UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII LIBRARY. INNOVATION AND REFORM OF THE HAMMERED DULCIMER YANGQININ CONTEMPORARY CHINA A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI'I IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN MUSIC AUGUST 2007 By Pui-Sze Priscilla Tse Thesis Committee: Frederick Lau, Chairperson Ricardo D. Trimillos C. Fred Blake • .. ~- -, _ .... _ •• _-- - ~-'"'~~- < .1 We certify that we have read this thesis and that, in our opinion, it is satisfactory in scope and quality as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts in Music. THESIS COMMITTEE Chairperson HAWN CBS .H3 nO ' 7~2'1 1\ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to the AsialPacific Ethnomusicology Fellowship and the Arts and Sciences Advisory Council from the University of Hawai'i at Manoa for their generous support for my graduate study and fieldwork carried out in China and Hong Kong in summer 2006. This study would not have happened without the generous help of my informants in both formal and informal interviews. They include Bian Yu, Fu Bing, Oui Xiii, Huang Jinpei, Kong Qinyan, Bryan Lai, Xiong Junjie, Xu Xuedong, Yu Qiwei, Zhang Oaoxiang, Zhang Shicheng, and Zhou Hui. Although I am not able to name them individually, I am also grateful to the musicians I met in the amateur music groups in Shanghai and Canton. My special thanks go to my yangqin teachers Miss Yu Mei-lai, Professor Liu Yuening, and Professor Xiang Zuhua, who nurtured me to be ayangqin performer by not only teaching me the performing techniques, but also by providing me with the fundamental knowledge of the instrument and its music that have contributed to this thesis. Everyone in the Hawai'i Cantonese Opera Association, Honolulu has been supportive of my involvement in the group. My special thanks go to yangqin player Mr K wok Bun and gaohu player Wong Ho-heng, who gave me the opportunity to learn and play yangqin accompaniment in the geme. The experience I gained in the club provided me with many insightful views in this regional geme. III • Without the friendship and support of my intelligent colleagues and friends in Hawaii, I would not be able to finish my graduate study and this thesis smoothly and happily. They are Will Connor, Charlotte D'Evelyn, Makiko Kinoshita, Mayco Santaella, Masaya Shishikura, and Grace Tang. I wish to thank in particular Ching-Huei Lee, who had "taken care" of me for two years and helped me to access materials of the yangqin from Japan and Taiwan; and Polly Nakamura, who first took me to the Cantonese opera club in Hawai'i where I benefited a lot. Last but not least, I would like to thank the , faculty members at UH who broadened my knowledge: Professors Takeo Elmer Kudo, Byong-Won Lee, Lesley Wright, Christine Yano, and Mari Yoshihara. I am fortunate to be a member of the gamelan ohana at UH, which is the most coherent community I have ever experienced. My graduate life would have been less enjoyable without this ohana. I would like to express my special thanks to my gamelan teachers, Pak Hardja Susilo and Mr Byron Moon, for their patience and encouragement. During my study and fieldwork, a group of old friends in Beijing, Hong Kong, and other places have been accompanying me and providing me with timely help. They are Bi Binghui, Yin-yee Kwan, Liu Xing, Frances Wan, and Wei Taoying. I also appreciate the help of my friends and staff members at the Music Department and the Chinese Music Archive at the Chinese University of Hong Kong during my visits. Many thanks to Professor Yu Siu-wah for his long-term support and encouragement. He might not know that he was the person who inspired me to study ethnomusicology many years ago. IV My warmest thanks must go to those who have helped me in editing. They are Bobo Wong, Wendell Ishii, and especially Chuen-Fung Wong. I really appreciate their • patience in correcting my endless mistakes. I am grateful to my thesis committee members. Thank Professor Fred Blake for providing me with a foundation in anthropology theory and for his precious feedbacks on my thesis. lowe my special thank to Professor Ricardo Trimillos for not only sharing his thoughts on my thesis, but also for introducing me to the study of gender in performing arts during my graduate study. He has been very supportive of me by providing me with many chances to be present my work in classes and conferences. My advisor, Professor Frederick Lau, a hardworking, creative, and energetic all-around scholar and musician, has helped me a lot since my fIrst day in Hawai'i. In my three years of studying with him, I benefIted, both academically and non-academically, much more than I had expected. Apart from inspiring me, he continues to teach me how to be an ethnomusicologist. I do not know how to express my heartfelt thanks to Professor Barbara Smith, a respectful, knowledgeable, humble, and meticulous scholar. As my ''unofficial committee member," she spent countless hours on my thesis, tirelessly inspiring me, sharing her thoughts with me, and polishing my writing. The memory of discussing my thesis with her in Room 221 will never fade. During my graduate study, she has been tremendously supportive. Apart from her help on my writings, she attended all my conference presentations, guest lectures, and performances. v Simple but deepest thanks are due to Sze-man, K wan, and Duadi for their year­ long moral support and generous love. A special acknowledgement always belongs to my parents and grandmas for their endless love in every single stage of my life. • V1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements ......... .......... .. ......... ..................... .............................. iii Table of Contents ....... .......................................................... ... ................ vii List of Figures ............ ....... .................................................. .................... ix Chapter 1: Encountering the Yungqin ......................................................... 1 Brief Introduction to the Yangqin ................................ ........... .............. .4 Background and Research Methodology .......................................... ...... 7 Literature Review ..................................................................... ..... 13 Organization of the Thesis ........ ... ............................... ....... .. ... .. ....... 17 Romanization and Translation .................................... ...... .. ................ 19 Chapter 2: The Path of tbe Butterfly ............ ... ...... ............................... .. ....20 Hi story of the Yangqin ... ........................ ............................ ..... ....... .2 1 Classification and Categori es ............................................................ 28 Physical Changes in the Yangqin since the Early Twentieth Century .............. .32 Summary ..................................................................................... 51 Chapter 3: Innovating on the Inherited? ..................................................... 53 Mapping Yangqin Music ............... ......... ......................................... .53 The Four Major Schools ......................... ........................................ 55 A Comparison of the Jiangnan Sizhu Yangqin School and the Cantonese Yangqin School .. ... .................... ................................ ............................. 59 Traditional Yangqin Schools in Professional Music Institutes ............ .. ........ 72 Summary .................. .................................. ................................ 82 Chapter 4: The Trajectory of the .. Developments" .. .......................................84 From the "Primitive" to the "Advanced": The Yangqin Refonn si nce the 19505................................. ................................................ ... .. ... 84 Musical Changes ............................................................ ............... 94 Changes and Exchanges: Toward a Cosmopolitan Instrument. .... .. .. .. ......... l 07 VII Folk Musicians vs Individual "Experts": Identities and Social Status among Musicians ............. ..................................................................... I 14 The Resultant Dichotomy of "Minjian" Musician And "Jid' Musician ........... 120 Cbapter 5: Conclusions ........................................................................ 122 Appendices ............. .... .......... ................. , ............................................. 126 Appendix A ................................................................................ 126 Appendix B ................................................................................ 127 Appendix C ......... .................................................................. ..... 129 Appendix D ... .. .................................. ......................................... 132 Appendix E ................................................................................ 133 Appendix F ......................... .............................. .......................... 135 Appendix G ...... ....... ................................................................... 139 Appendix H ...................................................... .......................... 142 Appendix I ............................ ............... ....................... ............... 145 References ... ... ..... ................................................................................ 168 VIII LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 A Misidentification of the yangqin and the zither