Tang-era piece: Cheng Tian Yue
《承天樂》
compiled by David Badagnani (rev. 10 April 2021)
In an effort to make this information more accessible, this document contains resources related to the Tang-era piece entitled Cheng Tian Yue《承天樂》, which exists in the form of instrumental parts.
As preserved in Sino-Japanese sources, this piece is called Shōtenraku『承天樂（しょうてんらく）』, and it appears in the following score collection:
● Kagaku ifu『歌楽維譜』(13th-century)
Additionally, the title appears in a table of contents for Hakuga Fue-fu『博雅笛譜』, also known as Hakuga no Fue-fu (literally "Hakuga's Fue Scores"), and properly known as Shinsen Gaku-fu (Chōshukyō Chiku-fu) 『新撰樂譜（長秋卿竹譜）』(literally "Newly Compiled Music Scores (Lord Long Autumn's Bamboo [Flute] Scores)") (966), which was made public in 2002, but no notation for this piece survives in this collection.
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Chinese historical sources mentioning Cheng Tian Yue
● Tongdian《通典》(Comprehensive Institutions)
Written by Tang Dynasty scholar and historian Du You (杜佑, 735-812) between 766 and 801, Tongdian discusses music in its fifth section; Cheng Tian Yue is mentioned in volume 146.
● Wenxian Tongkao《文献通考》(Comprehensive Examination of Literature)
Compiled in the early 14th century by Ma Duanlin (马端临), this work contains a list and descriptions (though no illustrations) of many ancient and Medieval musical instruments. In volume 146, the title appears as "Cheng Tian Yue"《承天樂》and "Cheng Tian Wu"《承天舞》.
● 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 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). It contains some discussion of the music of the Sui Dynasty. In volume 21, the title appears as "Cheng Tian Yue"《承天樂》and "Cheng Tian Wu"《承天舞》.
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Thanks to Steven G. Nelson for assistance with this page.
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