Chinese Traditional Dance of the Sui, Tang and Five Dynasties

Embracing and integrating

In 581 A.D., the Sui Dynasty united China, ending a long period of war and turmoil. In order to show his achievements in unifying the country and the strength of the state, Emperor Wen of Sui concentrated on organizing the music and dances of various ethnic groups in the Southern and Northern Dynasties as well as those of some foreign countries in the early years of the Kaihuang era (581-585 A.D.), and formulated the "Seven-Part Music," which was later developed into the "Nine-Part Music," which led to unprecedented development of the Yan music of the court.

The Tang Dynasty was a period of vigorous development of Chinese culture, and the art of dance in the Tang Dynasty was also highly developed. The Tang court set up a variety of music and dance institutions, such as the Church Hall, Pear Garden, Taishang Temple, concentrated a large number of folk artists of various nationalities, so that the Tang dynasty dance, music has become a carrier to absorb the essence of foreign cultures, reflecting the Tang people's self-confidence and magnanimity of the grandeur of the magnanimity of tolerance. "Sitting part of the Kabuki" and "Ribei Kabuki" these court Yan music, are absorbing the music and dance of various ethnic groups and create a new type of music and dance programs, in the content of the content is to sing the praises of virtue.

Tang Dynasty music and dance activities also permeate all levels of society, from the court, down to the common people, in the festivals and banquets, music and dance performances are indispensable. These small dances performed in general banquets, according to its movement characteristics and style, can be divided into "healthy dance" and "soft dance". The "healthy dance" refers to those dance action style robust, bold music and dance, the famous "sword dance", "cudgel dance", "Hu Xuan dance" and so on. The "soft dance" is a beautiful and gentle dance, with a soothing rhythm, famous for the "Spring Warbler" and "Green Waist".

Tang Dynasty dance also has by instrumental, dance and singing composed of multi-part music and dance suite - song and dance song, such as "Neishang Yuyi Dance". In addition, there are some folk with a storyline, with the characters of the song and dance theater, such as the ballad of the mother. Sui and Tang court yan (banquet) music, used for court ceremonies. After the unification of the Sui Dynasty, the centralized collation of the southern and northern dynasties and part of the foreign music and dance, the development of the "seven parts of music": one, "national伎"; two, "qingshang伎"; three, "Goryeo伎"; four, "tianzhu伎"; five, "anguo伎"; six, "kamezisha";seven,文康伎",which is the "rite of passage". Sui Daye (605-608 AD), the addition of "Kangguo Kabuki" and "Shule Kabuki", at the same time, the "Qing Shang Kabuki" as the first part, change the "State Kabuki" for "Xiliang Kabuki", and thus become the "Nine Parts of Music".

The Tang court music and dance inherited the Sui system, "nine music" to maintain the original appearance. In 637 AD, the abolition of the "Rites of Passage", 640 years will celebrate the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, "Yan music" as the first, Zhenguan sixteen years (642 years), Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty Feast group of ministers, plus the performance of the "Gaochang Kabuki", which began to become the "ten parts of the music".

The purpose of the court set up the above clubs, is to show that the country is strong, two of the music and dance, namely, "Yan music", "Qing Shang" is the Han style of the Central Plains, and the other eight are to the name of the place, the name of the country for the club name, it is a distinctive ethnic folk music and dance. The dancers are dressed in glorified national costumes. After the organization of the court, there are certain performance system and norms, all the music and the number of musicians, clothing, musical instruments and the use of what kind of songs, dances, interpretation of songs, etc., are stipulated. The Seven-Part Music, Nine-Part Music, and Ten-Part Music are both ceremonial and artistic, and have a certain appreciation value, and are the famous court yan music in Chinese history. When Li Shimin was the King of Qin, the song "The King of Qin's Broken Battlefield Music" was popular in the army to glorify his martial arts achievements. After Li Shimin became the emperor, it was played during the palace ceremonies. In the seventh year of Zhenguan (633 AD), the song was used to make the dance "Breaking Formation Music".　There were 120 dancers with armor and halberds. Dance formation: left round, right square, in front of the chariot, behind the team. Sometimes into a horizontal team arranged "fish Li formation", and sometimes into a vertical team arranged "goose stork formation". In the middle of the open, such as the two wings stretching. The dance team is staggered, and the head and tail correspond to each other. The whole dance is divided into three major sections, each section of four changes in position. Accompanied by big drums, the tune has the sound of tortoise, and the sharp and slow stabbing movements are combined with the majestic singing. It is "hair-raising and vigorous, with a generous sound", and has a strong flavor of life in the battlefield.

Tang dynasty court Yan (feast) music "standing part of the伎"、"Sitting part of the伎"，there are a number of people varying "broken music". After the death of Emperor Tang Taizong and the "broken formation music" renamed "Shen Gong broken formation music", became a ritual martial arts dance. Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty used hundreds of courtesans to dance "Broken Formation Music", which became a performance dance for appreciation. In the late Tang Dynasty, the clans and towns were divided and the country was declining, and the clans and towns still danced the "Broken Formation Music", but the scale was very small, only 10 people.

The "broken formation music" with the Tang Emperor Taizong spread far and wide, far-reaching influence, famous at home and abroad. Tang monk Xuanzang mentioned in the "Records of the Western Regions of the Great Tang Dynasty": India, the King of the Ringing Sun and the King of Guimaro have talked about the "Broken Formation Music" in a tone of admiration. Japan's elegant music and dance still exist in the "King of the Qin broken music", according to legend is introduced to Japan by the Tang Dynasty. The "Neishang Yuyi Dance"

The "Daigong" is a multi-part song and dance that combines music, dance, and poetry. It begins with an instrumental piece with free rhythm, called the "loose sequence"; it is followed by a line of singing (sometimes inserted into the dance), called the "middle sequence"; and it ends with a dance piece with a sharp, undulating rhythm, called the "break". The last is a dance piece with a rapid rhythm and changes of ups and downs, called the "Entry and Break".　The Dance of the Neishang and the Feathered Garments is a famous song and dance of the Tang Dynasty, which was created by Emperor Li Longji of the Tang Xuanzong Dynasty, who partially absorbed the Indian "Brahmin Song" presented by Yang Jingshu, the governor of Xiliang. The author seeks to depict an illusory fairyland. In a poem by Liu Yuxi, he wrote: "The strangers in Sangxiang looked at the immortal mountains, and returned to the Neishang Yuyi song. In addition, there is also a legend that Emperor Tang Minghuang traveled to the Moon Palace and composed the "Neishang Yuyi" (Neishang Yuyi).

The music of "Neishang" is beautiful and melodious. "In the middle of the sequence, the dancers dance to the beat. Dancers dressed as fairies, elegant and gorgeous costumes, wearing a crown, wearing a feathered jacket, cape, underneath the neon-like light-colored skirt (there are also moon white skirt). The dance is light, soft and agile, with "light snow in a whirlwind, sweetly sent to the dragons in fear, the willow is powerless after a small drop of the hand, and the clouds want to be born when the skirt is trailing diagonally" (Bai Juyi's "Song of the Neishang and Feathered Garments"). After the "breakthrough" is a fast-paced dance section, the dance movements are complex and intense, and the whole dance ends with a long cue.

This dance is most famously performed by Yang Guifei (Yuhuan). She once boasted, "The Neishang Yuyi Dance is a song that is enough to drown the ancient times. The Nishang Yuyi Dance is performed in solo, duo and group dances.

Bai Juyi depicted the wonderful performance of a pair of fairy-like dancers in the Neishang Yuyi Song. They sometimes nodded their heads to each other, sometimes waved their sleeves to disperse, their performances are fascinating, Bai Juyi once sighed: "thousands of songs and dances can not be counted, on the most favorite Nishang dance". During the reign of Emperor Wenzong, the Nishang Dance was performed by a large group of several hundred courtesans. The dancers were wearing feathered costumes and decorated with beads and emeralds, and they danced as if they were cranes flying in the air.

The Nishang Qu is a high artistic level of court music and dance, is a reserved program of the Tang Dynasty, but also an ancient Chinese dance has a considerable impact on a work. In later times, some dancers choreographed the Nishang Yuyi Dance on the basis of visible historical information and their own ideas. Sword Dance

The famous "Jian Dance" of the Tang Dynasty (referring to those musical dances with robust and bold dance movements) - "Sword Dance" - has a robust and magnificent dance posture. Du Fu's poem "Watching Gongsun Daniang's Disciples Dancing Sword and Instrument" describes Gongsun Daniang's folk performance of "Sword and Instrument Dance", which is thrilling: it is as if Houyi shoots down nine suns, and as if a group of immortals fly on a dragon. When it is intense, it is like thunder and lightning; when it is still, it is like the river and the sea condensing waves.

Gongsun was summoned to the palace to perform, and her skill was so exquisite that no one in the Yichun Yuan and the Pear Garden, where the masters were gathered, could match it.

Gongsun was summoned to perform at the palace, and her skill was unmatched in the Yichun Academy and the Pear Garden, which were full of masters. The author of the poem, Zheng Sum, wrote in his own note: "There was a sword dance by Gongsun Danniang, which was then called the most marvelous."

The Gongsun's dance, "Sword Instrument", has a distinctive rhythm, and the dance is robust and full of changes. The momentum of its Liu Li staccato gave inspiration to the cursive writers Zhang Xu and Huai Su, and as a result, the cursive script was greatly improved. Yao He's "Sword Instrument Lyrics" reads: "Dancing on the spot today, I should know that I am a warrior. The sentence of "Dancing on the spot today, I should know that I am a man of war. When I start dancing again today, I remember when the battle was in full swing" shows that the Sword and Weapon Dance is a dance rich in the flavor of life in the battlefield. The Sword Dance was imported to Joseon, and the ancient book of Joseon, "The Sword Dance for Food", has a picture of the "Sword Dance". In the Song Dynasty, the court team dance "Children's Team" had the "Sword Tool Team" and the "Sword Tool" song.

The Tang Dynasty's "Sword Dance" was inherited from the previous generation's swordplay. Today's martial arts, opera, dance in the sword dance of various techniques, but also from the ancient sword dance development. Hu Xuan Dance is a famous dance of the Tang Dynasty, which was originally a folk dance in Central Asia. Tang has "Hu Xuan female, out of Kangju (now Central Asia around Samarkand)" said. Sui, Tang "nine music", "ten music" in the "Kang Guo music" department, "rapid rotation as the wind, commonly known as Hu Xuan". The dance accompaniment is based on drums. The dance is characterized by rapid and continuous multi-circle rotation. Tang poetry describes the beauty of the dance spinning like snow floating in the air, like the fluffy grass flying around, like a goat's horn whirlwind, if the car wheel disk. Vertical and horizontal Tengtap should be strings and drums, a thousand turns and thousands of turns do not stop. The rapidity of the rotating dance, making it difficult for the audience to distinguish between the back and the face.

Dunhuang 220 caves in the Tang dynasty frescoes Kaburagi sky rapid rotation as the wind of the dance figure, as well as Ningxia Yanchi Tang tomb unearthed stone carving of the dancers, are to a certain extent, reflecting the Tang dynasty, "Husun dance" style.

The Tang Dynasty was prevalent in the "Hoopla Dance", Bai Juyi "Hoopla Dance" poem: "Tianbao quarter of the year when the time wants to change, my concubines learn to circle," which can be seen, the "Hoopla Dance" in the Tang Dynasty was really popular for a while. To this day, the folk dance in Xinjiang, Central Asia, in the dance to the climax, the dancers will often fast-paced continuous rotation to express the joy of passion.

Tang Dynasty, in addition to specializing in the performance of the "Hu Xuan Dance" of the Kabuki, Yang Guifei, An Lushan, Wu Yanxiu, etc. are dancing "Hu Xuan" of the masters. The famous dance of the Tang Dynasty, "Huteng Dance", came from Shikoku (the area around Tashkent in present-day Uzbekistan in Central Asia, under the jurisdiction of Anxi Prefecture of the Tang Dynasty). The dancers wore pointed hats, narrow-sleeved hu shirts, belts, and brocade boots. The dance is characterized by jumps and rapid, changing steps. Liu Yanshi's poem "Watching the Dance of Huteng at Night in the Residence of Wang Zhongcheng" describes the complex dance steps with the lines of "jumping and turning the hubs of the treasure belt, and making the feet colorful and soft with the brocade boots," depicting the idle turns and the fast-paced dance steps. Li Rui's poem "Huteng'er" reads: "Raising my eyebrows and moving my eyes, I step on the flower felt, exchanging beads and hats in red sweat. Drunk but tilting to the east and falling to the west, the boots are soft and weak in front of the lamp. Circle line rush cu all should be section, backhand cross waist such as but the moon" line, describing the dancer's expression is vivid, the dance is intense, to fast Tengtadan step, circle rush and backhand cross waist and other changes in the dance and so on.

Today, in the folk dances of Xinjiang and Central Asia, there are many jumping movements, complex tap rhythms, difficult skills, and bold men's dances.

Xi'an eastern suburb of the Tang dynasty excavated Su Si castor tomb music dance mural, a high nose, deep-eyed Hu man, standing on a blanket, raising arms and legs, like in a fierce jump, just landed on the posture. Historians believe that this is quite similar to the Tang poem depicting the Huteng Dance. In the Song Dynasty, there was also the Drunken Huteng Dance in the children's team of the court team dance. The Cudran Dance is a famous "healthy dance" that was introduced to the Central Plains from the Western Regions. Tang Lu Zhao, "Hunan view double Tsuge Dance Fu", there is "ancient also the Shu of Zhi Zhi, now also the name of the Tsuge" sentence. Zhi Zhi is the name of the ancient city in the Western Region, in today's Central Asia, the area of Jiang Brin.

The "Cudgel Branch Dance" was originally a solo dance for women, dressed in glorified national costumes and wearing brocade boots; the accompaniment was mainly drums, and the dancers appeared in the sound of drums. Zhang Xiaobiao's poem "Cudrania" has: "Cudrania's first drums beckon", and Bai Juyi's "Cudrania Prostitutes" has: "Three drums are beaten in a row to urge the drums to be painted". The dance posture is rich in variations, both robust and bright, and graceful and beautiful. The sleeves of the dance are sometimes lowered and sometimes raised, which is what the poem calls "the complicated drums in the raised sleeves" and "the long sleeves into the Chinese underclothing". The fast and complicated dance makes the golden bells on the belt sound crisp and clear. The viewer marvels at the lightness and softness of the dance. Toward the end of the dance, there is a deep downward movement. The description of the Cudgel Dance in Tang poetry has many similarities with the Hand Drum Dance popular in Xinjiang today.

After the Tsuge Dance was widely spread in the Central Plains, there appeared the Tsuge Kabuki, which specialized in performing the dance, and the solo dance was developed into a duo dance, and later there was a soft dance called "Qu Tsuge," in which two girls first hid in the lotus flower and then came out to dance. Its dance style, performance forms have changed greatly.　Xi'an Tang Dynasty Xingfu Temple remnants of the side of the monument there are two women feet on the lotus, relative dance carvings, may be related to the Tang "Qu Zhe Zhi" dance. Spring warbler" is the famous "soft dance" in Tang Dynasty. According to the record of the Church, "spring warbler" is the morning of Emperor Gaozong heard the warbler, ordered the musician Bai Mingda to write a song, and will be called this tune "spring warbler". Bai Mingda was a famous musician from Guzi (Kuche, Xinjiang), and his music may have a certain Guzi style.

The poem Spring Warbler Singing by Zhang You of the Tang Dynasty reads, "The inner man has sung Spring Warbler Singing, and the unsteady soft dance comes under the flowers." Describes the highest skilled "insiders" in the palace, performing the Spring Warbler's Song and Dance in a soft and graceful manner. The music and dance of "Spring Warbler Singing" may be characterized by the depiction of bird sounds and shapes. Dances analogous to those of flying birds have existed since ancient times, and they are a reflection of hunting life, as well as vestiges of totem worship.

The Spring Warbler was imported into Korea, and the rituals for entering the food were recorded: "The Spring Warbler ...... set up a single seat, a dancing prostitute, standing on the seat, moving in and out and rotating, not leaving the seat and dancing." And painted dance scene diagram. A female dancer cubed on the blanket and danced. Japanese Yale dance also has "spring warbler", originally imported to Japan from the Tang Dynasty, men wearing bird crowns and dance. Its performance form and style, different from the Tang Dynasty women's soft dance, is a Japanese nationalized Yale dance. The first foot-binding dancers

Seohyuk is the five generations of the South Tang Dynasty after the Lord Li Yu's dance palace concubine, "delicate and good dance", after the Lord for her to make a six-foot-high gold lotus platform, decorated with a lot of treasures, inlays, tassels, lotus for the colors of Ruilian.

Seeps' eyes to silk wrapped feet, slender feet curved into a crescent shape, and then put on white stockings, dancing in the lotus, pirouetting in the air of the posture, there are flying clouds of the state. Poetry: "Lotus flowers better, the moon in the clouds long new". At that time, women competed with each other to imitate, enough to slender bow for the United States, historians believe that women's foot-binding habits, by the fifth generation of the rise of the beginning of the sunken eyes.

The foot-binding dance of Huanyu Niang may have an inherited relationship with the "stilt work" of the Dan character in later operas. With the ballet pointe dance, there are similarities and differences.