CHINESE MUSIC AND MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.
The Chinese have from the very earliest times divided musical sounds
into eight classes, and imagined that in order to produce them, nature
had formed eight kinds of sonorous bodies. They divided them as
follows:—
1. The sound of skin, produced from the tanned skin, or parchment of
various animals. 2. The sound of stone. 3. Of metal. 4. Of baked clay.
5. Of silk, used in the form of strings as we use cat-gut, or wire. 6.
Of wood, used often in instruments of percussion. 7. Of bamboo, used in
flutes. 8. Of calabash, a species of gourd, out of which a peculiarly
constructed instrument was manufactured.
Of the skins of animals, many different instruments are made, all of
which may be designated under the general name of drums, but the Chinese
possess various kinds of drums of all shapes and sizes.[105] The most
ancient variety of these was the _Tou-kou_, which signifies earth drum,
so called because its body was made of baked clay, over each end of
which was drawn the skin. An instrument of this description was both
fragile and unwieldy; its disadvantages soon caused the clay to be
replaced by wood, out of which all subsequent drums were made, the size
and shape being varied according to the uses for which they were
destined. Nothing is said in the ancient writings as to what varieties
of wood were used in the manufacture of the earliest drums, but
tradition has it, that at first the wood of the cedar and mulberry, as
also sandal wood, were the most used.
The Chinese possess eight kinds of drums. 1. The _tsou-kou_, which had
the shape of a barrel, and was fixed upon a pole which ran through its
body. 2. The Yn-kou, similar to the above, but the body more elongated,
and the staff or pole which supported it usually thrust into the earth
to keep it firmly in position, while that of the tsou-kou stood upon a
cross piece at its base.[106] 3. A variety of the _tsou-kou_ called
hiuen-kou, of very large size; on each side of this drum is attached a
small drum, in shape like a kitchen pot, one of which is to be struck
lightly, the other heavily. 4. The kin-kou, another keg-shaped drum
mounted upon a pedestal; it is about six feet long, and six feet in
diameter. It receives different names according to the way it is
decorated; thus, if it bears on its case paintings of storms, it would
be called lei-kou; but if it is ornamented with birds of good omen, such
as the _foang-hoang_, or white swans, it is called _lou-kou_.[107] 5.
The great tao-kou, which is still used to give the signal for the
commencement of a song, is about one foot in length and diameter. 6. The
little tao-kou, a cross between a drum and a baby’s rattle, is about
seven inches long, mounted upon a stick, and through the centre of its
case a string is passed; at each end of this string are knots; when this
drum is played, the performer twirls it about rapidly, the knots fly
against the skin, and produce a sort of rattle or drumming. This drum is
used to show the completion of a verse or division of any musical
composition. It is also used in funeral processions and at commemorative
ceremonies.[108] 7. The _ya-kou_, a small drum which is filled with rice
grains. The skin of this drum is not only tanned but is boiled
afterwards in pure water. The sound of this instrument is soft and
pleasant. 8. The _po-sou_ is a drum of cylindrical shape, and is placed
upon a small table; it is played sitting; in all other respects it is
like the _ya-kou_.
These are the eight varieties of drums known to the Chinese; many of
them are still in use; there are also some varieties of military drums
which do not differ much from the preceding.
It is customary to cover not only the case, but the faces and sticks of
the drums with paintings.
Drums are used in China to give the hour at night, to announce persons
desiring audience, at some palaces, and for many other purposes as well
as for music. The Chinese also sometimes muffle their drums (in all
religious ceremonies which take place in presence of the emperor)
effecting this not in our manner, but by covering the instrument with
ornamented draperies of cloth, which absorb part of the sound.
OF THE SOUND OF STONE.
The custom of making a systematic use of stone, in music, is peculiarly
a Chinese institution. In the _Chouking_, one of the most ancient of
Chinese chronicles, we read that already in the almost mythological days
of Yao and Chun, the Chinese had observed that certain kinds of stone
were adapted to giving out musical sounds, and that these tones occupied
the place between the sound of metal and of wood, being less sharp and
penetrating than the former, and more sonorous than the latter, and more
brilliant and sweet than either.
Even in those days they carved and shaped the stones, in order to
extract from them the regular notes of their scale, and made instruments
of them which even to-day are used in China, and are named _king_.
These musical stones were highly valued, and received as tribute as
early as 2250 B. C. Those found on the surface of the earth, and near
the banks of the rivers, were most esteemed, as it was supposed that
their exposure gave clearness and purity to their tone.
These stones, called _Yu_, are found near the mountain streams and
torrents of Yun-nan. They are of extreme hardness and are polished in
the same manner as agate and precious stones. Large specimens are
extremely rare; those which Amiot saw at the Imperial palace, were three
feet by one foot eight inches in size, but they were considered unique.
Their weight (specific gravity) is also very wonderful, for stones which
seem to be not too heavy a burden for one man, require four men to move
them.[109] Those in the palace were of many colors, milk-white,
sky-blue, indigo-blue, yellow, orange, pale green, sea-green, red and
gray. Those most esteemed were of a single color throughout, though when
five colors blended, it was considered a valuable specimen. It may be
mentioned in this connection that the number five seems to acquire a
mystical significance among the Chinese, for their music has five
principal tones, they recognize five elements, five virtues, five
senses, five duties, and five principal ceremonies.[110]
Some of these stones resemble marble, and others seem to be
petrifactions of some sort. We are unaware whether those belonging to
the emperor have been examined by any recent geologist. The Duke de
Chaulnes in the last century, came to the conclusion that the stone was
marble, but that its organization differed in some respects from ours;
and that iron entered into its composition.
It is very difficult to complete an octave with the best of musical
stones. In carving and ornamentation they require most skillful
manipulation lest the pitch be endangered.
Under the Han dynasty a most harmonious _king_ was presented to the
emperor. The designs traced upon the stones were not quite satisfactory
to that potentate; on endeavoring to alter slightly the fashion of the
stones, the pitch of the instrument was irrevocably lost, and its
harmony destroyed forever.[111] The _king_ has from time immemorial been
played by striking the stones with a stick or mallet of hard wood. The
skill of the player is shown in the degree of shading he can impart to
the tones, by varying the force of his blows. Of all instruments, the
Chinese claim that the _king_ blends best with the human voice. The
entire Chinese chronicles teem with praises of this peculiar instrument.
Confucius was thrown into ecstatic bliss on hearing it for the first
time. The musical work entitled _Li-ki_ says: “the harmonious sound of
the _king_ invites the sage to think of the end of life. When he hears
it, he thinks of death, and fortifies himself in his love of duty.” But
this passage refers only to the great _king_ made of _Yu_ (the finest
melodious stones), which was only played on great religious occasions;
it is not singular that this instrument should be associated with
religious thoughts. There were other kinds of _kings_ which were used on
lesser occasions. In the imperial palace were several of smaller size,
called _pien-king_, which were composed of sixteen stones each. The
_tse-king_ consisted of one large stone, and is used to give the pitch
to other instruments, to signalize the commencement of a tune, and
according to some writers, was anciently used to beat the time
throughout a composition.
The shape of the stones is much like a carpenter’s square; and if
sixteen of these tools were suspended from a clothes horse, the shape at
least of the _king_ would be attained; but in the most ancient specimens
the stones are shaped with much more diversity, fishes, bats, and other
quaint forms appearing with much ingenuity in the different pieces. The
only modern instrument of similar style to the _king_, which is known to
American readers, is the glass-harmonica, where short strips of glass,
being struck by a mallet, give out a melodious, but not very manageable
tone, and any person performing on the _musical glasses_, not by
friction, but by percussion, can give a fair representation of the music
of the favorite instrument of China.
OF THE SOUND OF METAL.
Bells have been in China from the earliest ages the most esteemed of
instruments. At first their duty was to be a sort of tuning fork; one
bell being made for chief or fundamental tone, and eleven others giving
the various semitones. These bells were much different from our church
and tower bells; they rather resemble large hand bells, but were of
somewhat greater weight. The smallest bells were used in an instrument
called _Pien-tchoung_, which consisted of sixteen of them, tuned in
unison with the sixteen stones of the king. We have already spoken of
the efforts made to suppress the bells, and through them, the authentic
pitch of Chinese music, by one of the conquering emperors.
OF THE SOUND OF BAKED CLAY.
Of this the Chinese made a deep-toned whistle, with five to seven
apertures called _Hiuen_. This was probably the primitive instrument in
China, as it is mentioned as already existing before the reign of
Hoang-ty, about 2637 B. C. An ancient Chinese Dictionary speaks of the
two varieties of these, saying, “the larger hiuen should be of the size
of a goose egg, the smaller, of that of a hen.”
OF THE SOUND OF SILK.
Under this head come all Chinese stringed instruments, for where we use
catgut, the celestials use silken cords. Even in the semi-mythical age
of Fo-hi, they made a simple instrument by extending threads of silk
upon a board of light wood. Little by little the board was shaped to its
purpose better; gradually also, the strings were laid with more
precision and exactness, and the cords gave out tones deep or high,
according to the tension to which they were subjected, or the number of
threads of which they were composed; thus by insensible degrees came
into existence the _kin_, the leading stringed instrument of the Chinese
empire. In size, it is larger than all Eastern stringed instruments
except the harp, its length being five feet, six inches. It has seven
cords which are tuned as follows:—
DO, RE, FA, SOL, LA, DO, RE,
giving it only five tones. The pentatonic character of this instrument
is observable in all Chinese music, and causes a slight resemblance
between that music and the Scotch. There are several varieties of the
_kin_. The large, medium, and small, only differ in their size, and have
each seven cords, but there is a much larger instrument of the same
species, which is called the _che_, which has twenty-five strings, and
is nine feet long; it is said that in ancient days there were _ches_
made which had fifty strings.
Both the _che_ and _kin_ were, in true Chinese fashion, made to convey
numberless morals and symbols. The breezes of Heaven, the four seasons,
the five elements, and the universe were all in some manner dragged into
the formation of these instruments. The _kin_ represented life, the
_che_ death, and before performing upon either, the player went through
certain ceremonies to fit himself for the task, and lighted some
perfumed tapers, which were kept burning throughout the performance. To
perform on the _kin_, the Chinese held that one must be well advanced in
wisdom and sagacity. Of the _che_, there exist four different kinds, the
great, medium, small and very small; all these differ in size but not in
their number of strings, each possessing twenty-five. Amiot[112] found
the _che_ to be a more agreeable instrument than any known in Europe in
his day (1750 circa), as the softer sounds of the silken cords were
preferable to the metallic sound of the wires of the clavichord.
We have no instrument in our music which corresponds to the _kin_, or
_che_; but the zither if trebled in length, and strung with silk instead
of wire would give a very exact idea of this finest of Chinese
instruments.
THE SOUND OF WOOD.
The Chinese have from remotest antiquity, used wooden instruments of
percussion; it is most natural that the earliest of instruments used by
man, should have been of wood, but it is also natural that most nations
should have laid aside these primitive and toneless instruments. Not so
the Chinese however; their wooden instruments are still used as they
were four thousand years ago; for the historians date their invention
from the mysterious reign of Fo-hi.
These instruments are the _tchu_, the _ou_, and the _tchung-tou_, all of
which celebrate and typify the most profound moral precepts, _a la
Chinois_.
The _tchu_ is a plain wooden box, about a foot and a half deep, in which
a hammer is fastened; by introducing the hand into a small aperture,
made for that purpose in the side of the instrument, the hammer is
agitated, and swaying from side to side, produces a sort of tattoo on
both sides of the box. This scarcely can be called _music_ for it is
doubtful if the sound is even rhythmic; but it is not the sound alone
which captivates the Chinese ear, the symbol attached to it moves the
Chinese heart, for the sages assure us that this clatter represents (in
some mysterious way) the advantages of the social intercourse of men,
and the mutual benefits of society. The _tchu_ is placed at the
_north-east_ of the other instruments and is played at the commencement
of a composition.
The _ou_ is an image of a sleeping tiger, and is a symbol of the power
which man has over all other creatures. It is placed at the _north-west_
of the other instruments, and is played at the close of a piece of
music. Along the back of this image is a row of pegs; when the
instrument is well played, six tones can be extracted from these wooden
pegs, but usually the performance is ended by the player running the
stick, by which the pegs are struck, swiftly along the whole row, and
finishing with a couple of blows upon the tiger’s head. This is repeated
three times as _finale_.
The _tchung-tou_ cannot really be classed among musical instruments,
since they are only the wooden plates upon which music was sometimes
written; their moral is obvious; they bring back to memory the great
invention of communication by means of written characters. But they also
participate somewhat in the general clatter produced by the other wooden
instruments; they are about fourteen inches long, and one inch wide, are
twelve in number, to commemorate the twelve sounds of the scale, and
serve to beat the measure of the music, by being struck lightly against
the palm of the left hand. The twelve pieces are attached to each other
by means of cords.
There is besides, a military instrument of wood (though also scarcely to
be classed as musical) which is carved in the form of a fish, and is
suspended in front of the general’s tent. When any person requires to
see that official, he has but to strike this fish with two wooden sticks
which are lying near by, and the audience is immediately granted; so
greatly have the Chinese reduced language to various musical sounds,
that by the mode of striking with the sticks, the applicant intimates,
in a general manner, concerning what description of business the
audience is requested.
There also exist in China a few other instruments of wood, from which
regular series of tones can be produced, and upon which tunes can be
played, but these latter seem not to be really Chinese in their origin,
and are spoken of by the musical commentators of the country, as
“strange instruments which have come into use in China.”
THE SOUND OF BAMBOO.
It seems, at first sight, as if this class of instruments should be
placed under the head of “wood;” but the Chinese draw a very wide
distinction between wood and bamboo, holding the latter in especial
esteem, as being of all vegetation, the most useful to man; and they
claim that nature in producing it, fitted it especially to the art of
music. It is true that it required no great inventive faculty to extract
tones from the hollow sticks of bamboo, and it is possible that music
drawn from the bamboo was the earliest of the Chinese empire. One of the
most famed of instruments made of this reed, is called the _Koan-tsee_.
This is simply a set of pan’s pipes, arranged according to Chinese
tonality; the superior (male) tones, called _yang_ being given to one
instrument, and the inferior (female) called _yn_ to another, so that to
have a melody in any modulations performed, two instruments and two
musicians were required. This arrangement was too awkward to last
forever; finally the two instruments were united in one, and instead of
being weakly bound together by cord, as were the twelve pipes of the
_koan-tsee_, two strips of thin board held the tubes in place; the
number of pipes was also increased from twelve, to sixteen, and the new
instrument called the _siao_.[113]
Of course the Chinese possess flutes, as well as other instruments of
bamboo. The _yo_ and _ty_ are in some respects similar to our flutes,
save that they have usually but three holes, and the tones have
therefore to be produced by a more skillful use of the breath than is
required on the European flute. An instrument of the flute family the
use of which has become somewhat obsolete, is the _tche_. This is
different from all other flutes, and is now but little played in China.
The _embouchure_ is exactly in the middle, both ends are stopped, and on
each side of the _embouchure_ are three holes. It was considered the
most difficult of all flutes to play.
THE SOUND OF CALABASH.
The calabash is a gourd of pumpkin shape, but somewhat smaller. In the
instrument which we are about to describe, we shall see that the
calabash (called _pao_ by the Chinese) really emits no sound, but serves
only as an air reservoir for one of the most wonderful instruments of
ancient times. The _cheng_, which is the only instrument in which the
calabash is used, is in fact a _portable organ_, and when we consider
that this intricate instrument was invented about four thousand years
ago, we are lost in astonishment that the invention did not lead to
greater results; yet the Chinese have frequently, in other sciences as
well, advanced to the threshold of great discoveries.
We will not detail to the reader, all the legends, symbols, and
mythology attached to the _cheng_; suffice it to say that animal,
mineral and vegetable nature is represented by it, and that to each part
of it is appended some mystical meaning. The gourd is pierced and
cleaned, and an aperture made for the air to enter, then the ends of
from thirteen to twenty-four pipes of bamboo are inserted into as many
holes cut in the gourd; each of these pipes contains in it a tongue of
copper or gold, the vibration of which causes the sound; beneath this is
a hole cut in the bamboo, through which aperture the air rushes without
giving any sound, but when the hole is stopped by pressing a finger upon
it, the air having no other outlet, is forced up the pipe, and striking
the metallic tongue, gives out an agreeable reed sound. A curved
mouth-piece through which the performer is to blow, is introduced at the
centre of the gourd. The _cheng_ contains all the elements of the reed
organ, and it would be a simple matter to produce harmonies with it, and
yet with this instrument in the world for four thousand years, it
remained for moderns (comparatively speaking,) to discover the art of
combining different sounds; but the invention of so well-conceived a
reed instrument in such remote ages, certainly entitles the ancient
Chinese to the utmost respect of their unconscious imitators, the
Europeans.
MISCELLANEOUS INSTRUMENTS.
There exist in China, some instruments which are not classed with either
of the above eight kinds of tone. These we have thought best to group
under the head of “miscellaneous,” though they are quite as important as
any of the preceding, except perhaps, the _king_, _cheng_, and _kin_.
The Chinese have long possessed a peculiar variety of fiddle, which at
first appearance much resembles a mallet with cords stretched from the
head to the handle; but the head of this primitive fiddle is hollow, and
holds a sounding board, though a very small one, of gazelle’s skin. The
sounds drawn from this oriental fiddle are said to set one’s teeth on
edge; it is said to be the most execrable of all Chinese instruments.
The invention of this fiddle cannot be ascribed to the Chinese, as it
probably came from India originally. There also exist several Chinese
instruments of a kind much resembling our guitars or banjos. The number
of strings on these are variable.[114]
From remote antiquity, the Chinese have understood the ductility of
metal, and it is not surprising that the trumpet is, with them, one of
the oldest of instruments. These trumpets are made of all sizes and most
peculiar shapes.[115] It appears that they are intended to give but two
tones each, although being made of all sizes, a complete scale can be
arranged by collecting ten or twelve of them. The music of them (as with
the ancient Greeks) is judged only by the degree of loudness with which
it is given, and even when several play together, there is no attempt at
harmony, but each trumpeter repeats his two notes with vigor and
persistency; the result is said to be most distressing to European ears.
Yet it is possible to extract beautiful music even from single-toned
trumpets, for in Russia, most exquisite melodies are rendered by bands
of trumpeters, each of whom performs but one note, in the same manner as
troupes of bell-ringers give whole pieces of music with small hand
bells.
Tom-toms and gongs also appear frequently in the music of the empire;
these are chiefly used to keep the time of the orchestra; there is also
an instrument analogous to these, which consists of a series of metal
basins, (usually of copper) from eight to ten in number, set in a frame.
The whole instrument looks not unlike a cooking range with all its
utensils. These basins are struck with a mallet, and produce sounds
similar to, but less harsh than the gongs. The name of this unique
apparatus is _yin-lo_.
THE SOUND OF THE VOICE.
Singular to relate, the Chinese have in their classification of eight
musical sounds, utterly omitted to make any mention of the sound of the
human voice. In all their great ceremonies, such as hymns of praise to
Heaven, and commemoration of the ancestors, songs are used, but never,
on these occasions are female voices allowed. In fact, the female, in
music, occupies about the same position in China, as she once did in
ancient Greece; the better class of respectable matrons do not study any
art whatever; and the less respectable and the slaves, are allowed to
perfect themselves in many arts of pleasing, among which a study of the
lower branches of music, as well as a certain degree of general
education is included. A slave is far more marketable with musical
talents than without. But women always participated in orchestral music,
and in a manner rather astonishing to us; they sometimes played the wind
instruments. The singular custom of allowing the weaker sex to play the
part requiring the strongest lungs was quite universal among ancient
nations, and the Chinese may be regarded as a nation who have kept their
ancient usages almost intact. It is seldom however, that women assist in
any concerts whatever; the instrumental playing as well as the singing
being almost always wholly rendered by men.
Few travellers have heard a musical Chinese lady sing, and those who
have enjoyed this rare event, say it is the most torturing of all
Chinese music; from the _nose_ and throat issue the most droning and
hideous sounds, and they seem to pile Ossa upon Pelion in the way of
unnatural tones.
Although the female voice is therefore lacking in the concerted music of
this singular people, the parts sometimes run very high for male voice
and the singers for these parts are procured in the same manner in which
the papal choir in the last century, procured its highest male
voices.[116]
Of the divisions of the vocal parts in singing, very little is as yet
known, although many books must exist upon the subject, which have
hitherto been inaccessible to foreigners. The natural voice of the
Chinese is rather high, and very high tenors are not at all rare in the
empire.
The voice in China is trained to much flexibility by the exigencies of
the language, for the Chinese is in one sense, the most musical of
languages, as a word acquires half a dozen different significations
according to the pitch of voice, or inflection with which it is
pronounced.
The number of different words in the whole Chinese tongue does not
exceed three hundred and fifty; all the additional ones, are simply
variations of these by lowering, or raising the voice. This leads the
foreigner into endless complications and misunderstandings; for example,
the word _tchu_ pronounced clearly with the vowel of medium length,
means “master,” but by extending the vowel a trifle it signifies “hog;”
it also means “column,” and “cookery.” The syllable “_po_” has eleven
different meanings—“glass,” “boil,” “captive,” “prepare,” etc., each of
which must be pronounced with a different pitch and inflection.[117]
Among the original words are some which decidedly are taken from nature,
such as “_tchung_,”—“bell,” “_miaou_,”—“cat,” but these are very few.
Some authors have endeavored to show from these facts, that the Chinese
is in all respects a musical language, but this can hardly be conceded,
for the inflections spoken of, are so slight as to escape the European
ear, which surely would not be the case if they were really musical
notes, since we have seen that Father Pereira, in the last century, was
able to note down at first hearing, and imitate any Chinese song. The
people in conversation give the voice a flute-like sound, but this has
scarcely arisen from any special musical quality in the language itself.