1
高祖登極之後，享宴因隋舊制，用九部之樂，其後分為立坐二部。 今立部伎有《安樂》、《太平樂》、《破陣樂》、《慶善樂》、《大定樂》、《上元樂》、《聖壽樂》、《樂聖樂》，凡八部。 《安樂》者，後周武帝平齊所作也。 行列方正，象城郭，周世謂之城舞。 舞者八十人。 刻木為面，狗喙獸耳，以金飾之，垂線為髮，畫猰皮帽。 舞蹈姿制，猶作羌胡狀。 《太平樂》，亦謂之五方師子舞。 師子鷙獸，出於西南夷天竺、師子等國。 綴毛為之，人居其中，像其俯仰馴狎之容。 二人持繩秉拂，為習弄之狀。 五師子各立其方色。 百四十人歌《太平樂》，舞以足，持繩者服飾作昆侖象。 《破陣樂》，太宗所造也。 太宗為秦王之時，征伐四方，人間歌謠《秦王破陣樂》之曲。 及即位，使呂才協音律，李百藥、虞世南、褚亮、魏徵等制歌辭。 百二十人披甲持戟，甲以銀飾之。 發揚蹈厲，聲韻慷慨。 享宴奏之，天子避位，坐宴者皆興。 《慶善樂》，太宗所造也。 太宗生於武功之慶善宮，既貴，宴宮中，賦詩，被以管弦。 舞者六十四人。 衣紫大袖裾襦，漆髻皮履。 舞蹈安徐，以象文德洽而天下安樂也。 《大定樂》，出自《破陣樂》。 舞者百四十人。 被五彩文甲，持槊。 歌和云，「八紘同軌樂」，以象平遼東而邊隅大定也。 《上元樂》，高宗所造。 舞者百八十人。 畫雲衣，備五色，以象元氣，故曰「上元」。 《聖壽樂》，高宗武后所作也。 舞者百四十人。 金銅冠，五色畫衣。 舞之行列必成字，十六變而畢。 有「聖超千古，道泰百王，皇帝萬年，寶祚彌昌」字。 《光聖樂》，玄宗所造也。 舞者八十人。 烏冠，五彩畫衣，兼以《上元》、《聖壽》之容，以歌王跡所興。
Once Gaozu took the throne, court feasts kept the Sui practice of Nine Departments music, then split into standing and seated troupes. The standing troupe now performs eight pieces: Anle, Taiping Le, Pozhen Le, Qingshan Le, Dading Le, Shangyuan Le, Shengshou Le, and Lesheng Le. Anle dates to Emperor Wu of Later Zhou's conquest of Qi. Dancers form a square grid like ramparts—the Zhou named it the City Dance. Eighty dancers perform it. They wear carved wooden masks—dog muzzle, beast ears, gilded—with thread hair and painted ya-fur caps. The choreography still mimics Qiang and Hu styles. Taiping Le is also known as the Five-Direction Lion Dance. Lions—fierce beasts—came from southwestern realms such as Tianzhu and Shizi. Fur is stitched into lion suits; dancers inside mimic crouch, rise, and tame play. Two handlers with rope and whisk play the trainers. Five lions, each in its direction's color. One hundred forty singers perform Taiping Le, stamping the dance; rope-bearers dress as Kunlun attendants. Taizong composed Pozhen Le. As Prince of Qin he campaigned everywhere; people already sang Prince of Qin Breaking the Formation. At his accession Lü Cai set the pitch while Li Baiyao, Yu Shinan, Chu Liang, Wei Zheng, and others wrote the words. One hundred twenty armored men bear halberds, armor edged in silver. They stamp and thrust fiercely; the music is bold and stirring. At banquets the emperor steps aside and every guest stands when it plays. Taizong also composed Qingshan Le. Born at Qingshan Palace in Wugong, he later feasted there as emperor, wrote a poem, and scored it for orchestra. The troupe numbers sixty-four. Costume: purple great-sleeved jackets, lacquered topknots, leather shoes. The dance moves slowly, showing civil virtue at peace under heaven. Dading Le grew out of Pozhen Le. One hundred forty perform. They wear five-colored patterned armor and carry spears. The refrain—"All within the eight directions rides one track in joy"—marks Liaodong pacified and the frontiers settled. Gaozong composed Shangyuan Le. The company fields one hundred eighty. Cloud-painted robes in five colors stand for primordial qi—hence Shangyuan, "Upper Prime." Gaozong and Empress Wu jointly composed Shengshou Le. One hundred forty take the floor. They wear gilt-bronze crowns and robes painted in five colors. Formations spell out characters in sixteen changes. They spell: "Sage beyond the ages, Way secure for hundred kings, emperor ten thousand years, throne ever flourishing." Xuanzong composed Guangsheng Le. Eighty dancers perform. Black caps and five-colored robes blend Shangyuan and Shengshou motifs to hymn the dynasty's rise.
2
自《破陣舞》以下，皆雷大鼓，雜以龜茲之樂，聲振百里，動盪山谷。 《大定樂》加金鉦。 惟《慶善舞》獨用西涼樂，最為閒雅。 《破陣》、《上元》、《慶善》三舞，皆易其衣冠，合之鐘磬，以享郊廟。 以《破陣》為武舞，謂之《七德》； 《慶善》為文舞，謂之《九功》。 自武后稱制，毀唐太廟，此禮遂有名而亡實。 《安樂》等八舞，聲樂皆立奏之，樂府謂之立部伎。 其餘總謂之坐部伎。 則天、中宗之代，大增造坐立諸舞，尋以廢寢。
From Breaking the Formation onward, great drums and Kuchean music shake the hills for a hundred li. Only Dading Le adds gilt cymbals to the drum line. Only Qingshan Dance uses pure Xiliang music—the most refined and sedate. Pozhen, Shangyuan, and Qingshan swap costumes and join bells and stones for suburban and ancestral rites. Pozhen became the military dance, titled Seven Virtues; Qingshan the civil dance, titled Nine Achievements. When Empress Wu took power and wrecked the Tang ancestral temple, the rite survived in name only. Anle and the other seven standing dances use standing musicians—the Music Office's standing troupe. Everything else falls under the seated troupe. Under Zetian and Zhongzong the court added many new standing and seated dances, then let them lapse.
3
坐部伎有《宴樂》、《長壽樂》、《天授樂》、《鳥歌萬壽樂》、《龍池樂》、《破陣樂》，凡六部。 《宴樂》，張文收所造也。 工人緋綾袍，絲布袴。 舞二十人，分為四部：《景雲樂》，舞八人，花錦袍，五色綾袴，雲冠烏皮靴； 《慶善樂》，舞四人，紫綾袍，大袖，絲布袴，假髻。 《破陣樂》，舞四人，緋綾袍，錦衿褾，緋綾褲。 《承天樂》，舞四人，紫袍，進德冠，並銅帶。 樂用玉磬一架，大方響一架，搊箏一，臥箜篌一，小箜篌一，大琵琶一，大五弦琵琶一，小五弦琵琶一，大笙一，小笙一，大篳篥一，小篳篥一，大簫一，小律一，正銅拔一，和銅拔一，長笛一，短笛一，楷鼓一，連鼓一，鞉鼓一，桴鼓一，工歌二。 此樂惟《景雲舞》僅存，餘並亡。 《長壽樂》，武太后長壽年所造也。 舞十有二人。 畫衣冠。 《天授樂》，武太后天授年所造也。 舞四人。 畫衣五采，鳳冠。 《鳥歌萬歲樂》，武太后所造也。 武太后時，宮中養鳥能人言，又常稱萬歲，為樂以象之。 舞三人。 緋大袖，並畫鸜鵒，冠作鳥像。 今案嶺南有鳥，似鸜鵒而稍大，乍視之，不相分辨。 籠養久則能言，無不通，南人謂之吉了，亦云料。 開元初，廣州獻之，言音雄重如丈夫，委曲識人情，慧於鸚鵡遠矣，疑即此鳥也。 《漢書·武帝本紀》書南越獻馴象、能言鳥。 注《漢書》者，皆謂鳥為鸚鵡。 若是鸚鵡，不得不舉其名，而謂之能言鳥。 鸚鵡秦、隴尤多，亦不足重。 所謂能言鳥，即吉了也。 北方常言鸜鵒逾嶺乃能言，傳者誤矣。 嶺南甚多鸜鵒，能言者非鸜鵒也。 《龍池樂》，玄宗所作也。 玄宗龍潛之時，宅在隆慶坊，宅南坊人所居，變為池，望氣者亦異焉。 故中宗季年，泛舟池中。 玄宗正位，以坊為宮，池水逾大，彌漫數里，為此樂以歌其祥也。 舞十有二人，人冠飾以芙蓉。 《破陣樂》，玄宗所造也。 生於立部伎《破陣樂》。 舞四人，金甲胄。 自《長壽樂》已下皆用龜茲樂，舞人皆著靴。 惟《龍池》備用雅樂，而無鐘磬，舞人躡履。
The seated troupe has six pieces: Yan Le, Changshou Le, Tianshou Le, Niaoge Wanshou Le, Longchi Le, and Pozhen Le. Zhang Wenshou composed Yan Le. Musicians wear scarlet damask robes and silk trousers. Twenty dancers split four ways—Jingyun Le: eight in flowered brocade, five-colored damask trousers, cloud caps, black boots; Qingshan Le: four in purple damask, great sleeves, silk trousers, false topknots. Pozhen Le: four in scarlet damask with brocade collars and scarlet trousers. Chengtian Le: four in purple robes, Jinde crowns, bronze belts. Instrumentation: jade chimes, large fangxiang, zheng, horizontal and small konghou, large and small five-string pipas, large and small bili and sheng, large xiao and small pitch pipe, paired bronze cymbals, long and short flutes, frame, linked, taogu, and pestle drums, plus two vocalists. Only the Jingyun dance remains; the rest are gone. Changshou Le dates to Empress Wu's Changshou era. Twelve perform the dance. Painted costumes. Tianshou Le dates to the Tianshou era. A quartet dances. Costume: five-colored painted robes and phoenix crowns. Empress Wu composed Niaoge Wanshou Le. Her palace kept talking birds that cried "Long live ten thousand years!"—she set this music to mimic them. Three dancers enact the birds. Scarlet great sleeves painted with mynahs; bird-shaped crowns. Records from Lingnan describe a bird like the mynah but larger—hard to tell apart at a glance. Cage it long enough and it speaks flawlessly; southerners call it Jilie, also liao. Early Kaiyuan Guangzhou sent one whose deep, manlike voice read moods better than any parrot—likely this same bird. Han History, Annals of Emperor Wu, notes Nanyue's tribute of a tame elephant and a talking bird. Han commentators uniformly identify that bird as a parrot. Had it been a parrot, writers would have named it—not merely "talking bird." Parrots abound in Qin and Long and would hardly count as rare tribute. The talking bird of the record is Jilie. Northerners say mynahs speak only south of the ranges—a garbled tradition. Lingnan teems with mynahs, yet the speaking birds are another species. Xuanzong composed Longchi Le. Before his rise he lived in Longqing Ward; neighbors' land south of the house became a pond that geomancers called ominous. So in Zhongzong's last years the court boated there. On taking the throne he turned the ward into a palace; the pond swelled for miles—music to hymn the omen. Twelve dancers wear lotus-trimmed crowns. Xuanzong also made a seated Pozhen Le. It descends from the standing troupe's Pozhen Le. Four armored dancers in gilt. From Changshou Le down, Kuchean music and boots for every dancer. Only Longchi adds refined court music—no bells or stones—and soft-shoed dancers.
4
《清樂》者，南朝舊樂也。 永嘉之亂，五都淪覆，遺聲舊制，散落江左。 宋、梁之間，南朝文物，號為最盛； 人謠國俗，亦世有新聲。 後魏孝文、宣武，用師淮、漢，收其所獲南音，謂之《清商樂》。 隨平陳，因置清商署，總謂之《清樂》。 遭梁、陳亡亂，所存蓋鮮。 隋室已來，日益淪缺。 武太后之時，猶有六十三曲，今其辭存者，惟有《白雪》、《公莫舞》、《巴渝》、《明君》、《鳳將雛》、《明之君》、《鐸舞》、《白鳩》、《白紵》、《子夜》、《吳聲四時歌》、《前溪》、《阿子》及《歡聞》、《團扇》、《懊憹》、《長史》、《督護》、《讀曲》、《烏夜啼》、《石城》、《莫愁》、《襄陽》、《棲烏夜飛》、《估客》、《楊伴》、《雅歌》、《驍壺》、《常林歡》、《三洲》、《采桑》、《春江花月夜》、《玉樹後庭花》、《堂堂》、《泛龍舟》等三十二曲，《明之君》、《雅歌》各二首，《四時歌》四首，合三十七首。 又七曲有聲無辭：《上林》、《鳳雛》、《平調》、《清調》、《瑟調》、《平折》、《命嘯》，通前為四十四曲存焉。
Qing Music is legacy repertoire of the Southern dynasties. After Yongjia's fall the Five Capitals were lost; old tunes drifted to the lower Yangtze. From Song through Liang, southern court culture peaked; and every generation added fresh popular songs. Northern Wei Xiaowen and Xuanwu, campaigning on Huai and Han, seized southern airs as Qing Shang Music. Sui's conquest of Chen founded the Qing Shang Office—everything grouped as Qing Music. Liang and Chen's collapse left almost nothing. Since Sui the corpus has dwindled year by year. Under Empress Wu sixty-three tunes still existed; lyrics survive for only thirty-seven titles—including White Snow, Gong Mo, Ba Yu, Mingjun, Feng Jiang Chu, and the rest listed—plus duplicate Ming Zhi Jun and Ya Ge and four Four Seasons songs. Seven more survive as melody without words—Shanglin, Feng Chu, the three Zhou chamber modes, Ping Zhe, Ming Xiao—forty-four pieces altogether.
5
:《白雪》，周曲也。 《平調》、《清調》、《瑟調》，皆周房中曲之遺聲也。 漢世謂之三調。
White Snow—a Zhou piece. Ping, Qing, and Se modes preserve Zhou inner-chamber melodies. Han writers named them the Three Modes.
6
:《公莫舞》，晉、宋謂之巾舞。 其說云：「漢高祖與項籍會於鴻門，項莊劍舞，將殺高祖。 項伯亦舞，以袖隔之，且云公莫害沛公也。 漢人德之，故舞用巾，以象項伯衣袖之遺式也。
Gong Mo Dance—Jin and Song knew it as the Kerchief Dance. Tradition holds: "At Hong Gate, when Gaozu met Xiang Yu, Xiang Zhuang's sword dance aimed to kill the emperor. Xiang Bo danced too, shielding with his sleeve and crying, 'My lord, do not harm the Duke of Pei!' Later Han honored the act; dancers wave kerchiefs in memory of Xiang Bo's sleeve. The passage concluded.
7
:《巴渝》，漢高帝所作也。 帝自蜀漢伐楚，以版盾蠻為前鋒，其人勇而善鬥，好為歌舞，高帝觀之曰：「武王伐紂歌也。」 使工習之，號曰《巴渝》。 渝，美也。 亦云巴有渝水，故名之。 魏、晉改其名，梁復號《巴渝》，隋文廢之。
Ba Yu—attributed to Han Gaodi. Marching from Shu-Han against Chu he put Ba's shield braves in the van—fierce fighters who loved to sing and dance. The emperor remarked, "King Wu's campaign against Zhou had its hymn. The passage concluded." He ordered musicians to learn it and named the piece Ba Yu. Yu here means "fine" or "beautiful." Others say the Yu River in Ba gave the name. Wei and Jin retitled it; Liang revived Ba Yu; Sui Wendi suppressed it.
8
:《明君》，漢元帝時，匈奴單于入朝，詔王嬙配之，即昭君也。 及將去，入辭。 光彩射人，聳動左右，天子悔焉。 漢人憐其遠嫁，為作此歌。 晉石崇妓綠珠善舞，以此曲教之，而自製新歌曰：「我本漢家子，將適單于庭，昔為匣中玉，今為糞土英。」 晉文王諱昭，故晉人謂之《明君》。 此中朝舊曲，今為吳聲，蓋吳人傳受訛變使然。
Mingjun—under Yuan of Han the Xiongnu chanyu visited court and Wang Qiang, Zhaojun, was sent as bride. At her farewell audience her beauty stunned the hall; the emperor repented too late. Han subjects mourned her exile in this song. Jin's Shi Chong had Lüzhu, a dancer who taught the tune and added new words: "I was Han-house jade, bound for the chanyu's hall—casket gem turned dung-heap dust." The passage concluded. Jin avoided the taboo Zhao, so the tune was called Mingjun. Originally a central piece, it now survives as Wu music—probably mangled in southern transmission.
9
:《鳳將雛》，漢世舊歌曲也。
Feng Jiang Chu—an old Han lyric.
10
:《明之君》，本漢世《鞞舞曲》也。 梁武時，改其辭以歌君德。
Ming Zhi Jun began as the Han Bian Dance. Liang Wudi rewrote the text to hymn imperial virtue.
11
:《鐸舞》，漢曲也。
Duo Dance—Han repertoire.
12
:《白鳩》，吳朝《拂舞曲》也。 楊泓《拂舞序》曰：「自到江南，見《白符舞》，或言《白鳧鳩》，云有此來數十年。 察其辭旨，乃是吳人患孫皓虐政，思屬晉也。」 隋牛弘請以鞞、鐸、巾、拂等舞陳之殿庭。 帝從之，而去其所持巾拂等。
White Dove—a Wu Whisk Dance. Yang Hong's Whisk Dance preface notes: "In Jiangnan I saw the White Fu Dance, alias White Mandarin Dove, perhaps decades old. Its words show Wu subjects weary of Sun Hao and yearning for Jin rule. The passage concluded. Sui minister Niu Hong petitioned to stage bian, duo, kerchief, and whisk dances at court. The emperor agreed but stripped away their kerchiefs and whisks.
13
:《白紵》，沈約云：本吳地所出，疑是吳舞也。 梁帝又令約改其辭。 其《四時白紵》之歌，約集所載是也。 今中原有《白紵曲》，辭旨與此全殊。
White Zhuo—Shen Yue traces it to Wu, likely a Wu dance. Liang Wudi had Shen Yue rewrite the words. Yue's collected Four Seasons White Zhuo lyrics are those versions. A central-plains White Zhuo now circulates with wholly different words.
14
:《子夜》，晉曲也。 晉有女子夜造此聲，聲過哀苦，晉日常有鬼歌之。
Ziye—a Jin piece. A Jin woman composed it at night—so mournful that Jin folk said ghosts sang it.
15
:《前溪》，晉車騎將軍沈珫所制。
Qianxi—by Jin General of Chariots and Cavalry Shen Chong.
16
:《阿子》及《歡聞》，晉穆帝升平初。 歌畢，輒呼「阿子汝聞否」，後人演其聲以為此曲。
Azi and Huan Wen—early Shengping under Muzong of Jin. After songs performers called, "Child, did you hear?"—later set as this melody.
17
:《團扇》，晉中書令王瑉與嫂婢有情，愛好甚篤。 嫂捶撻婢過苦，婢素善歌，而瑉好捉白團扇，故云：「團扇復團扇，持許自遮面。 憔悴無復理，羞與郎相見。」
Tuan Shan—Jin Secretariat Director Wang Min loved his sister-in-law's maid deeply. The sister-in-law beat the maid cruelly; the maid sang well, and Min favored white round fans, so she sang: "Round fan, round fan, held up to hide my face. Worn past repair, too ashamed to meet you. The passage concluded."
18
:《懊憹》，晉隆安初民間訛謠之曲。 歌云：「春草可攬結，女兒可攬擷。」 齊太祖常謂之《中朝歌》。
Aonao—born from garbled Long'an street songs in Jin. Its refrain: "Spring grass gathers in the hand; a girl gathers in the arms." The passage concluded. Qi Emperor Gao often titled it Central Dynasty Song.
19
:《長史變》，晉司徒左長史王廞臨敗所製。
Chief Clerk's Transformation—composed by Jin left chief clerk Wang Dan before his fall.
20
:《督護》，晉、宋間曲也。 彭城內史徐達之為魯軌所殺。 徐，宋高祖長婿也。 使府內直督護丁旿殯斂之。 其妻呼旿至閣下，自問斂達之事，每問輒歎息曰：「丁督護！」 其聲哀切，後人因其聲廣其曲焉。 今歌是宋孝武帝所製，云：「督護上征去，儂亦惡聞許。 願作石尤風，四面斷行旅。」
Duhu—a Jin and Song piece. Pengcheng interior minister Xu Dazhi died at Lu Gui's hands. Xu was senior son-in-law to Song's founder. Prefectural Duhu Ding Wu oversaw the burial. The widow called Wu downstairs, questioning each step of the rites, sighing each time, "Duhu Ding! Her wail was raw grief; later composers stretched the melody from it. The version now sung is Xiaowu's: "Duhu rides to war; I dread even hearing it. Would I were the Shiyou gale, blocking every road at once. The passage concluded."
21
:《讀曲》，宋人為彭城王義康所制也，有死罪之辭。
Du Qu—Song courtiers wrote it for Prince Yikang of Pengcheng, with words of death-sentence guilt.
22
:《烏夜啼》，宋臨川王義慶所作也。 ，徙彭城王義康于豫章。 義慶時為江州，至鎮，相見而哭，為帝所怪，徵還宅，大懼。 妓妾夜聞烏啼聲，扣齋閣云：「明日應有赦。」 其年更為南兗州刺史，作此歌。 故其和云：「籠窗窗不開，烏夜啼，夜夜望郎來。」 今所傳歌似非義慶本旨。 辭曰：「歌舞諸少年，娉婷無種跡。 菖蒲花可憐，聞名不相識。」
Crow Cries at Night—by Song's Prince Yiqing of Linchuan. , Prince Yikang of Pengcheng was banished to Yuzhang. Yiqing governed Jiangzhou; at their meeting both wept—the emperor took offense, recalled him, and he lived in dread. A concubine heard crows at night, knocked at his study, and said, "An amnesty should come tomorrow. Amnesty followed; he became governor of Southern Yanzhou and wrote this song. Its refrain: "Shut cage-window, window still shut—crow cries at night, night after night waiting for you. Today's lyric hardly matches Yiqing's original mood. Instead the text runs: "Youths of song and dance, lovely without a footprint. Sweet-flag blooms pitifully—famous by name, never truly known. The passage concluded."
23
:《石城》，宋臧質所作也。 石城在竟陵。 質嘗為竟陵郡，於城上眺矚，見群少年歌謠通暢，因作此曲。 歌云：「生長石城下，開門對城樓。 城中美年少，出入見依投。」
Shicheng—Song general Zang Zhi. Shicheng stands in Jingling. As Jingling governor he watched youths sing from the ramparts and fashioned this tune. It opens: "Raised below Shicheng, our gate faces the tower. Handsome lads of the town, coming and going arm in arm. The passage concluded."
24
:《莫愁樂》，出於《石城樂》。 石城有女子名莫愁，善歌謠。 《石城樂》和中復有「莫愁」聲，故歌云：「莫愁在何處？ 莫愁石城西。 艇子打兩槳，催送莫愁來。」
Mochou Music—spun off from Shicheng Music. A Shicheng woman named Mochou sang beautifully. Shicheng Music's chorus repeats "Mochou," so the lyric asks: "Where is Mochou? Mochou—west of Shicheng. Two oars strike the water, hurrying Mochou along. The passage concluded."
25
:《襄陽樂》，宋隨王誕之所作也。 誕始為襄陽郡，，仍為雍州，夜聞諸女歌謠，因作之。 故歌和云「襄陽來夜樂。」 其歌曰：「朝發襄陽來，暮至大堤宿。 大堤諸女兒，花豔驚郎目。」 裴子野《宋略》稱：「晉安侯劉道彥為雍州刺史，有惠化，百姓歌之，號《襄陽樂》。」 其辭旨非也。
Xiangyang Music—by Song's Prince Dan of Suixing. Dan first ruled Xiangyang, later Yongzhou; hearing women sing at night he wrote this piece. Its refrain: "From Xiangyang comes the night's music." The passage concluded." The lyric runs: "Leave Xiangyang at dawn, reach the Great Embankment by dusk. Girls of the Great Embankment—blossoms bright enough to stun a lover's eyes." The passage concluded." Pei Ziye's Song Summary claims Jin'an prince Liu Daoyan's Yongzhou rule inspired Xiangyang Music. The passage concluded." That attribution is wrong. That attribution does not fit.
26
:《棲烏夜飛》，沈攸之所作也。 攸之未敗之前，思歸京師，故歌和云：「日落西山還去來！」
Roosting Crow Flies at Night—Shen Youzhi's work. Before his fall he yearned for the capital; the refrain: "Sun sets on western hills—return! The passage concluded."
27
:《估客樂》，齊武帝之制也。 布衣時常游樊、鄧，追憶往事而作。 歌曰：「昔經樊、鄧役，阻潮梅根渚。 感憶追往事，意滿情不敘。」 使太樂令劉瑤教習，百日無成。 或啟釋寶月善音律，帝使寶月奏之，便就。 敕歌者常重為感憶之聲。 梁改其名為《商旅行》。
Gu Ke Music—Qi Emperor Wu. As a commoner he had roamed Fan and Deng and wrote this remembering old days. It begins: "On the Fan-Deng road, tide trapped us at Meigen Ford. Memory floods back—heart full, words fail." The passage concluded." He set Grand Music Director Liu Yao to teach it; after a hundred days the orchestra still failed. A memorial praised monk Baoyue's pitch sense; the emperor had him play—and the piece clicked immediately. He commanded vocalists always to weight the note of longing memory. Liang retitled it Merchant Travel.
28
:《楊伴》，本童謠歌也。 齊隆昌時，女巫之子曰楊旻，旻隨母入內，及長，為後所寵。 童謠云：「楊婆兒，共戲來。」 而歌語訛，遂成楊伴兒。 歌云：「暫出白門前，楊柳可藏烏。 歡作沉水香，儂作博山爐。」
Yang Ban—originally a children's rhyme. Under Qi Longchang a witch's son, Yang Min, entered the palace with his mother and, grown, won the empress's favor. Children sang: "Old Mother Yang, come out to play." The passage concluded. Slurred speech turned the rhyme into Yang Ban'er. Its lines: "Just outside White Gate, willows hide the crows. You are sunken-water incense; I am the Boshan burner. Closing quotation mark.
29
:《驍壺》，疑是投壺樂也。 投壺者謂壺中躍矢為驍壺，今謂之驍壺者是也。
"Xiaohu": probably music for the pitch-pot game. In pitch-pot, arrows that leap in the pot are called xiaohu—the name still used today.
30
:《常林歡》，疑是宋、梁間曲。 宋、梁世，荊、雍為南方重鎮，皆皇子為之牧，江左辭詠，莫不稱之，以為樂土，故隨王作《襄陽》之歌，齊武帝追憶樊、鄧。 梁簡文樂府歌云：「分手桃林岸，送別峴山頭。 若欲寄音信，漢水向東流。」 又曰：「宜城投音豆酒今行熟，停鞍繋馬暫棲宿。」 桃林在漢水上，宜城在荊州北。 荊州有長林縣。 江南謂情人為歡。 「常」「長」聲相近，蓋樂人誤謂「長」為「常」。
"Changlin Huan": probably a Liu-Song and Liang-period song. Under the Liu-Song and Liang, Jing and Yong were major southern posts held by imperial princes; Jiangzuo poets praised them as a happy land—hence Prince Sui's "Xiangyang" and Qi Wudi's memories of Fan and Deng. Emperor Jianwen of Liang wrote in a yuefu song: "We part at Peach Grove bank and bid farewell on Xian Mountain's crest. To send word, let the Han River flow east." It also runs: "At Yicheng the bean-cast sounds—the new wine is ready; we rein in and tether the horses to rest awhile." Peach Grove stands on the Han; Yicheng lies north of Jingzhou. Jingzhou has Changlin county. In Jiangnan a lover is called huan. "Chang" and "chang" sound alike—musicians likely confused Changlin's chang with chang.
31
:《三洲》，商人歌也。 商人數行巴陵三江之間，因作此歌。
"Sanzhou": a song of traveling merchants. Merchants who plied the three rivers near Baling composed it.
32
:《采桑》，因《三洲曲》而生此聲也。
"Picking Mulberry" grew out of the "Sanzhou" tune.
33
:《春江花月夜》、《玉樹後庭花》、《堂堂》，並陳後主所作。 叔寶常與宮中女學士及朝臣相和為詩，太樂令何胥又善於文詠，采其尤豔麗者以為此曲。
"Spring River Flower Moon Night," "Courtyard Flower of the Jade Tree," and "Tangtang" were all works of Chen Shubao. Shubao often exchanged poems with palace scholars and officials; the Director of Imperial Music He Xu, also a fine lyricist, chose the most ornate lines for these pieces.
34
:《泛龍舟》，隋煬帝江都宮作。
"Floating Dragon Boat": composed at Sui Yangdi's Jiangdu palace.
35
餘五曲，不知誰所作也。 其辭類皆淺俗，而綿世不易。 惜其古曲，是以備論之。 其他集錄所不見，亦闕而不載。
Who wrote the other five pieces is unknown. The words are mostly coarse and plain, yet the tunes endured unchanged for generations. Because the old melodies matter, they are recorded here in detail. Pieces absent from collected sources are likewise left out.
36
當江南之時，《巾舞》、《白紵》、《巴渝》等衣服各異。 梁以前舞人並二八，梁舞省之，咸用八人而巳。 令工人平巾幘，緋袴褶。 舞四人，碧輕紗衣，裙襦大袖，畫雲鳳之狀。 漆鬟髻，飾以金銅雜花，狀如雀釵； 錦履。 舞容閑婉，曲有姿態。 沈約《宋書》志江左諸曲哇淫，至今其聲調猶然。 觀其政已亂，其俗已淫，既怨且思矣。 而從容雅緩，猶有古士君子之遺風。 他樂則莫與為比。 樂用鐘一架，磬一架，琴一，三弦琴一，擊琴一，瑟一，秦琵琶一，臥箜篌一，築一，箏一，節鼓一，笙二，笛二，簫二，篪二，葉二，歌二。
In the Jiangnan period the Scarf Dance, White Ramie, Bayu, and similar pieces each had distinct costumes. Before the Liang, dancers numbered sixteen; Liang performances cut the troupe to eight. Performers wore plain cloth caps with scarlet trousers and short jackets. Four dancers wore green gauze, full skirts and jackets with cloud-and-phoenix motifs on wide sleeves. Lacquered chignons decked with gold, bronze, and floral ornaments like sparrow pins; with brocade shoes. The movement was easy and graceful, with set poses in the melody. Shen Yue's Song History notes that Jiangzuo songs were wanton and sensual—and their modes still sound that way. One sees government in disorder and morals dissolute—music at once resentful and yearning. Yet the unhurried, elegant pacing still carries something of old scholar-gentlemen. No other music matches them in this respect. Instrumentation: one bell frame, one stone chimes, zither, three-string zither, struck zither, se, Qin pipa, horizontal konghou, zhu, zheng, beat-drum, two sheng, two di flutes, two xiao, two chi, two ye pipes, and two vocalists.
37
自長安已後，朝廷不重古曲，工伎轉缺，能合於管弦者，唯《明君》、《楊伴》、《驍壺》、《春歌》、《秋歌》、《白雪》、《堂堂》、《春江花月》等八曲。 舊樂章多或數百言。 武太后時，《明君》尚能四十言，今所傳二十六言，就之訛失，與吳音轉遠。 劉貺以為宜取吳人使之傳習。 以問歌工李郎子，李郎子北人，聲調已失，云學于俞才生。 才生，江都人也。 今郎子逃，《清樂》之歌闕焉。 又聞《清樂》唯《雅歌》一曲，辭典而音雅，閱舊記，其辭信典。 漢有《盤舞》，今隸《散樂》部中。 又有《幡舞》、《扇舞》，並亡。 自周、隋已來，管弦雜曲將數百曲，多用西涼樂，鼓舞曲多用龜茲樂，其曲度皆時俗所知也。 惟彈琴家猶傳楚、漢舊聲。 及《清調》、《瑟調》，蔡邕雜弄，非朝廷郊廟所用，故不載。
After the capital moved to Chang'an the court neglected old melodies and skilled players dwindled; only eight pieces still fit full orchestration—"Mingjun," "Yang Companion," "Xiaohu," "Spring Song," "Autumn Song," "White Snow," "Tangtang," and "Spring River Flower Moon." Old librettos often ran to hundreds of characters. Under Empress Wu "Mingjun" still had forty lines; today only twenty-six survive—corrupted and drifting from the Wu accent. Liu Ban argued that Wu natives should be enlisted to preserve it. Asked about it, the vocalist Li Langzi—a northerner whose tuning was already wrong—said he had learned from Yu Caisheng. Caisheng came from Jiangdu. Langzi has since fled, and Qing Music songs are lost. Of Qing Music only "Elegant Song" is said to remain—canonical words and refined sound; old records confirm the text. The Han "Plate Dance" now falls under Miscellaneous Music. "Banner Dance" and "Fan Dance" also existed—both extinct. Since Zhou and Sui, hundreds of orchestral pieces chiefly draw on Western Liang music, while drum-dances mostly use Kucha tunes—modes familiar to the public. Only qin players still hand down old Chu and Han pieces. "Pure Mode," "Se Mode," and Cai Yong's miscellany—unused at court sacrifices—are omitted.
38
《西涼樂》者，後魏平沮渠氏所得也。 晉、宋末，中原喪亂，張軌據有河西，苻秦通涼州，旋復隔絕。 其樂具有鐘磬，蓋涼人所傳中國舊樂，而雜以羌胡之聲也。 魏世共隋咸重之。 工人平巾幘，緋褶。 白舞一人，方舞四人。 白舞今闕。 方舞四人，假髻，玉支釵，紫絲布褶，白大口袴，五彩接袖，烏皮靴。 樂用鐘一架，磬一架，彈箏一，搊箏一，臥箜篌一，豎箜篌一，琵琶一，五弦琵琶一，笙一，簫一，篳篥一，小篳篥一，笛一，橫笛一，腰鼓一，齊鼓一，簷鼓一，銅拔一，貝一。 編鐘今亡。
Western Liang Music came to Later Wei when it conquered the Juqu regime. When Jin and Song collapsed, Zhang Gui held Hexi; Former Qin briefly reached Liangzhou, then contact broke off again. Its ensemble included bells and stones—Chinese old music kept in the northwest, blended with Qiang and Hu sounds. Both Wei and Sui held it in esteem. Performers wore plain caps and scarlet jackets. One dancer in the white dance; four in the square dance. The white dance is lost today. Square dancers wore false chignons, jade hairpins, purple silk jackets, white wide trousers, five-color joined sleeves, and black boots. Instruments: bell frame, stone chimes, strummed and plucked zheng, horizontal and vertical konghou, pipa, five-string pipa, sheng, xiao, large and small bili, vertical and transverse flutes, waist-, Qi-, and eaves-drums, bronze cymbals, and conch. The pitched bell set is now lost.
39
《周官》：「韎師掌教《韎樂》，祭祀則帥其屬而舞之，大享亦如之。」 《韎》，東夷之樂名也。 舉東方，則三方可知矣。 又有「鞮鞻氏掌四夷之樂，與其聲歌，祭祀則歙而歌之，宴亦如之。」 作先王樂者，貴能包而用之。 納四夷之樂者，美德廣之所及也。 東夷之樂曰《韎離》，南蠻之樂曰《任》，西戎之樂曰《禁》，北狄之樂曰《昧》。 《離》，言陽氣始通，萬物離地而生也。 《任》，言陽氣用事，萬物懷任也。 《禁》，言陰氣始通，禁止萬物之生長也。 《昧》，言陰氣用事，萬物眾形暗昧也。 其聲不正，作之四門之外，各持其方兵，獻其聲而已。 自周之衰，此禮尋廢。
The Zhou Offices state: "The mie master teaches mie music; at sacrifices he leads his subordinates in the dance, and the same at great feasts." Mie names the music of the Eastern Yi. Name the east and the other quarters follow. It also says: "The Di-diel clan oversees the four barbarians' music and songs; at sacrifices they draw breath and sing; at feasts likewise." Makers of the ancient royal music prized encompassing and employing all of it. Admitting the four quarters' music showed virtue's wide reach. Eastern Yi: "Mie-li"; Southern Man: "Ren"; Western Rong: "Jin"; Northern Di: "Mei." "Li" signifies yang force first opening as things rise from the soil. "Ren" means yang in command, all things entrusted and borne. "Jin" means yin first opening, restraining growth. "Mei" means yin in command, forms hidden in gloom. Their pitches were not court orthodoxy; each quarter performed beyond its gate with regional arms, offering sound alone. After Zhou's fall the rite was abandoned.
40
後魏有曹婆羅門，受龜茲琵琶于商人，世傳其業。 至孫妙達，尤為北齊高洋所重，常自擊胡鼓以和之。 周武帝聘虜女為後，西域諸國來媵，於是龜茲、疏勒、安國、康國之樂，大聚長安。 胡兒令羯人白智通教習，頗雜以新聲。 張重華時，天竺重譯貢樂伎，後其國王子為沙門來遊，又傳其方音。 宋世有高麗、百濟伎樂。 魏平拓跋，亦得之而未具。 周師滅齊，二國獻其樂。 隋文帝平陳，得《清樂》及《文康禮畢曲》，列九部伎，百濟伎不預焉。 煬帝平林邑國，獲扶南工人及其匏琴，陋不可用，但以《天竺樂》轉寫其聲，而不齒樂部。 西魏與高昌通，始有高昌伎。 我太宗平高昌，盡收其樂，又造《宴樂》，而去《禮畢曲》。 今著令者，惟此十部。 雖不著令，聲節存者，樂府猶隸之。 德宗朝，又有驃國亦遣使獻樂。
In Later Wei the Brahmin Cao learned Kucha pipa from a trader and passed the art down his line. His grandson Miaoda won favor from Northern Qi's Gao Yang, who often beat the Hu drum to accompany him. Zhou Wudi married a captive princess; Western Region states sent wedding musicians—Kucha, Shule, An, and Kang music flooded Chang'an. Hu performers had the Khotanese Bai Zhitong train them, blending many new tunes. Under Zhang Zhonghua India sent musicians via relay interpreters; later an Indian prince visited as a monk and spread those sounds again. The Liu-Song court knew Koguryo and Paekche dance music. Wei gained them when it subdued the Tuoba but not in full. Zhou's conquest of Qi brought both states' repertoires as tribute. Sui Wendi's conquest of Chen yielded Qing Music and the "Wenkang Rite Complete" piece for the nine departments—Paekche was excluded. Sui Yangdi's conquest of Linyi brought Funan artisans and gourd zithers—too crude for use; only their tones were copied into Tianzhu music, not enrolled in the music bureau. Western Wei's ties with Gaochang introduced Gaochang performance music. Taizong conquered Gaochang, took its entire repertoire, composed Banquet Music, and dropped the Rite-Complete piece. Only these ten departments are codified in present regulations. Pieces not codified but whose modes survive remain on the Music Bureau rolls. Under Dezong Pyu too sent envoys with its music.
41
《高麗樂》，工人紫羅帽，飾以鳥羽，黃大袖，紫羅帶，大口袴，赤皮靴，五色絛繩。 舞者四人，椎髻於後，以絳抹額，飾以金璫。 二人黃裙襦，赤黃袴，極長其袖，烏皮靴，雙雙並立而舞。 樂用彈箏一，搊箏一，臥箜篌一，豎箜篌一，琵琶一，義觜笛一，笙一，簫一，小篳篥一，大篳篥一，桃皮篳篥一，腰鼓一，齊鼓一，簷鼓一，貝一。 武太后時尚二十五曲，今惟習一曲，衣服亦浸衰敗，失其本風。 《百濟樂》，中宗之代，工人死散。 岐王范為太常卿，復奏置之，是以音伎多闕。 舞二人，紫大袖裙襦，章甫冠，皮履。 樂之存者，箏、笛、桃皮篳篥、箜篌、歌。 此二國，東夷之樂也。
Koguryo Music: performers in purple gauze caps with feather trim, yellow full sleeves, purple belts, bag trousers, red leather boots, and five-color cords. Four dancers with rear topknots, red forehead bands, and gold pendants. Two in yellow jackets and reddish trousers with very long sleeves and black boots danced in paired upright rows. Instruments: strummed and plucked zheng, horizontal and vertical konghou, pipa, yizi flute, sheng, xiao, large and small bili, peach-bark bili, waist-, Qi-, and eaves-drums, and conch. Under Empress Wu twenty-five pieces were still performed; today only one survives, costumes faded from the original style. Paekche Music: in Zhongzong's reign the performers died or dispersed. Prince of Qi Fan, as Director of Imperial Sacrifices, petitioned to restore it—yet much of the repertoire is missing. Two dancers in purple full-sleeved jackets, zhangfu caps, and leather shoes. Surviving instruments: zheng, flute, peach-bark bili, konghou, and voice. Both belong to Eastern Yi music.
42
《扶南樂》，舞二人，朝霞行纏，赤皮靴。 隋世全用《天竺樂》，今其存者，有羯鼓、都曇鼓、毛員鼓、簫、笛、篳篥、銅拔、貝。 《天竺樂》，工人皁絲布頭巾，白練襦，紫綾袴，緋帔。 舞二人，辮髮，朝霞袈裟，行纏，碧麻鞋。 袈裟，今僧衣是也。 樂用銅鼓、羯鼓、毛員鼓、都曇鼓、篳篥、橫笛、鳳首箜篌、琵琶、銅拔、貝。 毛員鼓、都曇鼓今亡。 《驃國樂》，貞元中，其王來獻本國樂，凡一十二曲，以樂工三十五人來朝。 樂曲皆演釋氏經論之辭。 此三國，南蠻之樂。
Funan Music: two dancers in dawn-colored leg bindings and red boots. Sui relied entirely on Tianzhu music; what remains includes jie-, dutan, and Maoyuan drums, xiao, flute, bili, cymbals, and conch. Tianzhu Music: black silk headwraps, white silk jackets, purple damask trousers, scarlet stoles. Two dancers with braided hair, dawn-colored kasaya, leg bindings, and green hemp shoes. Kasaya is the robe monks wear today. Instruments: bronze drum, jie-, Maoyuan, and dutan drums, bili, transverse flute, phoenix-head konghou, pipa, cymbals, and conch. Maoyuan and dutan drums are lost. Pyu Music: in Zhenyuan its king sent twelve native pieces and thirty-five musicians to court. The lyrics all paraphrase Buddhist scriptures. All three belong to the music of the Southern Man.
43
《高昌樂》，舞二人，白襖錦袖，赤皮靴，赤皮帶，紅抹額。 樂用答臘鼓一腰鼓一，雞婁鼓一，羯鼓一，簫二，橫笛二，篳篥二，琵琶二，五弦琵琶二，銅角一，箜篌一。 箜篌今亡。 《龜茲樂》，工人皁絲布頭巾，緋絲布袍，錦袖，緋布袴。 舞者四人，紅抹額，緋襖，白袴帑，烏皮靴。 樂用豎箜篌一，琵琶一，五弦琵琶一，笙一，橫笛一，簫一，篳篥一，毛員鼓一，都曇鼓一，答臘鼓一，腰鼓一，羯鼓一，雞婁鼓一，銅拔一，貝一。 毛員鼓今亡。 《疏勒樂》，工人皁絲布頭巾，白絲布袴，錦襟褾，舞二人，白襖，錦袖，赤皮靴，赤皮帶。 樂用豎箜篌、琵琶、五弦琵琶、橫笛、簫、篳篥、答臘鼓、腰鼓、羯鼓、雞婁鼓。 《康國樂》，工人皁絲布頭巾，緋絲布袍，錦領。 舞二人，緋襖，錦領袖，綠綾渾襠袴，赤皮靴，白袴帑。 舞急轉如風，俗謂之胡旋。 樂用笛二，正鼓一，和鼓一，銅拔一。 《安國樂》，工人皁絲布頭巾，錦褾領，紫袖袴。 舞二人，紫襖，白袴帑，赤皮靴。 樂用琵琶、五弦琵琶、豎箜篌、簫、橫笛、篳篥、正鼓、和鼓、銅拔、箜篌。 五弦琵琶今亡。 此五國，西戎之樂也。
Gaochang Music: two dancers in white jackets with brocade sleeves, red boots, red belts, and red forehead bands. Instruments: dalai and waist-drums, jilou and jie-drums, two xiao, two transverse flutes, two bili, two pipa, two five-string pipa, bronze horn, and konghou. The konghou is lost. Kucha Music: black silk headwraps, scarlet silk robes with brocade sleeves and scarlet trousers. Four dancers with red forehead bands, scarlet jackets, white leggings, and black boots. Instruments: vertical konghou, pipa, five-string pipa, sheng, transverse flute, xiao, bili, Maoyuan and dutan drums, dalai and waist-drums, jie- and jilou-drums, cymbals, and conch. The Maoyuan drum is lost. Shule Music: black headwraps, white silk trousers, brocade collars; dancers in white jackets with brocade sleeves, red boots and belts. Instruments: vertical konghou, pipa, five-string pipa, transverse flute, xiao, bili, dalai, waist-, jie-, and jilou-drums. Kang (Sogdian) Music: black headwraps and scarlet robes with brocade collars. Two dancers in scarlet jackets with brocade collar and sleeves, green damask trousers, red boots, and white leggings. The dance spins like wind—popularly called the Sogdian whirl. Instruments: two flutes, main and answering drums, and cymbals. An Music: black headwraps, brocade collars, purple sleeve-trousers. Two dancers in purple jackets, white leggings, and red boots. Instruments: pipa, five-string pipa, vertical konghou, xiao, transverse flute, bili, main and answering drums, cymbals, and konghou. The five-string pipa is lost. These five belong to Western Rong music.
44
南蠻、北狄國俗，皆隨髮際斷其髮，今舞者咸用繩圍首，反約髮杪，內於繩下。 又有新聲河西至者，號胡音聲，與《龜茲樂》、《散樂》俱為時重，諸樂咸為之少寢。
Southern and northern barbarians traditionally cropped the hairline; dancers now wrap the head in cord and tuck the ends beneath it. A new Hexi style called Hu yinsheng ranks with Kucha and Miscellaneous Music as the fashion, eclipsing older repertoires.
45
《北狄樂》，其可知者鮮卑、吐谷渾、部落稽三國，皆馬上樂也。 鼓吹本軍旅之音，馬上奏之，故自漢以來，《北狄樂》總歸鼓吹署。 後魏樂府始有北歌，即《魏史》所謂《真人代歌》是也。 代都時，命掖庭宮女晨夕歌之。 周、隋世，與《西涼樂》雜奏。 今存者五十三章，其名目可解者六章； 《慕容可汗》、《吐谷渾》、《部落稽》、《钜鹿公主》、《白淨王》、《太子企喻》也。 其不可解者，咸多「可汗」之辭。 按今大角，此即後魏世所謂《簸邏回》者是也，其曲亦多「可汗」之辭。 北虜之俗，呼主為可汗。 吐谷渾又慕容別種，知此歌是燕、魏之際鮮卑歌。 歌辭虜音，竟不可曉。 梁有《钜鹿公主歌辭》，似是姚萇時歌，其辭華音，與北歌不同。 梁樂府鼓吹又有《大白淨皇太子》、《小白淨皇太子》、《企喻》等曲。 隋鼓吹有《白淨皇太子》曲，與北歌校之，其音皆異。 開元初，以問歌工長孫元忠，云自高祖以來，代傳其業。 元忠之祖，受業于侯將軍，名貴昌，并州人也，亦世習北歌。 貞觀中，有詔令貴昌以其聲教樂府。 元忠之家世相傳如此。 雖譯者亦不能通知其辭，蓋年歲久遠，失其真矣。 絲桐，惟琴曲有胡笳聲大角，金吾所掌。
Northern Di music known today comes from Xianbei, Tuyuhun, and Buluoqi—all cavalry pieces. Drum-and-blow began as army music played on horseback; since Han, Northern Di music has belonged to the Drum-and-Blow Office. Later Wei's bureau first kept northern songs—the Wei History's "True Man Replacement Songs." At the Dai capital, inner-palace women sang them morning and night. Under Zhou and Sui they were performed together with Western Liang music. Fifty-three pieces survive; six titles are intelligible: namely "Murong Khan," "Tuyuhun," "Buluoqi," "Julu Princess," "White Pure King," and "Crown Prince Qiyu." Obscure titles mostly contain khan. Today's great horn is Later Wei's "Boluo hui," likewise full of khan phrases. Northern peoples call their ruler khan. Tuyuhun was a Murong offshoot—so these are Yan–Wei Xianbei songs. The lyrics are in barbarian speech and cannot be parsed. Liang preserved a Chinese-language "Julu Princess" lyric—likely from Yao Chang's day, unlike the northern pieces. Liang's bureau also listed "Great White Pure Crown Prince," "Little White Pure Crown Prince," "Qiyu," and similar drum pieces. Sui had its own "White Pure Crown Prince"; the melody differs from the northern version. Early Kaiyuan: vocalist Zhangsun Yuanzhong said his family had transmitted the art since Gaozu. His grandfather learned from General Hou Guichang of Bingzhou, another hereditary northern singer. Zhenguan edicts had Guichang teach the bureau his repertoire. Yuanzhong's line handed it down the same way. Even interpreters cannot make out the words—the original has long been lost. Among strings, only qin pieces include Hu-jia and great-horn tunes under the Golden Crow guard.
46
《散樂》者，歷代有之，非部伍之聲，俳優歌舞雜奏。 漢天子臨軒設樂，舍利獸從西方來，戲於殿前，激水成比目魚，跳躍嗽水，作霧翳日，化成黃龍，修八丈，出水遊戲，輝耀日光。 繩繋兩柱，相去數丈，二倡女對舞繩上，切肩而不傾。 如是雜變，總名百戲。 江左猶有《高祇紫鹿》、《跂行鱉食》、《齊王卷衣》、《綍鼠》、《夏育扛鼎》、《臣象行乳》、《神龜抃戲背負靈嶽》、《桂樹白雪》、《畫地成川》之伎。 晉成帝，散騎侍郎顧臻表曰：「末世之樂，設外方之觀，逆行連倒。 四海朝覲帝庭，而足以蹈天，頭以履地，反天地之順，傷彝倫之大。」 乃命太常悉罷之。 其後復《高祇紫鹿》。 後魏、北齊，亦有《魚龍辟邪》、《鹿馬仙車》、《吞刀吐火》、《剝車剝驢》、《種瓜拔井》之戲。 周宣帝徵齊樂並會關中。 開皇初，散遣之。 ，突厥單于來朝洛陽宮，煬帝為之大合樂，盡通漢、晉、周、齊之術。 胡人大駭。 帝命樂署肄習，常以歲首縱觀端門內。 大抵《散樂》雜戲多幻術，幻術皆出西域，天竺尤甚。 漢武帝通西域，始以善幻人至中國。 安帝時，天竺獻伎，能自斷手足，刳剔腸胃，自是歷代有之。 我高宗惡其驚俗，敕西域關令不令入中國。 苻堅嘗得西域倒舞伎。 睿宗時，婆羅門獻樂，舞人倒行，而以足舞於極銛刀鋒，倒植於地，低目就刃，以歷臉中，又植於背下，吹篳篥者立其腹上，終曲而亦無傷。 又伏伸其手，兩人躡之，施身繞手，百轉無已。 漢世有橦木伎，又有盤舞。 晉世加之以柸，謂之《柸盤舞》。 樂府詩云，「妍袖陵七盤」，言舞用盤七枚也。 梁謂之《舞盤伎》。 梁有《長蹻伎》、《擲倒伎》、《跳劍伎》、《吞劍伎》，今並存。 又有《舞輪伎》，蓋今戲車輪者。 《透三峽伎》，蓋今《透飛梯》之類也。 《高祇伎》，蓋今之戲繩者是也。 梁有《獼猴幢伎》，今有《緣竿》，又有《獼猴緣竿》，未審何者為是。 又有《弄碗珠伎》、《丹珠伎》。
"Miscellaneous Music" spans every dynasty—non-bureau entertainment of actors, song, dance, and mixed acts. At Han court audiences a sheli beast from the west played before the throne, spouting water into twin fish that leapt and sprayed mist across the sun, then became an eight-zhang yellow dragon sporting in the light. Ropes spanned pillars yards apart; two women danced the rope face to face, shoulder to shoulder without falling. Such variety acts were called the hundred entertainments. Jiangzuo still knew acts like Purple Deer of Gaoqi, Walking Crab, Qi King Rolling Cloth, Rope Mouse, Xia Yu with the tripod, Minister Xiang nursing, the turtle act bearing Spirit Peak, Osmanthus White Snow, and Drawing a River on the Ground. Jin Emperor Cheng's attendant Gu Zhen wrote: "Decadent shows invert nature with exotic stunts and upside-down tricks. All under heaven attends court, yet performers tread the sky with their feet and the earth with their heads—reversing cosmic order and violating human relations." He ordered the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to abolish them all. Later "Gaoqi Purple Deer" was revived. Later Wei and Northern Qi also staged Fish-Dragon Warding Evil, Deer-Horse Immortal Carriage, blade swallowing, cart and donkey stripping, and melon-planting well-drawing acts. Northern Zhou Xuan Di brought Qi performers into Guanzhong. Early Kaihuang dispersed them. When a Türk qaghan visited Luoyang, Yangdi staged a grand music festival mastering Han through Qi repertoires. The Hu guests were astonished. He had the Music Office drill the acts and each New Year opened Duan Gate for public viewing. Miscellaneous acts are largely illusion tricks from the Western Regions, especially India. Han Wudi's western campaigns first brought master illusionists to China. Under Emperor An India sent performers who cut off limbs and opened their bellies—such acts recurred thereafter. Gaozong disliked their shock to morals and barred western passes to them. Fu Jian once acquired western upside-down dancers. Under Ruizong a Brahmin troupe danced upside-down on razor knife points, blades along the face and back, a bili player standing on the belly—finishing unhurt. They also lay flat with arms outstretched while two men stepped on their hands and spun around them endlessly. Han had pole-climbing and plate dancing. Jin added cups, naming it the Cup-Plate Dance. A yuefu line runs, "Fair sleeves span seven plates"—seven plates in the dance. Liang called it the Plate-Dance act. Liang knew stilt walking, tumbling, sword leaping, and sword swallowing—all still performed. There was also wheel dancing—today's cart-wheel acts. "Passing Three Gorges" resembles today's flying-ladder stunt. "Gaoqi" is today's rope dancing. Liang had Monkey-on-Banner acts; today's pole-climbing and monkey pole acts may stem from either—uncertain which. Also bowl-pearl juggling and cinnabar-pearl acts.
47
歌舞戲，有《大面》、《撥頭》、《踏搖娘》、《窟𥗬子》等戲。 玄宗以其非正聲，置教坊於禁中以處之。 《婆羅門樂》，與四夷同列。 《婆羅門樂》用漆篳篥二，齊鼓一。 《散樂》，用橫笛一，拍板一，腰鼓三。 其餘雜戲，變態多端，皆不足稱。 《大面》出於北齊。 北齊蘭陵王長恭，才武而面美，常著假面以對敵。 嘗擊周師金墉城下，勇冠三軍，齊人壯之，為此舞以效其指麾擊刺之容，謂之《蘭陵王入陣曲》。 《撥頭》出西域。 胡人為猛獸所噬，其子求獸殺之，為此舞以像之也。 《踏搖娘》，生於隋末。 隋末河內有人貌惡而嗜酒，常自號郎中，醉歸必毆其妻。 其妻美色善歌，為怨苦之辭。 河朔演其曲而被之弦管，因寫其妻之容。 妻悲訴，每搖頓其身，故號《踏搖娘》。 近代優人頗改其制度，非舊旨也。 《窟𥗬子》，亦云《魁𥗬子》，作偶人以戲，善歌舞。 本喪家樂也。 漢末始用之於嘉會。 齊後主高緯尤所好。 高麗國亦有之。
Dramatic pieces include Great Mask, Botou, Taoyao Niang, and puppet Kuileizi plays. Xuanzong, deeming them non-court music, housed them in the inner-city Instruction Workshop. Brahmin Music ranks with the four foreign repertoires. Brahmin Music uses two lacquered bili and one Qi drum. Miscellaneous Music uses one transverse flute, one clapper, and three waist-drums. Other variety acts shift form endlessly and need not be catalogued. Great Mask originated in Northern Qi. Northern Qi's Prince Lanling Chang Gong was valiant but handsome and often wore a mask in battle. After routing Zhou forces at Jinyong, Qi created a dance mimicking his command and spear work—"Prince Lanling Enters the Array." Botou came from the Western Regions. A Hu man was killed by a beast; his son slew the beast and staged this dance in reenactment. Taoyao Niang arose in late Sui. Late Sui Henei had an ugly, drunken man who called himself Attendant and beat his wife when he came home drunk. His wife was beautiful and sang bitter laments. Hebei set the tune to strings and pipes and painted her likeness in the performance. She pleaded in song, swaying as she danced—hence Taoyao ("Swaying") Niang. Modern actors have changed the form far from the original. Kuileizi (puppet) plays, also called Kui leizi, use figures adept at song and dance. They began as funeral entertainment. Late Han first used them at banquets. Northern Qi's Gao Wei adored them. Koguryo has them as well.
48
八音之屬，協於八節。 匏，瓠也，女媧氏造。 列管於匏上，內簧其中，《爾雅》謂之巢。 大者曰竽，小者曰和。 竽，煦也，立春之音，煦生萬物也。 竽管三十六，宮管在左。 和管十三，宮管居中。 今之竽、笙，並以木代匏而漆之，無復音矣。 荊、梁之南，尚存古制云。
The Eight Sound categories match the eight seasonal nodes. Gourd-class instruments use the bottle-gourd; Nüwa is said to have made them. Pipes are arrayed on the gourd with reeds inside; the Erya calls this instrument chao. The large mouth-organ is yu; the smaller is he. Yu means warmth—the tone of Establishing Spring, when warmth quickens all things. The yu has thirty-six pipes, with the gong pipe on the left. The he has thirteen pipes, with the gong pipe in the center. Present-day yu and sheng substitute lacquered wood for gourd and no longer retain the old sound. South of Jing and Liang the ancient form is said to survive.
49
管三孔曰龠，春分之音，萬物振躍而動也。 簫，舜所造也。 《爾雅》謂之茭。 音交大曰絪，二十三管，修尺四寸。 笛，漢武帝工丘仲所造也。 其元出於羌中。 短笛，修尺有咫。 長笛、短笛之間，謂之中管。 篪，吹孔有觜如酸棗。 橫笛，小篪也。 漢靈帝好胡笛。 五胡亂華，石遵玩之不絕音。 《宋書》云：有胡篪出於胡吹，則謂此。 梁胡吹歌云：「快馬不須鞭，反插楊柳枝。 下馬吹橫笛，愁殺路傍兒。」 此歌辭元出北國。 之橫笛皆去觜，其加觜者謂之義觜笛。 篳篥，本名悲篥，出於胡中，其聲悲。 亦云：胡人吹之以驚中國馬云。 柷，眾也。 立夏之音，萬物眾皆成也。 方面各二尺餘，旁開員孔，內手於中，擊之以舉樂。 敔，如伏虎，背皆有鬣二十七，碎竹以擊其首而逆刮之，以止樂也。 舂牘，虛中如桶，無底，舉以頓地如舂杵，亦謂之頓相。 相，助也，以節樂也。 或謂梁孝王築睢陽城，擊鼓為下杵之節。 《睢陽操》用舂牘，後世因之。 拍板，長闊如手，厚寸餘，以韋連之，擊以代抃。
A three-holed pipe is yue—the Spring Equinox tone, when all things stir and spring into motion. The xiao was made by Shun. In the Erya it is named jiao. Large crossed pipes are called yin—twenty-three pipes, one foot four inches long. The di was made by the craftsman Qiu Zhong under Emperor Wu of Han. It originated among the Qiang. The short di is just over a foot long. Between long and short di lies the so-called middle pipe. The chi has a blow-hole with a beak shaped like a sour jujube. The transverse di is a small chi. Emperor Ling of Han doted on the Hu flute. During the Five Hu upheaval Shi Zun kept it sounding without pause. The Song History notes a Hu chi arising from Hu piping—this is the one. A Liang Hu-piping song says, "Swift horses need no whip—just tuck the willow branch backward. Dismount and blow the transverse di—enough to break a bystander's heart. These lyrics originally came from the northern states. Present transverse flutes drop the mouthpiece; those that keep it are called "righteous-mouthpiece flutes." Bili was originally "sorrow bili," from the Hu frontier; its tone is plaintive. Some say the Hu blew it to panic Chinese horses. Zhu means multitude. The Beginning Summer tone, when the myriad things in multitude are fully formed. Each side is over two feet, with round holes at the edge; the hand strikes inside to lift the ensemble. Yu resembles a crouching tiger with twenty-seven ridges on its back; split bamboo strikes the head and is scraped backward to cut off the music. The pounding board is hollow like a barrel, open at the bottom, and thumped on the ground like a pestle—also called dun xiang. Xiang means aid—it keeps time for the music. Some trace it to Prince Xiao of Liang building Suiyang, when drumbeats timed the pestle strokes. The Suiyang air used the pounding board, and later generations kept the practice. Clappers are hand-sized slabs over an inch thick, laced with hide and struck instead of castanets.
50
琴，伏羲所造。 琴，禁也，夏至之音，陰氣初動，禁物之淫心。 五弦以備五聲，武王加之為七弦。 琴十有二柱，如琵琶。 擊琴，柳惲所造。 惲嘗為文詠，思有所屬，搖筆誤中琴弦，因為此樂。 以管承弦，又以片竹約而束之，使弦急而聲亮，舉竹擊之，以為節曲。 瑟，昔者大帝使素女鼓五十弦瑟，悲不能自止，破之為二十五弦。 大帝，太昊也。 箏，本秦聲也。 相傳云蒙恬所造，非也。 制與瑟同而弦少。 案京房造五音準，如瑟，十三弦，此乃箏也。 雜樂箏並十有二弦，他樂皆十有三弦。 軋箏，以片竹潤其端而軋之。 築，如箏，細頸，以竹擊之，如擊琴。 《清樂》箏，用骨爪長寸餘以代指。 琵琶，四弦，漢樂也。 初，秦長城之役，有弦鞀而鼓之者。 及漢武帝嫁宗女于烏孫，乃裁箏、築為馬上樂，以慰其鄉國之思。 推而遠之曰琵，引而近之曰琶，言其便於事也。 今《清樂》奏琵琶，俗謂之「秦漢子」，圓體修頸而小，疑是弦鞀之遺制。 其他皆充上銳下，曲項，形制稍大，疑此是漢制。 兼似兩制者，謂之「秦漢」，蓋謂通用秦、漢之法。 《梁史》稱侯景之將害簡文也，使太樂令彭雋齎曲項琵琶就帝飲，則南朝似無。 曲項者，亦本出胡中。 五弦琵琶，稍小，蓋北國所出。 《風俗通》云：以手琵琶之，因為名。 案舊琵琶皆以木撥彈之，太宗貞觀中始有手彈之法，今所謂搊琵琶者是也。 《風俗通》所謂以手琵琶之。 乃非用撥之義，豈上世固有搊之者耶？ 阮咸，亦秦琵琶也，而項長過於今制，列十有三柱。 武太后時，蜀人蒯朗于古墓中得之。 晉《竹林七賢圖》阮咸所彈與此類，因謂之阮咸。 咸，晉世實以善琵琶知音律稱。 箜篌，漢武帝使樂人侯調所作，以祠太一。 或云侯輝所作，其聲坎坎應節，謂之坎侯，聲訛為箜篌。 或謂師延靡靡樂，非也。 舊說亦依琴制。 今按其形，似瑟而小，七弦，用撥彈之，如琵琶。 豎箜篌，胡樂也，漢靈帝好之。 體曲而長，二十有二弦，豎抱於懷，用兩手齊奏，俗謂之擘箜篌。 鳳首箜篌，有項如軫。 七弦，鄭善子作，開元中進。 形如阮咸，其下缺少而身大，旁有少缺，取其身便也。 弦十三隔，孤柱一，合散聲七，隔聲九十一，柱聲一，總九十九聲，隨調應律。 太一，司馬糸舀開元中進。 十二弦，六隔，合散聲十二，隔聲七十二。 弦散聲應律呂，以隔聲旋相為宮，合八十四調。 今編入雅樂宮縣內用之。 六弦，史盛作，天寶中進，形如琵琶而長。 六弦，四隔，孤柱一，合散聲六，隔聲二十四，柱聲一，總三十一聲，隔調應律。 天寶樂，任偃作，天寶中進。 類石幢，十四弦，六柱。 黃鐘一均足倍七聲，移柱作調應律。
The qin was made by Fuxi. Qin means restraint—the Summer Solstice tone, when yin first moves and curbs wanton impulse. Five strings matched the five tones; King Wu added two more for seven. The qin has twelve bridges, as on the pipa. The struck qin was invented by Liu Yun. Yun was drafting verse when a wandering brush hit a qin string; he turned the accident into this instrument. Tubes bear the strings, bound tight with bamboo slips for a bright tone; tapping the bamboo sets the beat. The se: the Supreme Emperor once had the Plain Girl play fifty strings until grief overwhelmed her; he split the instrument into twenty-five. The Supreme Emperor is Taihao. The zheng was originally a Qin instrument. Legend credits Meng Tian—it is not true. It is built like the se but with fewer strings. Jing Fang's five-tone standard resembled a thirteen-string se—that is the zheng. Folk zheng have twelve strings; court ensembles use thirteen. On the rolled zheng a moistened bamboo slip is rolled along the string. The zhu resembles the zheng with a narrow neck and is beaten with bamboo like the struck qin. Qing Music zheng pluck with inch-long bone nails instead of fingertips. The pipa has four strings and belongs to Han music. It began when Qin corvée workers beat stringed frame-drums on the Great Wall. When Emperor Wu sent a princess to the Wusun, zheng and zhu were cut down into saddle music to ease longing for home. Drawing outward is pi, drawing inward pa—names for how the hands work the strings. Qing Music's "Qin-Han lad" pipa is round with a slim neck—likely the stringed drum's descendant. Other pipa swell above, taper below, with curved necks and larger bodies—likely Han style. Hybrids of both are called "Qin-Han," using Qin and Han techniques together. The Liang History records Hou Jing sending Music Director Peng Juan with a curved-neck pipa when Jianwen was to be killed—suggesting the southern court lacked them earlier. Curved-neck pipa likewise came from the Hu. The five-string pipa, slightly smaller, likely came from the north. The Customs and Mores says hand-strumming named the instrument. Older pipa were all plectrum-plucked; Taizong's Zhenguan reign first saw finger playing—the modern strummed pipa. This is the "hand pipa" of Customs and Mores. That is not plectrum playing—did antiquity already know finger strumming? Ruan Xian pipa are Qin-style too, with longer necks than today and thirteen bridges. Under Empress Wu, Kuai Lang of Shu recovered one from a tomb. Ruan Xian in the Jin Bamboo Grove portrait plays the same form—hence the name. Ruan Xian in Jin times was renowned for pipa and pitch. Konghou: Emperor Wu ordered musician Hou Diao to build it for Grand Unity sacrifice. Others credit Hou Hui; its kan-kan tone matched the beat, called kan hou—later slurred to konghou. Some call it Master Yan's decadent tune—incorrect. Older sources modeled it on the qin. Its body resembles a small se with seven plucked strings, played like pipa. Vertical konghou is Hu music; Emperor Ling favored it. Curved and long, twenty-two strings, cradled upright and played with both hands—popularly "splitting konghou." Phoenix-head konghou bears a pegged neck. Seven-string version by Zheng Shanzi, submitted in Kaiyuan. Like Ruan Xian but with a shortened base, broad body, and side notches for grip. Thirteen divisions and one bridge yield seven open tones, ninety-one stopped, one bridge tone—ninety-nine pitches in all, tuned to the mode. The Taiyi instrument was presented by Sima Xuan in Kaiyuan. Twelve strings, six stops—twelve open tones and seventy-two stopped. Open tones match the lü; stopped tones rotate through palace modes for eighty-four keys. It is now entered in the court elegant-music hanging ensemble. Six-string instrument by Shi Sheng, Tianbao submission, pipa-shaped but longer. Six strings, four stops, one bridge—six open, twenty-four stopped, one bridge tone; thirty-one pitches matching the mode. Tianbao Music by Ren Yan, submitted in Tianbao. Stone-pillar shape, fourteen strings, six bridges. One Huangzhong scale doubles seven tones; moving bridges tunes each mode.
51
塤，曛也，立秋之音，萬物將曛黃也。 埏土為之，如鵝卵，凡六孔，銳上豐下。 大者《爾雅》謂之曰ＬＴ。 缶，如足盆，古西戎之樂，秦俗應而用之。 其形似覆盆，以四杖擊之。 秦、趙會于澠池，秦王擊缶而歌。 八缶，唐永泰初司馬縚進《廣平樂》，蓋八缶具黃鐘一均聲。 鐘，黃帝之工垂所造。 鐘，種也，立秋之音，萬物種成也。 大曰鎛，鎛亦大鐘也。 《爾雅》謂之鏞。 小而編之曰編鐘，中曰剽，小曰棧。 錞於，圓如碓頭，大上小下，縣以籠床，芒渼將之以和鼓。 沈約《宋書》云，「今人間時有之」，則宋日非廟庭所用。 後周平蜀獲之，斛斯徵觀曰：「錞於也。」 依幹寶《周禮注》試之，如其言。 鐃，木舌，搖之以和鼓。 梁有銅磬，蓋今方響之類。 方響，以鐵為之，修八寸，廣二寸，圓上方下。 架如磬而不設業，倚於架上以代鐘磬。 人間所用者才三四寸。 銅拔，亦謂之銅盤，出西戎及南蠻。 其圓數寸，隱起若浮漚，貫之以韋皮，相擊以和樂也。 南蠻國大者圓數尺。 或謂南齊穆士素所造，非也。 鉦，如大銅疊，縣而擊之，節鼓。 銅鼓，鑄銅為之，虛其一面，覆而擊其上。 南夷扶南、天竺類皆如此。 嶺南豪家則有之，大者廣丈餘。 磬，叔所造也。 磬，勁也，立冬之音，萬物皆堅勁。 《書》云，「泗濱浮磬」，言泗濱石可為磬。 今磬石皆出華原，非泗濱也。 登歌磬，以玉為之，《爾雅》謂之芃。 鼓，動也，冬至之音，萬物皆含陽氣而動。 雷鼓八面以祀天，靈鼓六面以祀地，路鼓四面以祀鬼神。 夏後加之以足，謂之足鼓。 殷人貫之以柱，謂之楹鼓。 周人縣之，謂之縣鼓。 後世從殷制建之，謂之建鼓。 晉鼓六尺六寸，金奏則鼓之。 傍有鼓謂之應鼓，以和大鼓。 小鼓有柄曰鞞，搖之以和鼓。 大曰鞉。 腰鼓，大者瓦，小者木，皆廣首而纖腹，本胡鼓也。 石遵好之，與橫笛不去左右。 齊鼓，如漆桶，大一頭，設齊於鼓面如麝臍，故曰齊鼓。 簷鼓，如小甕，先冒以革而漆之。 羯鼓，正如漆桶，兩手具擊，以其出羯中，故號羯鼓，亦謂之兩杖鼓。 都曇鼓，似腰鼓而小，以槌擊之。 毛員鼓，似都曇鼓而稍大。 答臘鼓，制廣羯鼓而短，以指揩之，其聲甚震，俗謂之揩鼓。 雞婁鼓，正圓，兩手所擊之處，平可數寸。 正鼓、和鼓者，一以正，一以和，皆腰鼓也。 節鼓，狀如博局，中間員孔，適容其鼓，擊之節樂也。 撫拍，以韋為之，實之以糠，撫之節樂也。
Xun means dusk—the Beginning Autumn tone when all things yellow toward evening. It is molded clay, goose-egg sized, six holes, tapered top and rounded base. The large type the Erya names hu. Fou resembles a foot-basin—old western Rong music that Qin custom took up. Shaped like an upside-down pot, beaten with four sticks. At the Mianchi meeting the King of Qin beat the fou and sang. Eight fou: in Tang Yongtai 1 Sima Can offered Guangping Music—eight fou spanning one Huangzhong scale. Bells were made by Chui, craftsman of the Yellow Emperor. Bell means seed—the Beginning Autumn tone when harvest is set. Large bells are bo; bo itself is a great bell. The Erya names the great bell yong. Smaller sets are bianzhong; middle size piao, smallest zhan. Chunyu is pestle-shaped, wide top and narrow bottom, hung on a frame; mangmei beats it with the drums. Shen Yue's Song History says commoners still keep them—so Song temples did not use them. Later Zhou captured one in Shu; Husi Zheng identified it as chunyu. Trial against Gan Bao's Zhou Rites note proved him right. Nao has a wooden clapper shaken with the drums. Liang used bronze qing—likely the modern fangxiang. Fangxiang is iron, eight by two inches, round on top and square below. Frames resemble qing stands without yew; plates lean on the frame instead of bells and stones. Folk versions are only three or four inches. Bronze ba or bronze pan comes from western Rong and southern Man. A few inches across with bubble-like bosses on leather thongs—clashed for rhythm. Southern Man types reach several feet across. Some credit Mu Shisu of Southern Qi—incorrect. Zheng resembles a large bronze dish, hung and struck to time the drums. Bronze drums are cast hollow on one side and beaten from above. Funan, Tianzhu, and similar southern peoples use the same form. Lingnan magnates keep them; the largest exceed ten feet wide. Stone qing were made by Shu. Qing means firm—the Beginning Winter tone when everything hardens. The Documents' "qing floated from the Si shore" means Si stone suffices for qing. Present qing stone comes from Huayuan, not Si. Ascent-hymn qing are jade; the Erya calls them peng. Drum means movement—the Winter Solstice tone when yang stirs within all things. Thunder drums have eight faces for Heaven, spirit drums six for Earth, road drums four for spirits. Xia added feet underneath—the foot-drum. Shang ran a pillar through it—the pillar-drum. Zhou suspended it—the suspended drum. Later generations followed Shang and erected it—the set-up drum. Jin drums measure six feet six; they sound when bronze music plays. A companion answering drum harmonizes with the great drum. Handled small drums are bi, shaken with the ensemble. The large type is tao. Waist drums are wide-headed and narrow-waisted—large pottery, small wood—originally Hu. Shi Zun kept them beside his transverse flute day and night. Qi drum is a lacquer bucket, one end wider, with a musk-navel boss on the head. Eaves drum is jar-sized, hide-skinned and lacquered. Jie drum is a lacquer barrel beaten with both hands—from the Jie people, also called two-stick drum. Dudan drum resembles a small waist drum beaten with sticks. Maoyuan drum is a bit larger than dudan. Dala is wider and shorter than jie, finger-rubbed and thunderous—folk call it the rubbing drum. Jilou drum is circular with a flat striking surface several inches wide. Zheng and he drums—lead and answer—are both waist drums. Beat drum is board-shaped with a central hole for the drumhead—it keeps time. Caressing clappers are hide pouches filled with chaff and brushed for tempo.
52
金、石、絲、竹、匏、土、革、木，謂之八音。 金木之音，擊而成樂。 今東夷有管木者，桃皮是也。 西戎有吹金者，銅角是也。 長二尺，形如牛角。 貝，蠡也，容可數升，並吹之以節樂，亦出南蠻。 桃皮，卷之以為篳篥。 嘯葉，銜葉而嘯，其聲清震，橘柚尤善。 四夷絲竹之量，國異其制，不可詳盡。 《爾雅》：琴二十弦曰離，瑟二十七弦曰灑。 漢世有洞簫，又有管，長尺圍寸而並漆之。 宋世有繞梁，似臥箜篌。 今並亡矣。 今世又有篪，其長盈尋，曰七星，如箏稍小，曰雲和，樂府所不用。
Metal, stone, silk, bamboo, gourd, clay, leather, and wood make the Eight Sounds. Metal and wood become music by striking. Eastern Yi still use wooden pipes—peach bark among them. Western Rong blow metal—the bronze horn. Two feet long and horn-shaped. Shells are gourd cups holding several pints, blown for rhythm—another southern Man instrument. Peach bark is rolled into bili pipes. Leaf whistles—leaf between the lips—ring bright; citrus leaves work best. Four-Yi silk-and-bamboo ensembles vary by realm beyond full listing. The Erya says twenty-string qin is li, twenty-seven-string se is sa. Han had cave xiao and bundled guan pipes a foot long, lacquered as one. Song had raoliang, like horizontal konghou. All are extinct today. A modern chi spans a fathom ("Seven Stars"); a zheng-like Yunhe survives unused by the Music Office.
53
周天子宮縣，諸侯軒縣，大夫曲縣，士特縣。 故孔子之堂，聞金石之音； 魏絳之家，有鐘磬之聲。 秦、漢之際，斯禮無聞。 漢丞相田蚡，前庭羅鐘磬，置曲旃。 光武又賜東海恭王鐘簴之樂。 即漢世人臣，尚有金石。 漢樂歌云，「高張四縣，神來宴饗」，謂宮縣也。 制氏在太樂，能記鏗鏘鼓舞。 河間王著《樂記》，八佾之舞與制氏不甚相遠，又舞八佾之明文也。 《漢儀》云，高廟撞千石之鐘十枚，即《上林賦》所謂「撞千石之鐘，立萬石之鋌钜」者也。 鐘當十二，而此十枚，未識其義。 議者皆云漢世不知用宮縣。 今案漢章、和世用旋宮，漢世群儒，備言其義，牛弘、祖孝孫所由准的也。 又河間王博采經籍，與制氏不殊，知漢世之樂，為最備矣。 魏、晉已來，但云四廂金石，而不言其禮，或八架，或十架，或十六架。 梁武始用二十六架。 貞觀初增三十六架，加鼓吹熊羆桉十二於四隅。 後魏、周、齊皆二十六架。 建德中，復梁三十六架。 隋文省。 煬帝又復之。
Zhou ritual graded hanging music: Son of Heaven palace set, lords hall set, grand masters curved, knights single. Confucius' hall therefore rang with bells and stones; Wei Jiang's household kept bells and chimes. From Qin through Han the practice faded from record. Chancellor Tian Fen lined his front court with bells, qing, and curved banners. Emperor Guangwu gave the Prince of Donghai bell frames and full sets. Even Han-era subjects could still keep metal and stone ensembles. Han lyrics run, "Four sets raised high, spirits feast"—the palace hanging. Master Zhi of the Grand Music Office memorized gong-clang and drum patterns. Prince of Hejian's Music Record and Master Zhi's eight-row dance nearly match—clear evidence of eight rows. Han Institutions: the High Temple strikes ten bells of thousand-bushel weight—the Shanglin Fu passage. Twelve bells were standard; why ten here is unclear. Scholars claim Han did not understand palace sets. Yet Han Zhang and He used rotating modes; Han ru detailed the theory that Niu Hong and Zu Xiaosun followed. Prince of Hejian's anthologies align with Master Zhi—Han music was the fullest. Wei-Jin sources mention four-wing metal and stone without ritual detail—eight, ten, or sixteen frames. Liang Wudi introduced twenty-six frames. Early Zhenguan raised thirty-six frames and twelve corner wind-percussion bear stands. Northern Wei, Zhou, and Qi kept twenty-six frames. Jiande restored Liang's thirty-six-frame layout. Sui Wendi cut the frames back. Yangdi restored the full array.
54
樂縣，橫曰簨，豎曰簴。 飾簨以飛龍，飾趺以飛廉，鐘簴以摯獸，磬簴以摯鳥，上列樹羽，旁垂流蘇，周制也。 縣以崇牙，殷制也。 飾以博山，後世所加也。 宮縣每架金博山五，軒縣三。 鼓，承以花趺，覆以華蓋，上集翔鷺。 隋氏二十架，先置建鼓於四隅，鎛鐘方面各三，依其辰位，雜列編鐘、磬各四架於其間。 二十六架，則編鐘十二架，磬亦如之。 軒縣九架，鎛鐘三架，在辰、醜、申地，編鐘、磬皆三架。 設路鼓二於縣內戌、巳地之北。 設柷敔於四隅，舞人立於其中。 錞於、鐃、鐸、撫拍、舂牘，列於舞人間。 唐禮，天子朝廟用三十六架。 高宗成蓬萊宮，充庭七十二架。 武后遷都，乃省之。 皇后廟及郊祭並二十架，同舞八佾。 先聖廟及皇太子廟並九架，舞六佾。 縣間設柷敔各一，柷于左，敔於右。 錞於、撫拍、頓相、鐃、鐸，次列于路鼓南。 舞人列於縣北。 登歌二架，登於堂上兩楹之前。 編鐘在東，編磬在西。 登歌工人坐堂上，竹人立堂下，所謂「琴瑟在堂，竽笙在庭」也。 殿庭加設鼓吹於四隅。
Hanging music: horizontal beams are suan, upright posts ju. Zhou style: dragon suan, Flying Serpent bases, beast bell-frames, bird qing-frames, feather plumes and tassels. Yin hung them with lofty teeth. Later ages added Bo Mountain ornament. Palace frames carry five gilt Bo Mountains each; hall frames three. Drums stand on floral pedestals under flowered canopies topped with egrets. Sui's twenty frames put set-up drums at the corners, three bo bells per cardinal direction, and four bianzhong and qing frames between. Twenty-six frames used twelve bianzhong frames and twelve qing. Hall sets: nine frames—three bo at chen, chou, shen; three bianzhong and three qing. Two road drums north inside the stand at xu and si. Zhu and yu at the corners with dancers inside. Chunyu, nao, duo, caressing clappers, and pounding boards line the dancers. Tang rites give the emperor thirty-six frames for court and temple. Gaozong's Penglai Palace briefly held seventy-two frames in the courtyard. Empress Wu's capital move cut them back. Empress temples and suburban rites use twenty frames and the eight-row dance. The Former Sage Temple and the Crown Prince Temple each had nine suspension frames and six rows of dancers. Between the suspensions stood one zhu and one yi—the zhu to the left, the yi to the right. Chunyu, clappers, beating blocks, nao, and duo were lined up south of the road drums. Dancers stood north of the suspension. Two ascending-hymn frames stood before the hall's central pillars. Serial bells were placed east; serial chimes west. Ascending-hymn musicians sat in the hall; bamboo players stood below—"zithers and se in the hall, yu and sheng in the courtyard," as the saying runs. The palace courtyard also had wind-and-percussion ensembles at the four corners.
55
宴享陳《清樂》、《西涼樂》。 架對列於左右廂，設舞筵於其間。 舊皇后庭但設絲管，大業尚侈，始置鐘磬，猶不設鎛鐘，以鎛磬代。 武太后稱制，用鐘，因而莫革。 樂縣，庭廟以五彩雜飾，軒縣以硃，五郊則各從其方色。 每先奏樂三日，太樂令宿設縣於庭，其日率工人入居其次。 協律郎舉麾，樂作； 僕麾，樂止。 文舞退，武舞進。 若常享會，先一日具坐、立部樂名封上，請所奏禦注而下。 及會，先奏坐部伎，次奏立部伎，次奏蹀馬，次奏《散樂》而畢矣。
Banquets featured Clear Music and Western Liang Music. Frames faced each other in the left and right wings, with a dance mat between. Earlier the empress's court had only strings and winds; under the Great Enterprise, when display was prized, bells and chimes were first installed—but still no bo bells; large stone chimes stood in for them. When Empress Wu ruled she restored full bells, and the practice was never altered. Music stands at court temples were ornamented in mixed five colors; regnal suspension in vermillion; the five suburban altars each took the color of its direction. Three days before each performance the Director of Grand Music set up the suspension in the courtyard and lodged there overnight; on the day itself he led the musicians to their stations. The pitch director raised the banner—music began; he lowered it—music stopped. Civil dance withdrew; martial dance entered. For routine feasts, the day before, lists of seated- and standing-section pieces were sealed and submitted so the throne could mark which to perform. At the gathering they played seated-section pieces first, then standing-section, then treading-horse, then Scattered Music—and that concluded the program.
56
廣明初，巢賊幹紀，輿駕播遷，兩都覆圮，宗廟悉為煨燼，樂工淪散，金奏幾亡。 及僖宗還宮，購募鐘縣之器，一無存者。 昭宗即位，將親謁郊廟，有司請造樂縣，詢於舊工，皆莫知其制度。 修奉樂縣使宰相張浚悉集太常樂胥詳酌，竟不得其法。 時太常博士殷盈孫深于典故，乃案《周官考工記》之文，究其欒、銑、於、鼓、鉦、舞、甬之法，沉思三四夕，用演算法乘除，鎛鐘之輕重高低乃定。 懸下編鐘，正黃鐘九寸五分，下至登歌倍應鐘三寸三分半，凡四十八等。 口項之量，徑衡之圍，悉為圖，遣金工依法鑄之，凡二百四十口。 鑄成，張浚求知聲者處士蕭承訓、梨園樂工陳敬言與太樂令李從周，令先校定石磬，合而擊拊之，八音克諧，觀者聳聽。 浚既進呈，昭宗陳於殿庭以試之。 時以宗廟焚毀之後，修奉不及，乃權以少府監廳為太廟。 其庭甚狹，議者論縣樂之架不同。 浚奏議曰：
Early in the Guangming era Huang Chao's rebels threw the realm into chaos; the court fled; both capitals fell; ancestral temples burned to ash; musicians scattered; bronze ritual music nearly died out. When Xizong returned to the capital he tried to buy bell-suspension instruments—none survived. Zhaozong, on accession, prepared to attend the suburban altars in person; the authorities ordered new music stands and questioned veteran craftsmen, but none knew the regulations. Zhang Jun, chief minister and commissioner for the music stands, assembled every Grand Music clerk in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices for consultation, yet still could not recover the method. Doctor Yin Yingsun of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, versed in antiquity, turned to the Artificers' Record in the Zhou Offices, worked out the rules for bell crowns, shanks, sound-bowls, bodies, clapper-bosses, dance-panels, and stems, brooded three or four nights, and by arithmetic fixed the weight and pitch of the bo bells. For the suspended serial bells, proper Yellow Bell measured nine cun five fen, down to ascending-hymn doubled Ying Bell at three cun three and a half fen—forty-eight grades in all. Mouth and crown dimensions and stem and crossbar girth were fully diagrammed; metalworkers cast to specification—two hundred forty bells in all. After casting, Zhang Jun found masters of pitch—recluse Xiao Chengxun, Pear Garden musician Chen Jingyan, and Director of Grand Music Li Congzhou—had them tune the stone chimes first, then strike them together; the eight categories matched, and listeners were struck dumb. Jun presented the set; Zhaozong had it arranged in the palace courtyard for trial. With the ancestral temples still in ruins and restoration lagging, the court temporarily used the Ministry of Imperial Manufactories hall as the Imperial Ancestral Temple. The courtyard was very cramped; officials argued that the suspension frames could not match the usual layout. Zhang Jun submitted a memorial of deliberation, saying:
57
從之。
The throne approved.
58
古制，雅樂宮縣之下，編鐘四架，十六口。 近代用二十四口，正聲十二，倍聲十二，各有律呂，凡二十四聲。 登歌一架，亦二十四鐘。 雅樂淪滅，至是復全。
By ancient rule, under elegant music's palace suspension there were four frames of serial bells—sixteen bells. Later ages used twenty-four bells—twelve fundamental tones and twelve octave doubles—each with its pitch name, twenty-four tones in all. The ascending-hymn frame likewise held twenty-four bells. Elegant music had been lost; now at last it was whole again.