The Monkey King: The World of Peking Opera

35 years ago, the acquisition through a coupon in a music magazine of a CD sampler from the World Sounds series of the JVC (Japan Victor Company) label was an important step in learning more about world music.  One of the pieces of which only a snipped was included was "The Monkey King," a work of what was known as Peking opera from China.  It was not until recently that the entire recording, from The Chinese Academy of Peking Opera and recorded in September 1979 at the Kokuritsu Gekijo Hall in Tokyo was purchased.  Though it took many years for that to happen, it was well worth the wait.

As the liner notes observe, Peking opera involves dance, music and theatrical presentation comprised of four aspects, including chang (song), nian (rhythmically spoken lines), zuo (using body movements and costume) and da (martial arts acrobatic movement).  So, an inherent problem with a recording like this (and perhaps not dissimilar to any Western opera) is that only half of the performance can be understood and appreciated.  But, what a half!

The amazing instrumental performance consists of wind and string instruments, percussion and vocals from the Academy, which was formed in 1951, just two years after the Communist takeover of China led by Mao Tze-Tung.  For the recording, there were nearly 50 actors and 17 musicians and the first two tracks is from a tale is based on a hero of Records of the Western Regions, a book by the 7th century scholar Xuanzhang, who traveled to India and brought Buddhism back to his country.

Track three is "Autumn River," a pantomime comedy that is derived from a scene in The Jade Hairpin, which is a story of 12th century China, while the last piece is "The Parting of Bawang and the Princess," written by an early 20th century Peking Opera figure who drew from Han and Ming dynasties classics.  What would likely be the toughest part to relate to is the vocalizing, which might seem shrill and tuneless to Western ears, but there is great charm and excellent harmonizing with the instrumentation, as well as beautiful control in the singing and speaking.  The playing of the instruments is just stellar and fascinating, particularly in the interludes between the vocals and this album is a stunning and highly entertaining experience of historic Chinese music.

Peking Opera/Dalian Troupe: The Forest on Fire/The Princess Hundred Flowers

This 1994 release from the French label, Musique du Monde, presents two pieces of Peking Opera, a form of music and theater that began in the late 18th-century, including "The Forest on Fire," a 28 1/2 minute work, and "The Princess Hundred Flowers," which spans some 46 minutes.  This excellent performance was recorded at Dalian Opera in Liaoning province in March by Francois Picard, who also provided the informative liner notes.

As with any type of performance that marries music with visual theatrics, including acrobatics as well as speech, singing and instrumental work, recordings can only provide some approximation of the experience, but the music is remarkable and striking.

Percussion is a major element, unlike in much of European opera, with drums, clappers (guban), various-sized gongs, and cymbals employed to vivid effect.  Strings include the jinghu, a Peking fiddle, the erhu, another fiddle, and a few types of lute-like instruments.  Wind instruments include mouth organs (sheng), the dizi, a flute, and the suona, a flared shawm, a distinctively high-pitched dual reed horn.

The vocalizing is. of course, just one element of the amazing work done by elaborately dressed and masked characters, being Zhang Dingbian in "The Forest on Fire" and the title character of Princess Hundred Flowers.  Volume, tonal control, and the emphasis on dramatic phrasing are key to the purely musical aspects of the performance, because the acting, including facial expressiveness, very precise gesturing and body movement are key.

In fact, to some ears, much of this music, both instrumental playing and singing, can be jarringly  shrill, tonally and harmonically foreign, and melodically off-putting.  It does take some time and effort to reorienting the Western ear to the sounds of this amazing music, just as it does for other forms of "world music," whether this be the Indian raga, African tribal music, gamelan, sufi music, Turkish mevlana, and many others.

Repeated listenings bring out the complexity, dynamic range, expression and variety of sounds that make Peking Opera a truly enriching experience and the virtuosity of the musicians and performers is stunning.

Performances of this art form are still offered, though there have been changes in recent years after outright bans during the cultural revolutions under Mao Tse Tung, but opportunities in America to see authentic operas are rare.  Perhaps some day, this blogger will get the chance to attend a performance and move from the detached musical appreciation to the immersion of a fuller experience.