Tang-era piece: Chenghe Yue
《承和樂》
compiled by David Badagnani (rev. 12 March 2023)
In an effort to make this information more accessible, this document contains resources related to the Tang-era piece entitled Chenghe Yue《承和樂》(Music of Continuing Harmony), which exists in the form of instrumental parts for a single-movement zhong qu (中曲, medium-length piece) consisting of 10 measures of 4/2, in the Mixolydian mode on D, called Yue diao (越調) in Chinese and Ichikotsu-chō (壹越調) in Japanese.
As preserved in Sino-Japanese sources, this piece is called Shōwaraku『承和樂（しょうわらく）』, and it appears in the following score collections:
1) and 2) Sango Yōroku and Jinchi Yōroku, both of which were compiled in the late 12th century
3) Ruisō Chiyō『類箏治要』(1296 or c. 1261)
4) Rosei Yōroku『蘆聲要録』(perhaps 1661)
Although this title appears in Chinese sources as a piece of court ceremonial music, it is likely that the Chenghe Yue preserved in Sino-Japanese tablatures was created in Japan by Ōto no Kiyogami (大戸清上, d. 839; also known as Seijō), a Japanese flute master of the early Heian period, probably based on thematic material of Tang origin; this is supported by the fact that Japanese visitors to Tang China are unlikely to have been given access to any ceremonial music of the inner court (Picken 1987, p. 46). It seems likely that the title was based on Jōwa (承和), the era name spanning 834 to 848, during the reign of Emperor Ninmyō (r. 833-850) in the Heian period. Since Ōto no Kiyogami died in 839, this piece should have been composed sometime between 834 and 839.
Evidence also indicates that this piece formerly had a prelude (which was lost in "mid-antiquity"), meaning that Chenghe Yue, when formerly performed as part of a suite, was originally a po (破; Japanese: ha), or "broaching" movement.
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Chinese historical sources mentioning Cheng He Yue
● Xin Tang Shu 《新唐书》 (The New Book of Tang; generally translated as "New History of the Tang" or "New Tang History")
This historical work covering the Tang Dynasty, comprising ten volumes and 225 chapters, was compiled by compiled by a team of scholars led by Ouyang Xiu and Song Qi, a process that took 17 years. It was completed in 1060, during the Northern Song Dynasty. It is one of the Twenty-Four Histories (二十四史). A ritual piece entitled Cheng He《承和》is discussed in volume 21:
● Yuefu Shiji《乐府诗集》by Guo Maoqian (郭茂倩, 1041-1099)
The lyrics for two different ritual pieces entitled Cheng He《承和》are included in volume 7:
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Videos and recordings of Chenghe Yue
● Full-ensemble realization of Chenghe Yue, done by Tokinori Yanagita using synthesized sounds (Japan, 2021)
● Full-ensemble realization of Chenghe Yue, done by Tokinori Yanagita using synthesized sounds, revised version (Japan, 2021)
● Full-ensemble realization of Chenghe Yue, done by Tokinori Yanagita using synthesized sounds, revised version 3 (Japan, 2021)
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Bibliography
● Laurence Picken, ed., with Rembrandt F. Wolpert, Allan J. Marett, Jonathan Condit, and Elizabeth J. Markham, and with Yōko Mitani and Noël J. Nickson. Music from the Tang Court, vol. 4. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
● Laurence Picken and Noël J. Nickson, eds., with Rembrandt F. Wolpert, Allan J. Marett, Elizabeth J. Markham, Yōko Mitani, and Stephen Jones. Music from the Tang Court, vol. 5. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
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