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Art &
Performance
Traditional
Chinese Opera
Traditional Chinese opera has a
history of more than 800 years. It is an art form which integrates
singing, music, dialogue, acting and acrobatics. There are more than 300
different operatic forms in China. Among the local operatic forms staged
nationwide are Beijing Opera, Pingju Opera, Shaoxing Opera and Henan
Opera. The best-known is Beijing Opera, which has a history of more than
200 years. It originated in Beijing, then capital of
Qing Dynasty.
There are different schools, styles and forms of singing in
Beijing Opera. In acting and acrobatic fighting, different roles
follow different patterns, and their movements and gestures are stylized,
suggestive and symbolic. For instance, the actions of opening a door,
going up the stairs , rowing a boat or climbing a bill, are done purely
through the dance-like movements of the actors with the help of props.
String and percussion instruments also provide a distinct characteristic
of Beijing Opera.
(To enjoy Beijing Opera,
click here for audio file.)
Modern Chinese drama has
developed under the influence of foreign dramatic literature and
conventions . In the 1910's, drama troupes were formed in the country. The
most popular plays staged in the 1930's and 1940's are Thunderstorm,
Sunrise, Qu Yuan and Twin Flowers.
Music and Dance
As early as the first century B.C., more than 80 different kinds of
musical instruments were already in use. Among the historical finds of
these instruments in Hubei in 1978 was a musical stand of 64 bronze bells.
The bells have considerable variation in pitch, and they were made more
than 2,400 years ago. They can produce a range of five octaves, and that
itself is ample proof of the extraordinary knowledge of music in ancient
China.
At present there are a great
many song and dance troupes, opera companies, symphony orchestras, choirs
and traditional instruments orchestras. The musicians are trained mainly
in the eight conservatories of music, which have their own primary
and secondary schools, in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenyang, Chengdu, Tianjing,
Xi'an and Guangzhou. These institutions and their schools provide music
education at different levels from the very basic to the advanced. This
comprehensive system has been working well. When a graduate from the
secondary music school enters a conservatory, he or she may choose courses
offered by various departments such as composition, folk music, vocal
music, orchestral music and the piano. The Central Conservatory of Music
and Shanghai Conservatory of Music also have departments on conducting,
musicology, and modern opera. Most of the young musicians who have
achieved outstanding results in national and international competitions
have been trained by these schools.
Culture, Art and
Entertainment Administrations
- Ministry of Culture of
P.R.China
- China National Bureau of
Radio, Film and Television
Art and Crafts
Entertainment Groups and Companies
- Beijing People's Art
Theatre
- Central Nationalities
Song and Dance Ensemble
- Central Experimental
Theatre
- China National Music
Ensemble
- China Central Opera and
Dance Drama Troupe
- China Peking Opera
Troupe
- China Performance
Corporation
- China Symphony Orchestra
- China Youth Art Theater
- Peking Opera Troupe of
Beijing
- Peking Opera Troupe of
Shanghai
-
Sino-Japanese Youth
Exchange Center
-
World Cultural Exchange Service Co. (BWCES)
- Beijing Opera Theater
Art Education
and Institutions
- Art Department of
Beijing Normal University
- Art Department of
Capital Normal University
- Art Department of
Central Nationalities University
- Beijing Film Academy
- Central Theater Art
Academy
- Shanghai Theater Art
Academy
- The Art Academy of
People's Liberation Army (PLA)
Film Studios,
Representative Directors and Film Festivals
Film
Studios:
- Agriculture Film Studio
- August 1st Film Studio
(PLA)
- Beijing Children Film
Studio
- Beijing Film Studio
- Beijing Youth Film
Studio
- Central Newsreel and
Documentary Film Studio
- Changchun Film Studio
- Emei Film Studio
- Guangxi Film Studio
- Inner Mongolia Film
Studio
Salon Films Group
- Shanghai Animation Film
Studio
Shanghai Film Studio (Shanghai Film & Television group Inc.)
- Shanghai Science and
Educational Film Studio
- Xinjiang Film Studio
- Xiaoxiang Film Studio
- Zhujiang Film Studio
China Model Agency / Model Recruitment
Representative Directors and Their Works:
- Chen
Kaige
- Teng
Wenjin
- Wu
Tianming
- Xie Jin
- Zhang
Yimou
Chinese Music,
Famous Composers, Players and Singers
Chinese
Literature, Poets/Poetesses and Novelists
Artists
(Painters, Photographers, Calligraphers, Sculptors)
Folk Art and
Entertainment
(click the picture to get the
full size downloadable picture)
Other Related
Chinese Culture, Art and Entertainment Links
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