Tang-era piece: Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue
《秦王破陣樂》
compiled by David Badagnani (rev. 28 February 2024)
In an effort to make this information more accessible, this document contains resources related to the Tang-era piece entitled Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue《秦王破陣樂》(The Emperor of Qin Breaks the Formations), which exists in the form of instrumental parts for a piece in the Mixolydian mode.
As preserved in Sino-Japanese sources, this piece is written『秦王破陣樂』, and pronounced either Jinnō hajin-raku (じんのうはじんらく) or Shinnō hajin-raku (しんのうはじんらく). It appears in the following score collections:
1) Gogen Fu『五絃譜』or Gogen Kinfu『五絃琴譜』, the manuscript itself simply bearing the title《五絃》(Gogen); individual pieces in the collection bear the dates 773 (Yeban Yue) and 842 and the music is believed to be of Tang Chinese origin, though the manuscript was probably copied in Japan in the 11th century during the mid-Heian period
2) and 3) Sango Yōroku and Jinchi Yōroku, both of which were compiled in the late 12th century
Note that, although they share the same title, the musical material of the Gogen Fu version of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue is unrelated to the version found in Sango Yōroku and Jinchi Yōroku, or to the similarly titled Huangdi Po Zhen Yue / Ō-dai hajin-raku《皇帝破陣樂》, which also exists in the same two collections.
Musicologist Steven G. Nelson has noted that the Gogen Fu version of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue is fundamentally the same as the Po movement of yet another piece with a similar title, San Shou Po Zhen Yue / Sanju hajin-raku《散手破陣樂》. The Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue found in Sango Yōroku and Jinchi Yōroku does not bear any resemblance to any other version of any piece with any variation of this title.
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Chinese historical sources mentioning Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue
● Jiaofang Ji《教坊记》(The Conservatory Records)
A collection of short essays by the Tang scholar Cui Lingqin (崔令钦, fl. 749). The title appears as "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》.
● Jiegu Lu《羯鼓錄》
Jiegu Lu is a book on music in two parts by Nan Zhuo (南卓, fl. 848-850). The first part was completed in 848 and the second in 850. The title appears as "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》.
● Jiu Tang Shu《旧唐书》(The Old Book of Tang), also known simply as Tang Shu《唐书》 (The Book of Tang), a historical work in 200 volumes that was completed in 945, actually during the Later Jin (后晋) Dynasty, one of the Five Dynasties during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (五代十国) period following the fall of the Tang Dynasty; it is one of the Twenty-Four Histories (二十四史). In volume 29, the title appears as "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》and "Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue"《秦王破陣樂》, and in volume 51 it appears as "Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue"《秦王破陣樂》.
● Taiping Guangji《太平广记》(Extensive Records of the Taiping Era) Taiping Guangji is a collection of stories compiled in the early Northern Song Dynasty under imperial direction by the scholar and bureaucrat Li Fang (李昉, 925-996). The work was completed in 978 and printing blocks were cut, but it was prevented from publication on the grounds that it contained only xiaoshuo (fiction or "insignificant tellings") and thus "was of no use to young students." It survived in manuscript form until it was eventually published in the Ming Dynasty. The collection, which is considered one of the Four Great Books of Song, is divided into 500 volumes and consists of about 3 million Chinese characters. It includes about 7,000 stories selected from over 300 books and novels from the Han Dynasty to the early Song Dynasty, many of which have been lost. Some stories are historical or naturalistic anecdotes, and each is replete with historical elements, and were not regarded by their authors as fiction, but the topics are mostly supernatural, about Buddhist and Taoist priests, immortals, ghosts, and various deities. They include a number of Tang Dynasty stories, especially chuanqi (tales of wonder), that are famous works of literature in their own right, and also inspired later works. In volumes 203 and 204, the title appears as "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》.
● 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. In volume 144, the title appears as "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》, and in volume 146 it appears as "Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue"《秦王破陣樂》, "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》and "Xiao Po Zhen Yue"《小破陣樂》.
● 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 "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》, "Po Zhen"《破陣》, "Po Zhen Wu"《破陣舞》, and "Xiao Po Zhen Yue"《小破陣樂》.
● 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 "Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue"《秦王破陣樂》, "Po Zhen Yue" (破陣樂), and "Po Zhen Yue Wu" (破陣樂舞); in volume 22 it appears as "Po Zhen Yue"《破陣樂》and "Xiao Po Zhen Yue"《小破陣樂》; and in volume 216 it appears as "Qin Wang Po Zhen Qu"《秦王破陣曲》.
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Chinese poems and poetic lyrics mentioning Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue
《舞曲歌辞 凯乐歌辞 破阵乐》
作者：无名氏（唐）
Anonymous (Tang Dynasty)
Anonymous (Tang Dynasty)
受律辞元首，相将讨叛臣。
咸歌破阵乐，共赏太平人。
Notes:
《唐书·乐志》曰：“唐制，凡命将出征，有大功，献俘馘，其凯乐用铙吹二部，乐器有笛、筚篥、箫、笳、铙、鼓。〖歌七种〗迭奏《破阵乐》等四曲，一《破阵乐》，二《应圣期》，三《贺圣欢》，四《君臣同庆乐》。初，太宗平东都，破宋金刚，其后苏定方执贺鲁，李绩平高丽，皆备军容凯歌以入，而贞观显庆开元礼并无仪注。太常旧有《破阵乐应圣期》两曲歌词，至太和三年，始具仪注，又补撰二曲为四曲云。”
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《和李校书新题乐府十二首 其五 法曲》
作者：元稹（中唐）
by Yuan Zhen (mid-Tang Dynasty, 779-831)
吾闻黄帝鼓清角，弭伏熊罴舞玄鹤。
舜持干羽苗革心，尧用咸池凤巢阁。
大夏濩武皆象功，功多已讶玄功薄。
汉祖过沛亦有歌，秦王破阵非无作。
作之宗庙见艰难，作之军旅传糟粕。
明皇度曲多新态，宛转侵淫易沈著。
赤白桃李取花名，霓裳羽衣号天落。
雅弄虽云已变乱，夷音未得相参错。
自从胡骑起烟尘，毛毳腥膻满咸洛。
女为胡妇学胡妆，伎进胡音务胡乐。
火凤声沈多咽绝，春莺啭罢长萧索。
胡音胡骑与胡妆，五十年来竞纷泊。
作者：元稹（中唐）
by Yuan Zhen (mid-Tang Dynasty, 779-831)
吾闻黄帝鼓清角，弭伏熊罴舞玄鹤。
舜持干羽苗革心，尧用咸池凤巢阁。
大夏濩武皆象功，功多已讶玄功薄。
汉祖过沛亦有歌，秦王破阵非无作。
作之宗庙见艰难，作之军旅传糟粕。
明皇度曲多新态，宛转侵淫易沈著。
赤白桃李取花名，霓裳羽衣号天落。
雅弄虽云已变乱，夷音未得相参错。
自从胡骑起烟尘，毛毳腥膻满咸洛。
女为胡妇学胡妆，伎进胡音务胡乐。
火凤声沈多咽绝，春莺啭罢长萧索。
胡音胡骑与胡妆，五十年来竞纷泊。
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● 《杂曲歌辞 破阵乐》
作者：张祜（唐）
by Zhang Hu (Tang Dynasty, c. 785-c. 849)
秋来四面足风沙，塞外征人暂别家。
千里不辞行路远，时光早晚到天涯。
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● 《杂曲歌辞 其一 破阵乐》
作者：张说（唐）
by Zhang Yue (Tang Dynasty, 667 or 663-730)
汉兵出顿金微，照日明光铁衣。
百里火幡焰焰，千行云骑騑騑。
蹙踏辽河自竭，鼓噪燕山可飞。
正属四方朝贺，端知万舞皇威。
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● 《杂曲歌辞 其二 破阵乐》
作者：张说（唐）
by Zhang Yue (Tang Dynasty, 667 or 663-730)
少年胆气凌云，共许骁雄出群。
匹马城南挑战，单刀蓟北从军。
一鼓鲜卑送款，五饵单于解纷。
誓欲成名报国，羞将开口论勋。
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Videos and recordings of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue
● Solo performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version), as arranged by Liu Hongjun, performed by Shao Rong (5-string pipa) (probably China or Japan, c. 2007)
● Solo performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version), as arranged by Stephen Dydo, performed by Tomoko Sugawara (kugo) (probably New York City, c. 2008)
● Solo performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version), performed by Xu Bilan (shu konghou) (probably Guangzhou, 2013)
● Performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version) by Xu Ge and his ensemble (China, 2018)
● Studio recording of a vocal demonstration of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version) by Xu Ge and Jiang Tian (probably Beijing, 2019)
● Performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version) by Xu Ge and his ensemble, with added Western harmony (Zhuhai, Guangdong province, China, 2020)
● Performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version) by Xu Ge and his ensemble, with added Western harmony (Weihai, Shandong province, China, 2020)
● MIDI arrangement of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version), with Western harmony, by an unknown performer (probably China, 2020)
● Performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue, as reconstructed by Xu Ge and Liu Tao, performed by Bilibili user Beilin Zhai Zhuren (北林斋主人), heng di (China, 2020)
● Studio recording of a performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue, performed by Bilibili user Beilin Zhai Zhuren (北林斋主人), heng di (China, 2020)
● Performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version), as reconstructed by Xu Ge and Liu Tao, performed by Bilibili user Beilin Zhai Zhuren (北林斋主人), heng di (China, 2020)
● Performance of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version), as arranged by Liu Hongjun, performed by Liu's ensemble Tempyo Gafu (Japan, from 2020 rerelease; date of original recording unknown)
● Realization of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version) by Bilibili user 雪狼的天空 using synthesized sounds (China, 2020)
● Full-ensemble realization of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Sango Yōroku / Jinchi Yōroku version), done by Tokinori Yanagita using synthesized sounds (Japan, 2021)
● Multitrack recording of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue, performed by Bilibili user Beilin Zhai Zhuren (北林斋主人), bili, heng di, and percussion (China, 2021)
● Full-ensemble realization of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Sango Yōroku / Jinchi Yōroku version), done by Tokinori Yanagita using synthesized sounds, revised version 4 (Japan, 2022)
● Electronic realization of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Gogen Fu version) by YouTube user 古樂尋蹤_HGofACH (Canada, 2022)
● Full-ensemble electronic realization of Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Sango Yōroku / Jinchi Yōroku version) by YouTube user 古樂尋蹤_HGofACH (Canada, 2024)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwnnDVy-cdM
● Electronic realization of the pipa part to Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Sango Yōroku version) by YouTube user 古樂尋蹤_HGofACH (Canada, 2024)
● Electronic realization of the zheng part to Qin Wang Po Zhen Yue (Jinchi Yōroku version) by YouTube user 古樂尋蹤_HGofACH (Canada, 2024)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA_xbU1s7_E
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hA_xbU1s7_E
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Bibliography
● Picken, Laurence, ed., with Rembrandt Wolpert, Allan Marett, Jonathan Condit, Elizabeth Markham, and Yōko Mitani. Music from the Tang Court, vol. 1. London: Oxford University Press, 1981.
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Thanks to Steven G. Nelson for assistance with this page.
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