in2ebook Chapter 315
Chapter 315
"There are a total of 42 people in our Narcissus Peking Opera Troupe. The band consists of nine people, and the rest are actors."
Today, the program crew went to a relatively remote place, a town under Lin'an. This is in line with the tone of the folk drama troupe, which usually goes to the countryside to perform.
Those who go to the theater are all elderly people.
The director of the Narcissus Peking Opera Troupe is a very elegant middle-aged woman named Xiong Jingfang. Although she is over 40 years old, she is still slim, and her words, actions, movements and demeanor are full of classical and implicit beauty.
Lu Qingfeng felt that this person should be playing the role of a big Qingyi in the opera, that is, the main female role among the Sheng, Dan, Jing, Mo and Chou.
Like the role of Bai Suzhen in "The Legend of White Snake".
"The place is a bit simple, I don't know if you are used to it."
Captain Xiong brought a few people to a bungalow, which was the town’s residential activity center. Because the place was large enough, it was occasionally used by the Narcissus Peking Opera Troupe for rehearsals.
As you enter, you will see a woman holding two swords fighting with several male actors. The atmosphere is tense and accompanied by the martial arts accompaniment that represents Peking Opera, with gongs and drums beating, and the actors' postures are dazzling.
Lu Qingfeng, Liu Liuxia, Li Yinan, Tong Jin, Si Hanyun and others stood at the door and watched quietly.
"What play is this being rehearsed for?"
The actor's gorgeous movements made Li Yinan unable to help but ask questions.
"In the fourth act of The Legend of the White Snake, the flooding of Jinshan Mountain, Xiaoman, the actress, plays the Green Snake."
Xiong Jingfang replied.
After hearing this, everyone understood.
After all, this story is well-known to everyone, and the world has brought this folk legend to television screens many times.
The difference is that the most classic version was created in Hong Kong in the 1990s, while the previous version was created in Taiwan.
"I know this. My mom used to play Xiaoqing."
Si Hanyun said from the side.
Yes, Si Hanyun’s mother is a Hong Kong female star. Although she has retired now, she was very popular in her early years, and her classic role is Green Snake.
“I watched it when I was a kid.”
Tong Jin expressed it in clumsy language.
The other two also nodded, only Lu Qingfeng really didn't know about this matter.
As they were chatting, the sound of gongs and drums in the rehearsal room became more and more intense. The actress in the middle did a somersault lightly, which attracted the attention of several people again.
“This is blanket kung fu.”
Xiong Jingfang explained on the side.
"In opera, we often talk about the four basic skills of singing, reciting, acting and fighting. Among them, fighting refers to the physical movements on stage, which are divided into "bazigong" and "tangong."
"Ba Zi Gong is the routine fighting between actors, and Tan Gong is various somersaults."
"In addition, there are handkerchief kung fu, fan kung fu, beard kung fu, hat wing kung fu, hair-flipping kung fu, water sleeve kung fu, etc."
Although there is no specific explanation, these terms are easy to understand. In addition, if you have watched some opera videos, you can match these skills with the impressions in your mind one by one.
"No wonder they say it takes ten years of hard work to be on stage for a minute. Watching you rehearsals, I feel like being an opera actor is much harder than practicing an instrument for us."
Liu Qianya clapped her hands gently and couldn't help but sigh with emotion.
What's even more difficult is that this line of work actually requires talent. Throughout history, there have not been many people who can be called stars.
After watching the rehearsal, several people followed the troupe leader to visit the various components of Peking Opera, a stage art form.
Like a costume.
"We usually call it the "hangtou" (trade name), and there are four main types: the overcoat, the second coat, the third coat, and the cloud shoulder."
"Overcoats include dragon robes, official robes, religious robes, monk robes, and palace attire; and middling robes include mandarin jackets, dakkai robes, and zukan robes."
Xiong Jingfang took a few people to visit the various costumes backstage of the drama troupe and pointed out the differences between these costumes to everyone.
"Three clothes can be simply understood as items such as shoes, socks, and pants used on stage."
"The cloud shoulder is the brightly colored fabric that you often see on actors, wrapped around the shoulders."
Captain Xiong took a piece and showed it to everyone.
Liu Qianya and Si Hanyun were obviously interested in these things.
Lu Qingfeng was more interested in the scene.
The so-called "Chanmian" refers to the accompaniment instruments used in Peking Opera.
Common instruments include erhu, suona, flute, huqin, sanxian, bangzi..., which are called Wenchang.
The martial arts arena was what they had just heard: the single-skin drum, the big gong, the small gong, and the cymbals. These four instruments could even be controlled by one instrumentalist.
When Lu Qingfeng and the others just watched, they saw an old master beating the gong and drums. He looked very busy, but the accompaniment sounds were orderly and not chaotic at all.
When you come to this area, it is an uninhabited area.
Among them, Li Yinan stands out particularly. He is the conductor of the symphony orchestra. He is not only familiar with Western musical instruments, but also has a detailed knowledge of folk music instruments.
He also learned to play the erhu and flute. Although he is not as good as professional musicians, he can play complete songs.
Then there is Liu Qianya. Although her main specialty is piano, she also knows a little about other instruments.
The only ones left are Lu Qingfeng, Tong Jin and Si Hanyun. They know but can't do it.
Lu Qingfeng hasn't started learning yet, Tong Jin comes from a formal Western music system, and Si Hanyun is more of a star than a musician.
After listening to Li Yinan play a piece of "Horse Racing" on the erhu, Lu Qingfeng became very interested in this instrument.
He has only been learning musical instruments for a short time. He initially learned the violin, but because he doesn't have a deep enough understanding of music theory and is afraid of confusing it, he has not yet learned folk music.
But I will definitely get involved in it in the future.
Li Yinan noticed his gaze and handed him the instrument.
"Do you want to feel it?"
"Okay."
Lu Qingfeng readily agreed.
He imitated Li Yinan, placed the erhu on his legs, and pulled the bowstring a few times.
The bow hair rubs against the inner and outer strings, producing noise through the sound window at the bottom.
When your fingers press the inner and outer strings, the pitch changes differently. The lower your fingers go, the higher the pitch.
After a brief experience, Lu Qingfeng had a basic understanding of the erhu.
As both are string instruments, the erhu and violin have many similarities in playing, but also many differences.
Because the violin has two more strings, it has an advantage in range, being wider and brighter. It can also play chords.
The erhu, by comparison, has a cooler, thinner, and more feminine tone.
The high pitch ranges of the two are similar, and the unique timbre of the erhu can also bring a more poignant charm.
As soon as Lu Qingfeng took over, he felt that if "Butterfly Lovers" was played with the erhu, the melody might be more heartbreaking than that of the violin.
In addition, compared to the violin, the erhu has no fingerboard, so the playing techniques are richer. Lu Qingfeng could feel this when watching you, Li Yinan, play.
Naturally, the cost of practicing it is probably more effort than that of the violin.
The pipa lasts a thousand years, the zheng lasts ten thousand years, and the erhu lasts a lifetime, it really lives up to its reputation.