Zhong He Shao Le (中和韶乐) was a kind of royal music used for sacrificing, morning assembling and banquet in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. According to the record, royal music appeared in the Zhou Dynasty, fusing music, dance, and etiquette into one. Zhong He Shao Le was used continuously from the Qin Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty. Then it was lost for nearly 100 years after the Qing Dynasty. It is one component of Beijing culture.

Introduction

“Zhong” and “He” with the mean of “moderation” in English, is the moral notion of the Confucianism. Zhong He Shao Le, originated in 5,000 years ago, was a sort of classic art integrating with poem, music and dance. At that time, Zhong He Shao Le was sung to praise the holiness of Emperor Yao and to express courtier’s faithfulness. Since then, Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties viewed Zhong He Shao Le as music of national grand ceremony.

King Wu of the Zhou Dynasty put down other states and conferred the meritorious statesman. Jiang Ziya established Qi State in Yingqiu. Zhong He Shao Le introduced into the Qi State. It was reformed in the Qi State according to the local custom. The music became more plentiful not only from content but also the acting form, taking a new appearance. Confucius once said: once heard Zhong He Shao Le music, he did not know the taste of meat for three months.

Zhong He Shao Le music got an extreme position in the Han Dynasty, regarded as the national music. Shao music is a kind of court music in the highest level, applying for the longest time. The moral models and forms of culture and art resulted from the music have always influenced the ancient Chinese civilization. The record about Zhong He Shao Le disappeared in the Tang and Song Dynasties. In the Qing Dynasty, it reappeared in banquet, meeting assembly or sacrificing.

Based on relevant volumes, the sacrificing music consists of seven passages including chapter of Zhaoping, chapter of Xingping, chapter of Chongping, chapter of Tianping, chapter of Chunping, chapter of Chenping and chapter of Heyou.

Eight music refers to gold, stone, earth, wood, leather, silk and gourd. There are 105 music instruments including chime, Bianqing, Bozhong, Teqing, Jian drum, lute, qin (a seven-stringed plucked instrument in some ways similar to the zither), se (a 25 stringed plucked instrument), bamboo flute, panpipes, Sheng (a reed pipe wind instrument), Xun (an ancient egg-shaped, held wind instrument), shaku, etc.

In 2004, Zhong He Shao Le was performed again in the Temple of Heaven. In order to recover the history of the original, dozens of professors reset 34 sets of ancient music instruments and music scores as well as words of song strictly according to the historical record.

Source: www.tour-beijing.com