From ancient times to the present, "marriage, funeral and marriage" have been accompanied by the development of Chinese civilization, and different styles of arrangements have been formed according to the characteristics of different regions and cultures. In ancient China, "suona" gradually evolved into "marriage, funeral and marriage", as well as an indispensable musical instrument in various important lively scenes.

The performance scene in the ancient painting

For a long period of time in history, "suona" has been widely popularized in China, and the music played according to different occasions has also become a traditional folk culture, deeply integrated into the lives of ordinary people, and widely used by the people. accepted.

wedding scene in ancient paintings

With the development of the times to this day, the "marriage, funeral and marriage" in traditional culture is still the most important life event for modern people. But why is the folk custom of "suona playing", which has been closely associated with "marriage, funeral, and marriage" for a long time in history, but gradually drifted away from our current life?

What has the traditional folk custom "suona playing" experienced in the process of modern evolution?

And this splendid "folk culture" that has accompanied the Chinese nation for thousands of years in history, where is the way out in the future?

1.  it originated from "Persia", but it has been carried forward in the land of China

"Suona" is not unfamiliar to some Chinese who understand traditional culture and folk customs.

In reality, due to the vast territory of our country, there are differences in the names of suona in many places.

In some places, it is called "trumpet", and in "Jinmeng" area, it is also called "drum maker". From the perspective of attributes, "suona" belongs to the category of wind instruments.

As early as the Western Han Dynasty, about the third century AD, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty dispatched Zhang Qian on an envoy to the Western Regions, and then opened up the road for communication between the Central Plains Dynasty and West Asia, which is the famous "Silk Road" in history.

After the opening of the Silk Road, the Han Dynasty in the Central Plains had closer contacts with the countries in the Western Regions and the West Asia region. At that time, "suona" began to enter China, and the name of suona was actually based on the Persian pronunciation, "transliteration".

According to historical records and archaeological research, as early as the third century AD, the murals of Xinjiang grottoes can clearly see people dancing with suona accompaniment. After that, during the Jin Dynasty and the Yuan Dynasty, the suona became a very popular musical instrument in the court of the Central Plains and among the people.

The long and splendid culture of the Chinese nation has strong absorption and inclusiveness.

The suona, a foreign musical instrument, quickly evolved into a folk musical instrument with Chinese traditional cultural elements under the fusion of the splendid Chinese civilization.

After the Yuan Dynasty, some pieces of music with strong Chinese cultural elements were quickly incorporated into "suona performance". It was from that period that ancient musicians began to write suona pieces suitable for Chinese culture, and suona craftsmen People also quickly applied these music to various occasions such as "weddings and funerals" and major national celebrations, as well as folk gatherings, social fires and so on.

In the middle of the Ming Dynasty, there was a prince of the royal family who loved suona all his life. He not only invited musicians from all over the world to compose music for him by virtue of his identity as a prince of the royal family, but also made some improvements to the traditional suona through painstaking research, so that this piece originated from Persia. The performance of his musical instrument has been improved by leaps and bounds, and the suona that he has improved has been followed to this day.

In addition to studying and playing suona himself, this prince also likes to study suona skills with famous suona masters all over the world. Later, he created the famous "Golden Drum Club" in the history of the famous imperial temple Jiufeng Temple.

This grand event is held every year on the 23rd of September of the lunar calendar. Famous suona performers from all over the country will also gather in Jiufeng Temple on that day to compete for suona skills for several consecutive days.

This kind of event also plays a very positive role in expanding the influence of Suona.

Suona Artists in Qing Dynasty

Probably from the Ming Dynasty, in addition to various celebrations such as "marriage, funeral and marriage", suona has also been applied to opera. It was at that time that some professional suona "teams" emerged in many parts of our country. They began to become professional suona craftsmen with the family blood "master and apprentice inheritance" relationship, and they lived on it from generation to generation, traveling all over the country to participate in various performances.

Over time, there have been many famous suona groups all over the country. It is said that at that time, Qinyang, the most famous suona town, had more than 30 suona groups.

During the Qing Dynasty, due to the rise of Peking Opera and the popularization of suona folk culture, this musical instrument almost reached its peak.

In addition to Qinyang, the hometown of suona, there are tens of thousands of suona groups all over the country, and there are almost a huge number of professional entertainers engaged in suona performances.

At that time, ordinary people could more or less listen to the suona performance several times a year. During that period, the suona performance reached its undisputed peak of glory.

2.  lifestyle changes, which are gradually being abandoned

The Xinhai Revolution that broke out in 1911 not only overthrew the feudal dynasty for more than two thousand years, but also greatly changed people's way of life.

Especially after the founding of the Republic of China, under the influence of the new trend of thought, people's way of life has also undergone tremendous changes rapidly.

Due to the war and strife in the Republic of China and social unrest, suona performance began to be affected. But even in this harsh social environment, the suona performance has not been lost. Instead, there are many craftsmen who stick to this ancient folk custom.

At that time, people still had a deep ideological dependence on the traditional folk customs left over from the feudal period, so suona was still sought after by many people. Many people will invite suona craftsmen to come and play a section when they are "wedding, funeral and marrying", as long as their living conditions are better.

After the founding of New China, the suona, a traditional musical instrument, still has a strong vitality, and influenced by traditional culture, there are still many folk artists engaged in this profession.

Although at that time most of their energy was put into building the country and restoring production. But if there is a "marriage, funeral, marriage" between the villages, those suona artists can still pick up the suona at any time and play a piece for the common people.

modern suona

Suona really began to go downhill, and even the time node of decline should be after the "reform and opening up".

After China began to integrate with the world, various modern musical instruments, as well as music culture, etc., began to spread rapidly in China, such as band performances and popular songs.

After the cultural life of the common people was gradually enriched, the suona was gradually replaced by other musical instruments.

One of the most typical examples is: when people "get married", the newlyweds all wear suits and wedding dresses, and the wedding soundtrack has gradually changed from "suona performance" to "band accompaniment", plus pop songs.

With the further development of the times, the suona performance is only available in some remote villages when the elderly hold funerals.

Later, with the continuous development of the country's urbanization and the reform of funerals and funerals, the market for suona performances became smaller and smaller, and gradually became sluggish, and even ordinary people in some areas could no longer hear the traditional "suona performance".

Suona, which has been passed down for thousands of years, has come to the point of being "abandoned" by others.

3.  embracing the new era may be the best chance for rebirth

China has a long history of several thousand years of civilization, and it has had splendid splendor. After the country has entered modernization, it has gradually begun to pay attention to the importance of traditional culture.

The decline of the folk custom of "suona playing" has also attracted the attention of the state. In 2006, with the approval of the State Council, "suona art" was also included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage list.

Under this circumstance, from the country to the local, began to re-emphasize this traditional culture and folklore.

In this context, national and local governments have begun to encourage those regions with a long history of suona art to vigorously explore and develop the art of suona performance.

So Qinyang and other regions with hundreds of years of suona playing tradition began to re-establish suona teams to promote and develop this art.

From the perspective of the development of suona, if this ancient folk art wants to regain its strength, it must combine the characteristics of the new era to explore and study the performance methods that conform to the flavor of the times. While respecting and inheriting traditional culture, it must also be combined with the characteristics of the times. Boldly innovating and integrating into the cultural elements of the new era may be the best way out for Suona.