Suzhou Pingtan is the general name of Suzhou Pinghua and Suzhou Tanci, and it is a traditional folk art storytelling drama form that speaks and performs in Wu dialect. It came into being and became popular in Suzhou, as well as in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai.
In 2008, Suzhou Pingtan was selected into the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage expansion projects.
Second, the origin and development
Suzhou Pinghua 1
Suzhou Pinghua originated from the speaking skills of Song Dynasty. In Shu Nao, the second edition of Li Yu's Chunzhongpu, a playwright in Qing Dynasty, the scene of Moon Turn in Suzhou storytelling in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties is described, which is similar to Suzhou storytelling.
Liu Jingting, a famous storyteller in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, once told stories in Suzhou and its vicinity, which is closely related to Suzhou storytelling.
In the middle of Qing Dynasty, Suzhou Pinghua entered its heyday, and Guangyu Society, the earliest guild organization of Suzhou Pingtan, was established. During the reign of Xianfeng and Tongzhi, Yao and other famous storytellers in Water Margin appeared.
2. Suzhou Tanci
The word "Tanci" first appeared in Tian Rucheng's Travels of the West Lake in the 26th year of Ming Jiajing (1547), which recorded the situation of watching the tide in Hangzhou in August: "At that time, there were hundreds of excellent people playing, hitting the ball, turning off the robot, playing fish drums and playing the word, and the sound was boiling."
In the early Qing Dynasty, with the prosperity of Suzhou's urban economy, Tanci became popular in Suzhou. Dong Xing, a native of Wuxing, Zhejiang Province, lived in Suzhou in the last years of Kangxi. He said that in his novel The Journey to the West, he described the performance of blind girls playing Ci in Suzhou dialect. During the Qianlong period, there were more and more records about the formation of Suzhou Tanci.
During the Jiaqing period (1796- 1820), Suzhou Tanci developed rapidly. At this time, the books handed down include San Xiao, Wopao, Biography of the Righteous Demon, and Double Gold ingot. The number of well-known tanci artists increased, and at this time, the "top four" appeared in the history of tanci development. They developed Wang's calligraphy skills, enriched stage bibliography, created genre aria, broadened skills and ideas, and laid the basic form of Suzhou Tanci today.
During the period of Daoguang and Xianfeng (1821-1861), Changshu was the majority of female tanci in Suzhou. The opening, bibliography and tunes of tanci were basically the same as those in circulation at that time, but most of them could not rap the whole story, only saying "a paragraph in the book".
During the Republic of China, the number of performers of Suzhou Tanci increased sharply. According to the statistics of the Republic of China 16 (1927), there were 200 members in Guangyu Society at that time, but there were nearly 2,000 artists who were not in Guangyu Society, and the art competition was fierce. It is manifested in the novelty of bibliography, the innovation of singing, the innovation of performance and the innovation of performance venue.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, there were 600 Suzhou tanci artists registered in 1956, including 480 in Suzhou city. After registration, these artists participated in the local pingtan performance groups respectively, and carried out artistic reform on the bibliography and singing according to the principle of "letting a hundred flowers blossom and bringing forth the new".
Extended data
The International Influence of Suzhou Pingtan Art
At the 4th China Kunqu Pingtan Art Festival, 28 performances were brilliant. Suzhou Guangyu Bookstore and Pingtan Museum Bookstore are crowded with people every day, including many "foreign listeners" with blue eyes and high noses. They were fascinated by it.
A New Zealand listener said that although I can't understand the content of the song, it doesn't affect my appreciation of the wonderful melody. In this deep alley, hearing such soft Wu dialect, I finally found the true taste of "Oriental" music.
Suzhou Pingtan has a great influence on overseas Chinese and compatriots in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. In May, 2005, Chen Yun's Birthday100th Anniversary Pingtan Concert was held in New York Chinatown, attended by about100th overseas Chinese.
In the same year, Sheng Xiaoyun, a famous Suzhou pingtan actor, gave a successful concert in Taiwan Province Province. That night, Beethoven Night of Berlin Philharmonic was also being staged in the concert hall of the National Grand Theatre, another top theater in Taipei, forming a situation of competing in the same city. However, the box office of Sheng Xiaoyun concert was not affected, and it was sold out. The enthusiasm of the audience in Taiwan Province province can completely match that of Berlin Philharmonic.
In August 2006, Pingtan's Four Beauties premiered in Hong Kong, which caused a sensation among the audience and received rave reviews.
Suzhou pingtan is sung abroad, but foreigners are fooled. Suzhou Pingtan was first staged in Italy's magnificent Grand Theatre, which caused a sensation in Rome. In Paris, France, the organizer specially designated the performance venue as a teahouse bookstore with Jiangnan characteristics.
During the 28th World Heritage Conference held in Suzhou, Ms. Yoshikawa, Director of the UNESCO Heritage Office, came to Suzhou and was moved by "the most beautiful voice in the world" and praised the art of pingtan.