MUSIC OF EAST ASIA

CHINA, JAPAN, AND KOREA

 MUSIC OF CHINA
Chinese means the central or middle kingdom.
Chinese music is as old as the Chinese
civilization. It is based on the doctrines or beliefs
of the Chinese philosophers. According to the
Confucian philosophy, “Chinese music and
philosophy advocated a stable social hierarchy
reflecting natural balances and maintained by
individual virtue and restraint.”
 Elements of Chinese Music
1. Pitch/Tonal system – most Chinese music is in pentatonic scale, which is
derived from the Ling Lun Chinese legend. It is believed that five-tone scale
system among Chinese is connected to their patterns in life like their outlook
in cycles of dynasties, seasons, the five planets, and five basic elements.
The use of pentatonic scale is also based on some symbolic attributes like:
a. Kung – the primary tone which is associated with the Emperor
b. Shang – the tone associated with the Minister
c. Chih – the tone associated with the State
d. Chaio – the tone associated with the People
e. Yu – the tone associated with significant Chinese objects.
 According to the Chinese legends,
in 2697 B.C., Emperor Huang-ti sent Ling
Lun to the western mountains to cut
bamboo pipes. It is from which the basic
pitches of Chinese music were obtained,
and it is now the Lu System in honor of
Ling Lun.
2. Timbre (Vocal) – in Han Chinese culture, the style of singing is usually
thin and nasal. High-pitched or shrill vocal quality conveys the life’s adversity
in the northern part of China. In contrast, the style of singing that is not high-
pitched reflect the southern part of China’s life experiences, which are much
lighter.
3. Meter/Rhythm – Chinese music is mostly in duple rhythm or 2 quarter
which transmits the principle of natural “duality” like female-male or yin-yang
relationship. It may also convey the “Zhongyong”, a Confucian concept.

4. Texture – It is generally thought that Chinese music is in homophonic

texture because it is mainly the distinguishing characteristic of early Chinese
ritual music like the Ya yiieh, which is a classical music; but in the
instrumental music of China, the musicians make use of embellishments of
the melody where they play variations in melody, in unison with the vocal
music and instrumental accompaniment.
 Vocal Music of China
Chinese vocal music is usually described as high-pitched and nasal
but there are regional differences in the style of singing. The north-south
vocal difference is observed in their theater or lyric song. Vocal music is
complicated for the reason that the tonal inflection is very intricate because
of the Chinese language. Despite the fact that the Chinese words are
monosyllabic, the performer should be careful in pronouncing the words
properly.
Types of Chinese Vocal Music:
1. Religious Music – it is classified into two: the Buddhist Music and Taoist
Music which are the religious and ritual music (temple music) played for
some ceremonies like salvation and memorial rituals.
a. Buddhist Music – also known as “Sanskrit Music.” In Buddhist
music, vocal intoning is usually referred to as “chanting music,
covering verses, hymns, and liturgies.”
b. Taoist Music – the music is influenced by regional folk music and
it is used in ceremonial rituals like in Buddhist music. Yunzi is a vocal
tune where melodies improve throughout the ritual ceremonies.
2. The Art Song – Xiaoling is a vocal music of the 12th-13th century
based on the poetry of Qu which is one type of art song, where a soloist
sometimes performs with a wooden clapper as an accompaniment.
3. Narrative Music – Zhugongdiao is one of the significant types of
narrative songs. The song is a story about a romantic legend told
accompanied by drums.
4. Chinese Folk Music – describes the lives of most Hans Chinese
people. Shange is a mountain song created in strophic form and it uses
fewer refrains, composed of two or four phrases with the same length and
each phrase has its own musical thought.
“Mo Li Hua” is a Chinese folk song which means a jasmine flower. The song simply describes
the purity and fragrance of the jasmine flower.
 Instrumental Music of China
Traditionally, Chinese instrumental music is heterophonic, meaning it
is played with more than one instrument or an instrument together with a
voice. The most well-known forms of instrumental Chinese music are suites
and variations
Chinese instruments can be played in solo, large orchestras in court
and in smaller ensembles like in teahouses or some public occasions. There
is no conductor in an ancient Chinese music or in any tablature
performances because music was taught aurally and memorized only by the
musicians alone.
Instrumental Pieces of China
1. Solo Instrumental Piece – The
Chinese Qin is a six-foot string zither
instrument similar to the Japanese musical
instrument called Koto. This instrumental
piece is used during the ancient time for
meditation, purifying, and regulating
oneself through discipline and in controlled
emotions. It is usually played in a
motivating place or environment like a Chinese Qin
garden while burning an incense.
2. Instrumental Ensemble – an instrumental
ensemble can be performed through the following:
a. Guchi – (if the double-reed suona is added)
this instrumental ensemble is usually held in the
urban areas during holidays where gong and drum
ensembles are commonly performed. This ensemble
is composed of either one or more riveted-head barrel
drums, gongs, and small cymbals.
b. Sizhu – is referred to as the silk-and-bamboo
ensembles where the instruments play traditional
tunes in which the texture is heterophonic. This
ensemble is usually performed in teahouses and in Sizhu Ensemble played
some people’s houses. by musicians
 Chinese Musical Instruments
The modern Chinese instruments are categorized based on the
structure and the sounds created. The four sections of Chinese classic
orchestra are: the bowed strings, the plucked strings, and the
percussion instruments.
Chordophone Instruments (Stringed-instruments)
Chordophones are instruments played through strumming, plucking or
bowing. It is also named as “Hu-qin”, “hu” meaning foreign or northern folk in
China and “qin” meaning a common term for all the string instruments which
is a big family in Chinese instruments.
 Erhu
A two-stringed fiddle
instrument which is one
of the most well known in
the Hu-qin family. It is
sometimes called as
“Chinese violin.”

Chordophone
 Banhu
It is also known as the
following: “bonghu”, “pang-
hu”, “qin-hu”, etc.
It is the leading musical
accompaniment in Bang-zi
ballads specifically for local
Operas in Central China and
is usually used in solo
performances that express a
passionate and joyful feeling.

Chordophone
 Pipa
This instrument is created
for plucking. It has a short
neck and is made of a
wooden belly.

Chordophone
 Yueqin
It came from Ruan but it
has a thinner sound with
short neck and flat sound
box.

Chordophone
 Ruan
It is also known as
“Chinese Guitar” and
“moon guitar” and it varies
in shape.

Chordophone
Zither Family
Guqin
A seven-stringed
instrument which has a
long and slender body
made from pine tree.

Chordophone
Zither Family
Kongho
This instrument is similar to
a harp and aside from the
right hand technique, it can
also be played by the left
hand in vibrato.

Chordophone
Zither Family
Zheng
One of the earliest Chinese
musical instruments made
from bamboo. This
instrument has a curve and
elongated surface with 21
stretched strings.

Chordophone
Idiophone Instruments
(Percussion)
Idiophone instrument is a
classification of instrument
which is played through
striking, hitting or shaking.

Muyu
Made from mulberry of carved
wood and used by striking it to
produce sounds. It is used as
musical accompaniment in
Buddhist chants.
 Pengling
Percussion instrument consisting
of two bells made of bronze.
It adds beauty to rhythmic
instrument in music ensemble
and theatre.

Idiophone
Aerophone Instruments
(Wind-blown)
Aerophones are instruments
played through blowing in
order to produce sounds.

Dizi
Considered a traditional Chinese
flute which can be played in
Chinese classical music for solo
music.
 Xiao
Considered as a long flute music.
It is played in Chinese classical
music for solo music.

Aerophone
 Sheng
One of the oldest Chinese
instruments and is named as
“Chinese Mouth Organ” consist of
13-17 bamboo pipes in various
lengths that are placed together.

Aerophone