time. Its shape is a curved neck, pear shaped speaker with four columns and four strings, much like the Uud or Ud commonly used in Arab countries or the Barbat in ancient Persia. Hold the pipa horizontally and play it with a pick. The modern pipa evolved from this kind of pipa.
From the Northern Qi Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, it was the first peak in the history of pipa development. The Cao family, originally from the State of Cao (now the northeast of Samarkand, Uzbekistan), was an outstanding representative. For example, Cao Miaoda from the Northern Qi Dynasty to the Sui Dynasty was crowned king for his good pipa in the Northern Qi Dynasty. After entering the Sui Dynasty, he was appointed a palace music officer and learned pipa skills in Tai Le School.
Among the nine and ten pieces of music in the Sui and Tang dynasties, the pipa has become the main instrument and played an important role in the development of the art of song and dance in the flourishing Tang Dynasty. From Dunhuang frescoes and Yungang stone carvings, we can still see its position in the band at that time.
