A history of more than 2,500 years endows Yangzhou with a profound cultural heritage and rich resources of music and arts. Among them, Yangzhou Storytelling, Yangzhou Qingqu and Yangzhou Recitative are the three artistic gems in Yangzhou opera. These art forms have entered the National List for Intangible Cultural Heritage and are the key components of Chinese opera art.
Yangzhou Storytelling-Humorous
Storytelling is an ancient genre of folk art performed in various Chinese dialects. Due to the differences of dialects, throughout the long history different genres of storytelling evolve in different parts of China, like Nanjing Storytelling, Yangzhou Storytelling, Fuzhou Storytelling, etc.
During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), Yangzhou was an important city for the spread of storytelling art. Yangzhou became the folk art center in southern Chinese during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Different from other types of Chinese opera, the props and the makeup of the performers are much simpler in Yangzhou Storytelling. The performers are usually dressed in antique long gown and all they need is a table, a fan, and Chinese gavel (a wooden block that is made of a small rectangular piece of hard wood and used to strike the table, the performer uses to strike the table to get the audience’s attention). The performers repeatedly study the storyline and the mind of the characters, they employ the expressive Yangzhou dialect and many techniques, such as cadence in pronunciation, the rhythm in sentences and facial expressions to make the audience feel they are the characters in the story and experience all their sadness and happiness. A few words and unpretentious moves by the performers can make the audience either laugh or shed tears of sorrow, which is the most valuable aspect of the Yangzhou Storytelling.
Yangzhou Qingqu- Melodious and Engaging
Yangzhou Qingqu originated in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) and was formulated based on local musical characteristics. It reached its height during the reign of Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty (1622-1799), and was sung all over China. Although most people in China today don’t know about this art form, almost everyone has heard some songs of it. For example, the world-famous classic folk song “Jasmine Flower” is derived from the Qingqu “Flower Tune”.
Qingqu are generally performed in a seated position and the performers play erhu, pipa etc. to accompany each other. Plates, dishes, or wine glasses can sometimes be musical instruments to accompany the performers. Qingqu has a variety of topics, most of which come from folklore or historical stories, for instance, the well-known “Romance of the Three Kingdoms”, “Dream of the Red Chamber” and “The Legend of the White Snake”, all very popular classics. The melodious and engaging Qingqu is loved by many young artists, and by drawing on the local nutrient in the long Qingqu history, some of them combine Qingqu with jazz to create an art that is revolutionary and mind-blowing.
Yangzhou Recitative – Graceful
Elders in Yangzhou would spend half a day of their spare time in the teahouse they frequent, to enjoy a few cups of tea and the recitative performed there. Yangzhou recitative is more like a combination of storytelling and Qingqu. But different from the “storytelling without singing” of Yangzhou Storytelling and the “singing without storytelling”, Yangzhou Recitative features a mix of storytelling and singing.
Therefore, Yangzhou Recitative has higher requirements for the performers. On the one hand, they must pronounce the words correctly with correct tone and verve; on the other hand, they emphasize facial expressions, especially the eyes. To do interact with the audience through eye contact, some performers even stick paper strips on the stage pillars during training to make eyes more expressive. With expressive eyes, the performers can give better and more touching performance.
The slow life of Yangzhou is the envy of the world. Although slow, it has music and artistic appeal. What’s more pleasurable than sitting quietly with a cup of tea, a melody lingering in the ears and a pleasant taste in the mouth?
