Guangdong Music, evolved mainly in the Ming and Qing dynasties, was formed on the basis of Zhongyuan (central China) ancient melody, Kun melody, and Jiangnan (east China) folk tunes, belonging to a kind of string and wind instrumental music. First popular in the Pear River delta area and then spreading to other places all over China, it features clear and melodious and profound content, acclaimed as "transparent music" and "a pearl of oriental folk music". It is different from other folk music in tone color and style by using decorating tone and "Jiahua" when playing. More than 300 pieces were composed before the foundation of PRC and now it is heard wherever there are Chinese descendents. Many pieces of Guangdong music can be filled with words to become songs or operatic arias.
Most famous tune names of Guangdong music are "Pinghuqiuyue (Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake)", "Yudabajiao (It Rains on Plantains)", "Emayaoling (Hungry Horse Shakes the Bell)", and "Bubugao (Step by Step)".
Famous Works
·"It Rains on Plantain"
Famous Guangdong music tune name. Composer is unknown, It was supposed to be a He family score. The piece sounds enthusiastic and flows smoothly to create a scene of southern Chian, making itself one of the most representative works of Guangdong music. On the 1st China Guangdong Music Competition in March of 1987, it was named the compulsory piece for all participants to play.
·"Autumn Moon over the Calm Lake"
Famous Guangdong music work, it was composed by Lu Wencheng who admired the night scene of West Lake of Hangzhou which he toured in 1930s. Soft melodic praise of the natural scenery, it is an exquisite lyric piece of Guangdong music with a single passage of moving melody that exudes the artistic charm of a song.
·Guangdong Quyi
Guangdong Quyi in a narrow sense means the Cantonese tunes singing and in a wider sense means the combination of all Quyi forms available in the province. For instance, the Cantonese tunes, Muyu songs, dragon boat songs, southern music, Chaozhou songs, Hakka bamboo slip songs, salt-water songs, etc. In a word, it indicates the singing and storytelling art active in Guangzhouand surrounding areas.
·Cantonese Tunes Singing
The most popular Quyi form in the dialect area of Guangzhou, the Cantonese tunes singing came from Cantonese operatic arias. Sung in local dialect, it is popular in Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Macau and Southeast Asia. Overseas Chinese in north and south Americas love it too. Independent of the opera where it came from, it focuses on its own sweetness and pleasantness for vocal melody rather than story telling, While it is based on Xipi and Erhuang tune systems, it has also absorbed the essence of other folk art or Quyi forms.
