Echoes Beyond the Strings
Royal compilations including Jiugong Dacheng Nan Bei Ci Gongpu (The Complete Collection of Southern and Northern Modal Systems), Qinding Shijing Yüepu Quanshu (The Complete Imperial Edition of Music Scores for the Book of Songs), and Qinding Yüelü Zhengsu (The Imperial Standards of Orthodox and Popular Music) preserved crucial Chinese poetic and theatrical musical traditions. While these texts document the rich musical heritage of the Qing court, the exhibition incorporates visual representations from earlier dynasties. Tang and Ming paintings of court musicians visually complement these written sources, offering viewers both textual and artistic perspectives on imperial musical culture.
Selections 1
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Seven Grades of Music for the Three Ranks
In Yüzhi Lülü Zhengyi Xübian (Supplement to the Imperially Commissioned Correct Meaning of the Pitch Pipes)
Compiled on imperial order by Yunlu, Yunzhi et al.
Court copper movable type edition, Kangxi period (1661–1722), Qing dynasty
故殿010856Emperor Kangxi (1654–1722) showed great interest in Western learning, particularly Western music theories. He studied under missionaries, including Tomás Pereira (Portuguese, 1645–1708) and Teodorico Pedrini (Italian, 1671–1746), who introduced him to the principles of European music theories. Under the emperor’s direction, missionaries in the court compiled two landmark works: Essentials of the Pitch Pipes and Supplement to the Imperially Commissioned Correct Meaning of the Pitch Pipes. These texts—written in Chinese—are among the earliest works on Western music theories in China. Supplement to the Imperially Commissioned Correct Meaning of the Pitch Pipes presents Western music theories and information such as the five-line staff and solfège system, opening the door to a global perspective on music in China and having considerable influences on the country.
Selections 2
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Musical Score for the Taoyao Chapter
In Qinding Shijing Yüepu Quanshu (Imperially Endorsed Complete Musical Scores for the Book of Odes, Vol. 1)
Compiled on imperial order by Yongrong et al.
Wuying Palace movable type edition printed in red and black, 1788, Qing dynasty
故殿021052Imperially Endorsed Complete Musical Scores for the Book of Odes, compiled in 30 volumes and completed in 1788, was ordered by Emperor Qianlong to be authored collaboratively by imperial princes and officials of the Ministry of Music. The emperor explicitly instructed that the work was to “establish the proper usage of gong and shang pitches, and draw upon ancient sources for authoritative reference,” ensuring that each Chinese character was matched to a single musical note. Taking the “Taoyao Chapter” as an example, the collection includes individual scores for a range of musical instruments: xiao (including variants such as xuan, chi, and paixiao), dizi (including variants such as sheng), bells (including variants such as qing), qin, and se.