Music of China
Chinese music blends ancient traditions with global influences.
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Chinese music culture is documented from the Zhou dynasty (1122–257 BC) onward, with archaeological finds showing an even earlier development.[1][2] Bone flutes from Jiahu Village date to 9,000 years ago, and clay Xun instruments from Hemudu and Banpo are about 7,000 years old.[2]
Making and release
The Imperial Music Bureau, first established in the Qin dynasty (221–207 BC), was expanded under Han Wudi (140–87 BC) to supervise court and military music.[3] Central Asian instruments like the pipa were adopted, and the Indian heptatonic scale was introduced in the 6th century by Sujiva from Kucha.[3][4] In the 1920s, the Shanghai genre shidaiqu emerged, mixing Chinese and Western popular music.[4] The Communist Party denounced shidaiqu as "yellow music" (pornography), ending its golden age.[5][4]
Tencent merged its QQ Music service with China Music Corporation in 2016, creating a dominant player in digital music.[6] In 1601, the Ming imperial court received a harpsichord from Jesuit Matteo Ricci, who subsequently instructed four eunuchs in its use.[7][4] China's music market ranked 14th globally in 2015.[8] By 2016, KuGou held a 28% market share among streaming services, followed by QQ Music at 15% and Kuwo at 13%.[8]
What the cited sources add
The China Educational Tours account states that Chinese music was designed to produce a soothing effect, reducing conflict and increasing obedience.[4] That same source notes that Chinese music is not meant to be danced to, with less focus on rhythm and beat.[4] The South China Morning Post article reports that the merged company would run KuGou and Kuwo as independent units.[6] The China Educational Tours account describes the "Northwest Wind" style of 1989 as developing into Chinese rock, which the government limited in exposure.[4]
The same source says that neither folk music nor opera is popular today, found only in selected areas of society.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "Music of China" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Chinese Music: History, Instruments, Types, Modern Music", China Educational Tours (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Music of China" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Jin Jie, "Chinese Music", Cambridge University Press, 3 March 2011, p. 4 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Music of China" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: A History of Sino-Indian Relations: 1st Century A.D. to 7th Century A.D. by Yukteshwar Kumar. p.76; Journal of Music in China, Volume 4, p.4; India and China: Interactions through Buddhism and Diplomacy: A Collection of Essays by Professor Prabodh Chandra Bagchi . p.210; History of Civilizations of Central Asia edited by Unesco; A History of Sino-Indian Relations: 1st Century A.D. to 7th Century A.D. by Yukteshwar Kumar. p.76 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Chinese Music: History, Instruments, Types, Modern Music", China Educational Tours. facts only, no text reused. chinaeducationaltours.com
- Wikipedia, "Music of China" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Broughton, Simon. Ellingham, Mark. Trillo, Richard. [2000] (2000) World Music: The Rough Guide. Rough Guides Publishing Company. . (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Zen Soo, "Tencent to merge QQ Music service with China Music Corp to create streaming giant", South China Morning Post, July 15, 2016. facts only, no text reused. scmp.com
- Wikipedia, "Music of China" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Jones. Andrew F. [2001] (2001). Yellow Music — CL: Media Culture and Colonial Modernity in the Chinese Jazz Age. Duke University Press. .; Liu, "A Critical History of New Music in China", The Chinese University Press, 2010 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Music of China" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Steven Millward, "Already bigger than Spotify, China's search engine giant doubles down on streaming music", Tech In Asia, December 4, 2015; Peoples, "5 Takeaways From the IFPI's Country-by-Country Report on the Global Record Business", Billboard.com, April 15, 2016; Lin, "Billboard Teams With Local Firm to Declare China's No. 1 Song", The Wall Street Journal, November 10, 2015; Zen Soo, "Tencent to merge QQ Music service with China Music Corp to create streaming giant", South China Morning Post, July 15, 2016; Chen Nan, "Music industry en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Music of China (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Music of China (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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