The Formation and Future Direction of Chinese Vocal Music in 100 Years of Development History
Yanfeng Li
The history of Chinese vocal music can be traced back to ancient music culture. As early as during the Shang Dynasty, silk-stringed instruments were used in China and a complete system of music theory was formed. As time went by, elegant music during the Tang Dynasty, court music during the Song Dynasty and opera music during the Yuan Dynasty laid the foundation for the development of Chinese vocal music. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, opera became a widely popular art form, of which Beijing opera is the most representative one. Peking Opera, with its unique vocal style and exquisite singing skills, became an important genre of Chinese vocal music. Meanwhile, folk songs and flower-drum operas also enriched the diversity of Chinese vocal music. In recent times, Chinese vocal music has undergone many changes and fusions. The introduction of western music made Chinese vocal music begin to accept the influence of western singing style, forming a Chinese-style western singing style. This unique way of synthesizing Chinese and Western singing styles has preserved the traditional characteristics of Chinese vocal music, but also possesses modern expressiveness. With the development of the times, Chinese vocal music faces some challenges and opportunities. Firstly, traditional vocal music is still the core of Chinese vocal music and should be better protected and inherited. Secondly, internationalization is also an important direction for the development of Chinese vocal music. Through exchanges and integration with other cultures, Chinese vocal music can show its unique charm on the world stage. In addition, the advancement of technology also provides brand-new opportunities for the development of Chinese vocal music. The popularization of the Internet has made vocal music education more convenient and learning resources more abundant. Meanwhile, the development of modern recording, audio and video technologies has also brought great convenience to vocal performance and dissemination. All in all, Chinese vocal music has a broad development prospect by virtue of its long history and rich cultural heritage. Protecting and inheriting traditional vocal music, keeping in line with international standards, and utilizing technology to improve vocal music education and performance will be an important direction for the future development of Chinese vocal music. At the same time, we also expect that Chinese vocal music can show its unique charm on the world stage and make greater contributions to the world cultural and artistic exchanges. This paper briefly introduces the development history of Chinese vocal music and expresses its own views on the future development trend of Chinese vocal music.
Keywords: Chinese vocal music, Music culture, Theoretical system, Art forms, Traditional vocal music, Future development
