Elegant music in Zhou dynasty

Shortly after the establishment of the Zhou Dynasty, Zhou Wuwang ordered the Duke of Zhou, Ji Dan and the system of rites and music to establish all kinds of etiquette and ritual music in aristocratic life, so that music could serve his kingship. This part of music and dance is the so-called "elegant music". Including ancient totem, witchcraft and other religious activities in music, dance and sacrifice music, as well as folk music in the early Western Zhou Dynasty.

Various aristocratic manners recorded in Zhou Li during the Spring and Autumn Period of the Western Zhou Dynasty, among which the ones related to elegant music are:

Suburban communities: festivals to worship the gods of heaven and earth;

Tasting: the sacrificial ceremony of the nobles to their ancestors;

* Catering: political banquets, etc. Including big meals, Yan Li, big shooting, providing for the aged and so on.

* Village shooting: a meeting between village bureaucrats and landlords;

* Presented by Wang Shida: the triumph celebration held when the war was won;

* marching field suit: used for hunting in the nature of military exercises.

As the ruling means-the tool of ritual and music education, the status and function of music and dance art have also been mentioned to an unprecedented height.

In the etiquette activities of the Zhou Dynasty, it is strictly stipulated that different scenes should use different music. Its main purpose is to edify the aristocrats attending the ceremony with ethical education and create a solemn, solemn, quiet and harmonious atmosphere.

The lyrics of various major ceremony music are mostly included in the "elegance", "elegance" and "ode" in the Book of Songs. A few belong to the "South".

With the decline of the Zhou Dynasty and the development of society, folk music gradually replaced elegant music. The nobles were tired of elegant music and turned to pop music. For example, as recorded in Yue Ji, Wei Wenhou "listened to ancient music with a crown and dared not lie down; I can never get tired of listening to the voices of Zheng and Wei. " Therefore, Confucius once lamented: "The ceremony collapsed and the music was bad." The elegant music with the ceremony began to have a strong flavor of life, and then gradually became solemn, mysterious and dull.