The vocal art of opera is mainly divided into two categories: the first is the "plate cavity change" type, and the second is the "song card linkage" type. Gao'an tea-picking opera belongs to the latter type.
Because of the historical reasons, this local theater small drama; in the singing melody, the structure of the song is simple, the tone is simple and unadorned. Generally, the upper and lower two lines for a tune, repeated chanting; less rhythmic changes, not many lines. Most of them interpret stories or plots with strong local flavor and rich interest in the life of grassroots commoners. For example, "Granny Wang scolds the chicken", "Sijiu looks at her sister", "Mending the back corset", "Aunt and Sister-in-law watching the lantern", etc. The performance is full of songs and dances, and the language is witty. The performances are full of songs and dances, and the language is witty and lively, like the Northeast's "Two-Man Show", which is popular among the people in Ganxi area.
Gao'an Tea Casting Opera is a kind of small Han Chinese opera, with many tunes and few cavities. Both its characteristics, but also has certain limitations. Therefore, to show the history, modern major themes, interpretation of more complex plots, characterization of very different characters, interpretation of ups and downs, conflicts and intense drama; in the music and singing is inevitably overwhelmed. Therefore, there is a need to absorb the board cavity changes in the type of theater with the spitting of words in the cavity to pay attention to the rhythm, singing and very rich artistic expression of the characteristics.
The basic main song of the tea-picking opera in Gao'an is called "the old tune". Through the opera music workers and actors *** with the same efforts, after fully absorbing the Beijing opera and other types of plate changes and other useful factors, in the retention of the original tune on the basis of the basic melody, bold reform and innovation, and has achieved gratifying results. Many of the designs of the cantatas were very successful. When they came out, they were recognized by the masses, and the popular classic cantatas, which have been sung for a long time, have become one of the topics that the old watchmen of Ganxi enjoy after tea.
The creation of theater music is the composer according to the narrative requirements of the storyline of the opera, the screening of the melody of the musical theme, the portrayal of the character, the treatment of dramatic conflicts, and the flexible use of the musical characteristics of the opera, to carry out the overall conception of the play. In addition to this, it also needs to be accomplished by actors who have certain performance ability in singing. Because, the opera score, in a sense, still only stay in the paper on the plain. To sing it well, sung with the characteristics of the genre, flavor, sing the character traits, and with the audience to produce **** Ming, giving people the enjoyment of beauty, it is entirely dependent on the actor's singing skills and ability. It is often said that the actor's singing is the secondary creation of opera music is the reason.
The old Beijingers used to say that watching a play is listening to a play; if you say that you are going to watch a play, people will say that you are a layman. Opera fans know and are familiar with the plot of the play, the actors' costumes and performances. Can't get tired of listening to is the actor's singing, is often encountered when there is a large section of singing, simply close your eyes and listen to the palm beat; when you hear the best place, can not help but applauded loudly. This is nowadays talk about "interaction", the same.
Achieving actors sing very distinctive, because the same section of the singing, different people to sing, style, flavor is very different, and even a world of difference. So in the Peking Opera world is the same Dan actor line, there will be Mei, Cheng, Shang, Xun "four famous Dan". Different schools of thought, competition, colorful.
By the "old tune" derived from a number of "flower Dan tune", "medicine tune", "escape tune The "Song Plate Splice", "Little Flower Song", and "Ben Sorrow Song" are inherited by the creators and performers of the opera music through the same efforts. The "song plate linking body" and "plate cavity change body" organic combination, applied to the tea opera singing cavity of the drag cavity, flower cavity, song plate conversion. Focusing on the voice, emotion, spitting, flavor, this creative artistic processing, greatly enriched the artistic expression of the tea-picking opera in Gao'an. As Mr. Mei Lanfang, the master of Peking Opera, advocated, "Move, don't distort". Characteristics are still there, the flavor still exists, for the interpretation of the play to lay a solid foundation. Practice has proved that the development of such ideas are correct, there are indeed remarkable, new bottle of old wine, making it more mellow and long, aftertaste.
Famous Gao'an tea-picking opera performer Li Huaying, a young teacher from the Beijing Opera veterans, was taught by a strict teacher, singing, chanting, work and other basic skills are solid. In the early fifties, she changed to perform in the Gao'an Tea-picking Opera, changing the stereotype of men playing the roles of Dan, making her debut on the stage with the image of a flower girl with a pretty and colorful face, a rounded and sweet voice, and a generous and stretching performance. To add a splash of color to the tea ceremony performance in Gao'an.