I feel more and more that it is not only the hands of the performers that pull the strings, but also the extensive and profound Chinese culture that has been accumulated for thousands of years.
General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important speech at the opening ceremony of the Eleventh National Congress of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles and the Tenth National Congress of the Chinese Writers Association pointed out: “It is necessary to explore the ideology, humanistic spirit and moral norms of the excellent traditional Chinese culture, and integrate artistic creativity with the value of Chinese culture. Combine the spirit of Chinese aesthetics with contemporary aesthetic pursuits, and activate the vitality of Chinese culture.” This points out the way forward for the development of Chinese folk music, and encourages folk music artists to inherit folk music through innovation, show the spirit of the times, and sing the voice of China.
I was admitted to the High School Attached to the Central Conservatory of Music in 1984, and later studied at the Central Conservatory of Music for undergraduate and postgraduate studies. At that time, I was the only graduate student majoring in folk music performance. The tutor Mr. Lan Yusong confiscated the students for the past ten years. He hopes that the students will not only have the comprehension and talent of folk music performance, but also have the steadfastness and determination to stick to the cause of folk music, and work together to push the folk music to a new height. Mr. Lan’s classes not only teach erhu, but also Chinese music history, aesthetics, philosophy and even psychology. Sometimes, in order for me to better understand a piece of music, he would write calligraphy while explaining the integration of artistic conceptions between various categories of traditional Chinese culture, which enabled me to focus on exploring the spiritual characteristics of traditional culture while practicing my performance skills. Since then, I have devoted myself to deeply excavating and presenting folk music art with superb techniques and rich expressiveness, giving it contemporary awareness and vitality of the times, and striving to improve the aesthetic height of art.
Culture is enriched by exchanges, and civilizations are enriched by mutual learning. How to promote Chinese music culture to the world is a topic that I always pay attention to. In 1997, I was invited to go abroad to record two erhu solo albums. I chose more than 20 songs with ethnic and folk styles, such as Rivers and Waters, Mountain Villages Changed, Yangguan Sandie, Amis Dance and Shepherdess. work. The sound engineer is very experienced and uses analog recording to record the sound of live performances. A work is completed in one go from beginning to end without any editing, which is a huge challenge for the performers. We recorded more than 20 works in two nights. I still clearly remember the hearty performance at that time, and the sound of erhu seems to flow from the bottom of my heart. Later, one of the albums won the “Best World Traditional Music Award” at the International Recording Competition.
Since the new century, I have held recitals all over the world many times. With a sense of mission to show the charm of Chinese music to the world, I carefully select classic works of different styles and forms that reflect Chinese culture, national spirit, historical heritage and regional characteristics, and show the artistic essence of erhu music from multiple levels and angles. I remember when I performed in a top international concert hall, the audience was full. Many of them were listening to an erhu solo concert for the first time. Every time I finished a piece, the applause rose. I really feel that the audience is very interested in Chinese music, and I also feel that they are looking forward to a deeper understanding of Chinese traditional culture. At the end of the concert, the whole audience stood up and applauded. After I finished all the 3 encore pieces, I called the curtain many times with prolonged applause, and the audience was still reluctant to leave. At that moment, I was deeply moved and filled with boundless confidence and courage for the development of Chinese folk music career.
As a carrier of Chinese culture, Chinese national instrumental music has unique advantages. When communicating and cooperating with other cultures in the world, it is easy to bridge the differences in language and aesthetic habits. During my cooperation with famous foreign symphony orchestras, some violin and cello players were moved to tears when they heard the erhu for the first time. They said, “Your erhu seems to be singing.” Whether it is cultural connotation, aesthetic height, style characteristics, or technical application and emotional expression, it is excellent enough compared with any musical instrument in the world. Composers and performers can give full play to their imagination and creativity, inherit the essence, and create new sounds.
After walking through thousands of mountains and rivers, you will know the road to come. I feel more and more that what pulls the strings is not only the hands of the performers, but also the extensive and profound Chinese culture that has accumulated for thousands of years. From the Jiahu bone flute more than 8,000 years ago to the “octave classification” of more than 1,000 BC, from the chimes of Zeng Hou Yi of the Warring States Period to the musical allusions of “high mountains and flowing waters meet bosom friends”, from the Sui and Tang Dynasties, pipa, huqin, yangqin, etc. were introduced The New Culture Movement from the Central Plains to the May Fourth Movement gave birth to new literature and art and new music… For thousands of years, the performance practice and artistic accumulation of Chinese national instrumental music have written my country’s splendid music culture and demonstrated the unique musical wisdom of the Chinese nation. Today, the cause of Chinese folk music ushered in an unprecedented bright future. In 2021, I will go to various places to carry out the music party class activity “Chinese Spirit on Bows and Strings”, presenting the history of the party in the melody, and inheriting the red gene with the sound of the piano. I used Liu Tianhua’s “Bright Walk” and A Bing’s “Listening to the Pine” to tell young students that only by sharing the destiny of the nation and being close to the hearts of the people can musicians gain infinite power from the land under their feet, and music creation can gain emotional resonance , which is also the path of Chinese music to the world.
As a folk music artist in the new era, I will bravely undertake the historical mission of inheriting and promoting China’s excellent music culture, and strive to play the sound of the prosperous world in the new era, so that Chinese music can be heard on the world stage.
(The author Yu Hongmei is an erhu performer and vice president of the Central Conservatory of Music)
“People’s Daily” (19th edition on July 1, 2022)
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