Using the discussion in WOM, briefly outline the history of opera in China
What will be an ideal response?
• Professionals who performed in opera in imperial China were much admired but held low status. Due to legal restrictions on mixed-gender troupes, some actors/actresses specialized in impersonating characters of the opposite gender (e.g., Mei Lanfang, a male famous for his female impersonations and lyrical, graceful vocal style).
• By the 1920s Western ideas began to influence opera in China (Western musical instruments, Western-style theaters and props/scenery). Although traditional operas with historical settings still predominated, operas with contemporary social themes were also introduced.
• With the founding in 1949 of the People's Republic, the Chinese Communist Party called for an increase in operas with contemporary themes and working-class characters.
• "After the end of the Cultural Revolution in 1976 the presentation of mythical and historical tales (or newly-written stories with a historical setting) resumed, with contemporary settings left in the main to other genres."
Solo Instrumental Traditions
Music for the qin (seven-string Chinese zither)
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