Yellow River Cantata
Encyclopedia
The Yellow River Cantata (Chinese
:黄河大合唱 Pinyin
: Huánghé Dàhéchàng) is a cantata
by Chinese composer Xian Xinghai
(1905–1945). Composed in Yan'an
in early 1939 during the Second Sino-Japanese War
, the work was inspired by a patriotic
poem by Guang Weiran, which was also adapted as the lyrics. Premiered on April 13 of the same year in the Shanbei Gongxue Hall of Yan'an, the work soon spread to all parts of China
.
, after the Chinese
city of Wuhan
fell to Japan
ese invaders in November 1938, the poet Guang Weiran led the 3rd Squad of the Anti-Enemy Troupe across the Yellow River
near the Hukou Waterfall
and eastwards into the communist anti-Japanese headquarters in Lüliang Mountains
. During his journey, he witnessed the local boatmen battle against heavy gales and torrential waves, and heard their spirit-lifting songs.
Upon reaching Yan'an
in January 1939, Guang wrote a patriotic
poem entitled Yellow River and recited it during the Chinese New Year
celebration. The poem spoke of the oppression of Chinese people under the invaders and called for all to take up arms to defend China. Xian Xinghai
, who received education in the Conservatoire de Paris
and returned to China in 1935, was also present at the recital. He was greatly inspired to write a cantata
based on the poem.
According to an account by Xian's daughter, he began work on the composition on March 26, and took merely four days to complete all eight movements
. However, he was not satisfied with the Second and Sixth, which he took two more days to amend. Two weeks later, the cantata premiered in the Shanbei Gongxue Hall in Yan'an, performed by a forty-strong choir
and a primitive orchestra
conducted by Wu Xiling. It soon spread to many parts of China to inspire its listeners to participate in the Anti-Japanese War
.
entitled the Yellow River Piano Concerto by the pianist Yin Chengzong
. This arrangement, together with the violin concerto
Liang Zhu
by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang
, are the two best internationally known musical works that combined source materials that are purely Chinese with Western music methodology.
while in Yan'an
. Accommodations were made for the lack of musical instrument
s at that time, as the orchestra
consisted of only the violin
, Chinese flute, harmonica
, sanxian
, erhu
and dahu
, among a few percussion instruments.
A year after Xian departed for the Soviet Union
in 1940, he amended his composition for performance by a fully equipped Western orchestra, aided by a few Chinese ethnic instruments
. He also made some amendments to the choral arrangement. In addition, a prologue was added, increasing the number of movements
to nine.
The third and fourth revisions were respectively made by Xian's students, Li Huanzhi and Yan Liangkun. Li simplified the "Soviet" version for performance by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
, while Yan incorporated the prologue into the first movement to return the cantata to its initial arrangement of eight movements for performance by the Central Orchestra during the 1980s. Yan also made heavy amendments to the Third Movement, Water of the Yellow River comes from Heaven, such that the new melody was vastly different from the original. This last revision became the most played and heard version today.
.
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
:黄河大合唱 Pinyin
Pinyin
Pinyin is the official system to transcribe Chinese characters into the Roman alphabet in China, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan. It is also often used to teach Mandarin Chinese and spell Chinese names in foreign publications and used as an input method to enter Chinese characters into...
: Huánghé Dàhéchàng) is a cantata
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
by Chinese composer Xian Xinghai
Xian Xinghai
Xian Xinghai was one of the earliest generation of Chinese composers influenced by western classical music and has influenced generations of Chinese musicians...
(1905–1945). Composed in Yan'an
Yan'an
Yan'an , is a prefecture-level city in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi province in China, administering several counties, including Zhidan County , which served as the Chinese communist capital before the city of Yan'an proper took that role....
in early 1939 during the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
, the work was inspired by a patriotic
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
poem by Guang Weiran, which was also adapted as the lyrics. Premiered on April 13 of the same year in the Shanbei Gongxue Hall of Yan'an, the work soon spread to all parts of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
Historical background
According to official accounts by the Communist Party of ChinaCommunist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
, after the Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
city of Wuhan
Wuhan
Wuhan is the capital of Hubei province, People's Republic of China, and is the most populous city in Central China. It lies at the east of the Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han rivers...
fell to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese invaders in November 1938, the poet Guang Weiran led the 3rd Squad of the Anti-Enemy Troupe across the Yellow River
Yellow River
The Yellow River or Huang He, formerly known as the Hwang Ho, is the second-longest river in China and the sixth-longest in the world at the estimated length of . Originating in the Bayan Har Mountains in Qinghai Province in western China, it flows through nine provinces of China and empties into...
near the Hukou Waterfall
Hukou Waterfall
The Hukou Waterfall , the largest waterfall on the Yellow River, China, the “second largest” waterfall in China , is located at the intersection of Shanxi Province and Shaanxi Province, to the west of Fenxi City, and to the east of Yichuan...
and eastwards into the communist anti-Japanese headquarters in Lüliang Mountains
Lüliang Mountains
The Lüliang Mountains is a mountain range along the western border of Shanxi, China. To the west is Shaanxi with the south-flowing part of the Yellow River and the Ordos Region. To the east is the central valley of Shanxi with the south-flowing Fen River and then the Taihang Mountains and the...
. During his journey, he witnessed the local boatmen battle against heavy gales and torrential waves, and heard their spirit-lifting songs.
Upon reaching Yan'an
Yan'an
Yan'an , is a prefecture-level city in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi province in China, administering several counties, including Zhidan County , which served as the Chinese communist capital before the city of Yan'an proper took that role....
in January 1939, Guang wrote a patriotic
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
poem entitled Yellow River and recited it during the Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year – often called Chinese Lunar New Year although it actually is lunisolar – is the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. It is an all East and South-East-Asia celebration...
celebration. The poem spoke of the oppression of Chinese people under the invaders and called for all to take up arms to defend China. Xian Xinghai
Xian Xinghai
Xian Xinghai was one of the earliest generation of Chinese composers influenced by western classical music and has influenced generations of Chinese musicians...
, who received education in the Conservatoire de Paris
Conservatoire de Paris
The Conservatoire de Paris is a college of music and dance founded in 1795, now situated in the avenue Jean Jaurès in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, France...
and returned to China in 1935, was also present at the recital. He was greatly inspired to write a cantata
Cantata
A cantata is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir....
based on the poem.
According to an account by Xian's daughter, he began work on the composition on March 26, and took merely four days to complete all eight movements
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
. However, he was not satisfied with the Second and Sixth, which he took two more days to amend. Two weeks later, the cantata premiered in the Shanbei Gongxue Hall in Yan'an, performed by a forty-strong choir
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
and a primitive orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
conducted by Wu Xiling. It soon spread to many parts of China to inspire its listeners to participate in the Anti-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
.
Musical influence
The Yellow River Cantata laid the ground for Chinese contemporary large-scaled vocal music composition. In late 1960s, it was adapted into a piano concertoPiano concerto
A piano concerto is a concerto written for piano and orchestra.See also harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano...
entitled the Yellow River Piano Concerto by the pianist Yin Chengzong
Yin Chengzong
Yin Chengzong is a Chinese pianist and composer.-Biography:Born on the "Piano Island" of Gulangyu Island in Xiamen, Fujian, in the People's Republic of China...
. This arrangement, together with the violin concerto
Violin concerto
A violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin and instrumental ensemble, customarily orchestra. Such works have been written since the Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first developed, up through the present day...
Liang Zhu
Butterfly Lovers
The Butterfly Lovers is a Chinese legend of a tragic love story of a pair of lovers, Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai , whose names form the title of the story...
by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang
Chen Gang
Chen Gang , important Moscow-trained member of the Chinese Communist Party’s security services prior to the founding of the PRC in 1949....
, are the two best internationally known musical works that combined source materials that are purely Chinese with Western music methodology.
Versions
There are altogether four different versions of the Yellow River Cantata that had been performed in public. The first was the initial composition by Xian XinghaiXian Xinghai
Xian Xinghai was one of the earliest generation of Chinese composers influenced by western classical music and has influenced generations of Chinese musicians...
while in Yan'an
Yan'an
Yan'an , is a prefecture-level city in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi province in China, administering several counties, including Zhidan County , which served as the Chinese communist capital before the city of Yan'an proper took that role....
. Accommodations were made for the lack of musical instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
s at that time, as the orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
consisted of only the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, Chinese flute, harmonica
Harmonica
The harmonica, also called harp, French harp, blues harp, and mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used primarily in blues and American folk music, jazz, country, and rock and roll. It is played by blowing air into it or drawing air out by placing lips over individual holes or multiple holes...
, sanxian
Sanxian
The sanxian is a Chinese lute — a three-stringed fretless plucked musical instrument. It has a long fingerboard, and the body is traditionally made from snakeskin stretched over a rounded rectangular resonator. It is made in several sizes for different purposes and in the late 20th century a...
, erhu
Erhu
The erhu is a two-stringed bowed musical instrument, more specifically a spike fiddle, which may also be called a "southern fiddle", and sometimes known in the Western world as the "Chinese violin" or a "Chinese two-stringed fiddle". It is used as a solo instrument as well as in small ensembles...
and dahu
Dahu (instrument)
The dahu is a large bowed string instrument from China. It has a large soundbox covered on one end with python skin. Like most other members of the huqin family of instruments, it has two strings and is held vertically. The instrument is generally pitched one octave below the erhu, and is...
, among a few percussion instruments.
A year after Xian departed for the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
in 1940, he amended his composition for performance by a fully equipped Western orchestra, aided by a few Chinese ethnic instruments
Traditional Chinese musical instruments
-The Eight Sounds or Eight Tones :The eight categories are: silk, bamboo, wood, stone, metal, clay, gourd and hide. There are other instruments which may not fit these classifications. This is one of the first musical classifications ever.-Silk :...
. He also made some amendments to the choral arrangement. In addition, a prologue was added, increasing the number of movements
Movement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
to nine.
The third and fourth revisions were respectively made by Xian's students, Li Huanzhi and Yan Liangkun. Li simplified the "Soviet" version for performance by the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra
Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is an influential orchestra in China. The music director is Long Yu.It was founded in 1879 as Shanghai Public Band, one of the earliest orchestras in Eastern Asia. It was renamed to Shanghai Municipal Council Symphony Orchestra in 1922. Starting in 1919, an Italian...
, while Yan incorporated the prologue into the first movement to return the cantata to its initial arrangement of eight movements for performance by the Central Orchestra during the 1980s. Yan also made heavy amendments to the Third Movement, Water of the Yellow River comes from Heaven, such that the new melody was vastly different from the original. This last revision became the most played and heard version today.
Current arrangement
The current arrangement of the Yellow River Cantata contains eight movementsMovement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
.
Trivia
- According to an account by Xian XinghaiXian XinghaiXian Xinghai was one of the earliest generation of Chinese composers influenced by western classical music and has influenced generations of Chinese musicians...
's daughter, Guang Weiran knew Xian was CantoneseCantonese peopleThe Cantonese people are Han people whose ancestral homes are in Guangdong, China. The term "Cantonese people" would then be synonymous with the Bun Dei sub-ethnic group, and is sometimes known as Gwong Fu Jan for this narrower definition...
and had a sweet tooth. Guang then asked someone to buy a kilogramKilogramThe kilogram or kilogramme , also known as the kilo, is the base unit of mass in the International System of Units and is defined as being equal to the mass of the International Prototype Kilogram , which is almost exactly equal to the mass of one liter of water...
of sugarSugarSugar is a class of edible crystalline carbohydrates, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose, characterized by a sweet flavor.Sucrose in its refined form primarily comes from sugar cane and sugar beet...
, a scarcity during wartime, and gave it to Xian, who ate it for snacks while composing the cantata. - Due to the lack of musical instrumentMusical instrumentA musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
s, the orchestraOrchestraAn orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
for the premiere of the Yellow River Cantata consisted of only two or three violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
s and twenty-odd Chinese ethnic musical instrumentsMusic of ChinaChinese Music has been made since the dawn of Chinese civilization with documents and artifacts providing evidence of a well-developed musical culture as early as the Zhou Dynasty...
. The rest were products of innovation: diesel barrels for bass stringsString instrumentA string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones...
and washbasins for percussion. - Mao ZedongMao ZedongMao Zedong, also transliterated as Mao Tse-tung , and commonly referred to as Chairman Mao , was a Chinese Communist revolutionary, guerrilla warfare strategist, Marxist political philosopher, and leader of the Chinese Revolution...
, who was then Chairman of the Central Military CommissionCentral Military CommissionA Central Military Commission or National Defense Commission is an organisation typical of Communist one-party states, responsible for supervising the nation's armed forces....
of the Communist Party of ChinaCommunist Party of ChinaThe Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
leading the anti-Japanese resistance in Yan'anYan'anYan'an , is a prefecture-level city in the Shanbei region of Shaanxi province in China, administering several counties, including Zhidan County , which served as the Chinese communist capital before the city of Yan'an proper took that role....
, was also present during the premiere.
See also
- Xian XinghaiXian XinghaiXian Xinghai was one of the earliest generation of Chinese composers influenced by western classical music and has influenced generations of Chinese musicians...
(1905–1945), pioneering Chinese symphonySymphonyA symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, scored almost always for orchestra. A symphony usually contains at least one movement or episode composed according to the sonata principle...
composer, composer of the Yellow River Cantata. - Yellow River Piano Concerto, piano concertoPiano concertoA piano concerto is a concerto written for piano and orchestra.See also harpsichord concerto; some of these works are occasionally played on piano...
adaptation of the Yellow River Cantata by Yin ChengzongYin ChengzongYin Chengzong is a Chinese pianist and composer.-Biography:Born on the "Piano Island" of Gulangyu Island in Xiamen, Fujian, in the People's Republic of China...
.