Characteristics of Lu Opera, one of the four major local operas in Anhui.

As an intangible cultural heritage of China, Lu Opera culture has been performed in Dabie Mountain and Anhui Province with its local charm of deep house compound since it took root in Jianghuai land. Handed down from generation to generation, highlighting the charm of Lu opera. Then come with me today to learn about the characteristics of Lu opera in the four major local operas in Anhui.

In the old society, most of the Lu drama clubs were semi-professional (that is, farming in busy farming and singing in slack farming), and they flowed in rural fairs for a long time. Generally, when performing, they don't go on stage, but only play stalls. Ordinary actors lack basic skills. As long as he has a good voice, he can do some tricks Over time, he formed a tendency to sing again and not do it. Most of the repertoires performed are "two small" dramas and "three small" dramas. Singing is mostly chorus, accompanied by gongs and drums, without strings, and three or five people can get together to perform, which is called "two dozen and three sings"

Actors wear several speakers, take turns to replace them, and beat gongs and drums. Later, it developed into "three strikes and seven sings" and "seven busy and eight not busy", and has not yet formed a fixed role system. In the past, there were no female artists in Lu Opera, and the roles were mostly played by immature boys with sweet and crisp voices. By the end of the 1920s, Lu Opera Troupe began to enter the city, with its repertoire constantly enriched and its roles and types of work correspondingly increased, and it was divided into six types: Hua Dan, Qingyi, Laosheng and Clown.

During the prosperous period of Daoqi Opera, every time it was performed in various places, it absorbed local popular operas or folk art to enrich itself. Some class associations also cooperate with Anhui opera and Beijing opera classes intermittently. First, Anhui opera and Beijing opera classes performed the main play, and then continued to perform the small play of Lu opera. This practice is called "four-level and one-fold" class or "random play class" The joint performance with Huizhou Opera and Peking Opera has made the performers of props play have a new and different evolution in singing, doing, reading and accompaniment of gongs and drums. However, the level of the Daoqi Troupe has continuously entered the city to perform, and great changes have taken place in art, because it has to adapt to the appreciation habits of urban audiences.

Anhui Lu Opera has formed three paths: up, middle and down, due to different regions and singing styles. On the road, around Lu 'an, Huoshan, Feixi and Shucheng, with Lu 'an as the center, the music is rough and high-pitched, with mountain characteristics, which is called "mountain cavity". Wuhu, Nanling, Fanchang, Maanshan, Dangtu and Jingxian areas are centered on Wuhu, and the music is beautiful, gentle, delicate and peaceful, showing the flavor of water town, which is called "water cavity".

The music around Hefei, Dingyuan, Feidong, Chaohu, Wuwei, Hexian, Hanshan and Lujiang, centered on Hefei, is lively, simple and natural. The aria of Lu Opera can be divided into two categories: main melody and coloratura. The main theme is the main theme of this drama and the passbook drama, which can be both narrative and lyrical, and is suitable for expressing complex emotions. Coloratura is mostly a folk tune, which is relaxed and lively, and is often used in small plays. Lu opera has a variety of vocals, often helping others, and the whole stage sings together, which is called "Yaotai". The traditional Lu opera has no orchestral accompaniment, and only uses gongs and drums for starting, intermission and accompaniment, commonly known as "a scene, full of gongs and drums, half a stage."

The performance of early Lu Opera was relatively simple, which was basically a combination of local minor and folk dance, and the movements generally did not match the plot. Most of the performances are screen shows, with no fixed lines, and more temporary words and phrases are used. After the founding of People's Republic of China (PRC), Lu Opera has undergone major reforms in performing arts.

Lu Opera, formerly known as "Daoqi Opera", originated in Dabie Mountain area in western Anhui and is one of the four major operas in Anhui Province. Because of its influence far beyond other operas at that time, it was renamed as "Lu Opera" with the approval of Anhui Provincial Committee in 1955, and was called Hefei, the provincial capital in ancient times. In 2006, with approval, Lu Opera was included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.

Lu Opera takes Huoshan, Lu 'an, Jinzhai and Shouxian as the center and radiates around, forming two important branches of Lu Opera, namely "West Road" and "North Road". It has experienced the development process from small to large, from single to rich, from scattered to systematic, from the traditional "two small dramas" and "three small dramas" to the passbook drama and then to the present large-scale joint Taiwanese drama. In the meantime, it borrowed and absorbed sister arts such as Huagu, Duangong Tune, Haizi Opera, tea-picking opera in eastern Hubei, local folk songs in Dabie Mountain and folk songs and dances between Jianghuai and formed its own unique artistic style.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, through the unremitting efforts of several generations of Anhui Lu Opera people, they have successively introduced traditional operas such as Borrowing Luo Yi and Hugh Lilac, as well as modern operas such as Cheng Hongmei, Mom and Chashan New Song, which are well-known throughout the country. A large number of performing artists such as Sun Zichan, Wu Keying and Li Ruyao and a number of Lu Opera composers have emerged. I believe that in the spring of great development and prosperity of literature and art, the chrysanthemums of Luxi opera in western Anhui will bloom more brilliantly.

Conclusion Lu Opera is highly absorptive, inclusive and popular. It absorbed local folk songs, folk songs, love songs, Macheng's "high-pitched tune" and other music in singing, and absorbed techniques such as "Flower Drum Opera", "Duangong Opera" and "Black Spot Opera" in performance in eastern Hubei. Many dramas incorporate the concepts and contents of Buddhism, Taoism and other religious cultures. In this sense, Lu Opera has certain historical value, cultural value, cognitive value and artistic value.