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Guqin and its Music

Ⅱ-34Traditional MusicChangshu, JiangsuBatch 2 (2008)Extension ItemFeatured

01 · Historical Records

It is confirmed by the materials so far recovered by archaeology that the form of the guqin was already complete by the Han dynasty at the latest. The Yushan school is one of the schools of Chinese guqin art; it originated in Changshu, Jiangsu, and its influence extends throughout the country. It was the most influential qin school of the Ming-Qing transition, and its Songxian Guan Qinpu had considerable influence in qin circles and was revered by them as orthodox.

02 · Core Techniques & Process

The guqin, also called the “qin” or the “seven-stringed zither” and otherwise known as the “green damask” or the “silk paulownia”, is a flat-lying plucked string instrument. The art of the guqin is the oldest and most artistically accomplished of instrumental performance forms in Chinese history and the one most marked by national spirit, aesthetic taste and traditional artistic character; besides the solo it also includes the qin song, in which singing and playing go together, and the ensemble of qin and xiao. Through the creative development of qin players and men of letters of successive generations the art of the guqin grew steadily more mature and complete; it entered into a close relationship with social life, history, philosophy and literature, and made great achievements in the accumulation of pieces, performing technique, the study of temperament, modes of transmission and the craft of making qin, displaying a rich humanistic content. In the pre-Qin period the master Yan Yan laid the cornerstone of Confucian culture in the south and also made Changshu a home of the guqin. At the end of the Ming and the beginning of the Qing Yan Tianchi founded the “Yushan school”, which flourished without decline for four hundred years and had far-reaching influence, being praised by later generations as the “orthodox ancient tone”. The Yushan masters who followed, such as Xu Qingshan and Wu Jinglüe, all made outstanding contributions to the development of the art of the guqin. The qin music of the Yushan school seeks lively spirit and rhythm and fuses the Confucian musical view of “central harmony” with the Daoist musical view that “the greatest music has the faintest notes”, so that the beauty of movement and stillness illuminates one another and a qin style of “broad and harmonious, clear, subtle, light and distant” is formed. Over three hundred years the Yushan school not only gave rise to the Guangling school, the Mei'an school, Japanese guqin music and the Jinyu Qin Society but also deeply influenced the artistic thinking of the Lingnan, Min and Chuan schools. In its long development the Yushan school naturally merged its own artistic practice into the humanistic environment of Changshu and took root in the cultural life of the Changshu people, and to this day it still carries on an unceasing traditional cultural spirit, occupying a decisive place in qin circles at home; its representative pieces include The Pu'an Incantation and Wutong Leaves Dance in the Autumn Wind.

The Pu'an Incantation

A representative piece of the Yushan school of the art of the guqin.

Wutong Leaves Dance in the Autumn Wind

A representative piece of the Yushan school, reflecting its clear, subtle and distant qin style.

03 · Regional Records & Related Items

The Yushan school originated in Changshu, Jiangsu, and takes its name from Mount Yu within its territory; it circulates mainly in the Changshu and Suzhou area and has spread throughout the country with the travels and teaching of qin players. Since the late Ming and early Qing the school has taken the Songxian Guan Qinpu as its canon, seeking lively spirit and rhythm and a clear, subtle, light and distant manner, and it became one of the most influential qin schools of the Ming-Qing transition.

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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding

At present the guqin performing art of the Yushan school has begun to show a tendency to endangerment, and it is necessary to strengthen protection work greatly. (Associated bearer recorded in the official archive:) Zhu Xi, male, Han, born February 1964, a native of Changshu city, Jiangsu. When performing in Japan he was praised by the Japanese media as “Zhu Xi, a national treasure of the living”. He has written such monographs as Orthodox Ancient Tone and edited and published the Exploration of the Songxian Guan Qinpu and the accompanying CD collection, restoring the complete appearance of the Yushan school of former days. He is a representative bearer of the fifth batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage items, the art of the guqin (Yushan school). He attaches great importance to teaching in society and has for many years persisted in transmitting the art of the guqin in the universities, middle and primary schools of Changshu, training several hundred students of the Yushan school guqin art.

05 · Associated Representative Bearers

Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:

06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography

  1. Guqin and its Music (Changshu, Jiangsu) · China ICH Official Project Archive
  2. Zhu Xi · National Representative Bearer Archive

Sources

China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)

Read the official ihchina.cn record ↗

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