Performing Arts of China, The (6 Parts)

Synopsis

Part 1: Examples of musical instruments being manufactured and played by master musicians and orchestras. Interwoven in the musical sequences are scenic shots of Chinese landscapes.
Part 2: Rare scenes of travelling musicians entertaining the nomadic herdsmen and their families on the snow-covered steppes in Inner Mongolia; the first time a western film crew had been allowed to film there. Moves to the Soochow region where a folk singer entertains workers in an orange grove. A peasant family is seen at home cooking a typical meal. Shows young people training to be musicians in a special school and a troupe of entertainers who are among the last to perform the almost lost art of storytelling.
Part 3: Make-up and costumes are an essential part of the traditional Chinese opera and the film starts back stage in a Canton theatre as the artistes prepare for a performance. Joins the audience to watch a scene from a Cantonese opera on stage. Shows troupes of girls in Soochow being trained in fan dancing. Follows a professional troupe of the Peking Opera from rehearsal to performance.
Part 4: Shows the people of Turpan in their day-to-day living. Turpan is a village in the middle of the Central Asian desert, 155 metres below sea level. Carpets are shown being sold in open markets by independent Kazakh village traders. Joins a typical Uighur family gathering where friends are feasted and entertained by a musician and his relatives. Visits factories in Urumqi producing traditional Muslim head gear and export-oriented carpets.
Part 5: Shot in the southwest of China, travels from the Stone Forest in the Yunnan Province to the Sichwan Hills. Examines some of the social habits of both the Yi and Bai minorities and shows village life, agriculture, arts and crafts, and pays particular attention to the folk music and dance of these peoples. The film crew were permitted to visit Dali, an area where no western team had ever been before, and obtained unique scenes of local musicians and colourful dances performed in a village square. The music of the minorities is presented side by side with the music of the Han, the majority of the Chinese living in these provinces. Ends with a centuries old Yi torch dance at twilight.
Part 6: The children of China, as elsewhere, represent the future of their country but here because of this, they receive very special schooling. In addition to physical training and general education, particular attention is given to the study of music and dance. Four-year olds perform an undersea ballet and small children play the violin and piano. Visits a specialised children’s centre where youngsters perform an acrobatic opera and children enact martial arts. Alongside the traditional arts, the Western system of music and the use of Western instruments are steadily making inroads into the performing arts of China today.

Language

English

Country

Great Britain

Medium

Video; Videocassette. VHS. col. 6 x 27 min.

Year of production

1985

Availability

Sale

Uses

Sixth formers, college and university undergraduates.*

Subjects

Music

Keywords

carpet making; China; Chinese theatre; folk music; Mongolia; musical instruments; opera; storytelling

Credits

Director

Deben Bhattacharya

Producer

Deben Bhattacharya

Sections

Title

Instruments and music

Synopsis

Part 1: Examples of musical instruments being manufactured and played by master musicians and orchestras. Interwoven in the musical sequences are scenic shots of Chinese landscapes.

Title

Folk music

Synopsis

Part 2: Rare scenes of travelling musicians entertaining the nomadic herdsmen and their families on the snow-covered steppes in Inner Mongolia; the first time a western film crew had been allowed to film there. Moves to the Soochow region where a folk sin

Title

Opera, The

Synopsis

Part 3: Make-up and costumes are an essential part of the traditional Chinese opera and the film starts back stage in a Canton theatre as the artistes prepare for a performance. Joins the audience to watch a scene from a Cantonese opera on stage. Shows tr

Title

Uighurs on the Silk Route

Synopsis

Part 4: Shows the people of Turpan in their day-to-day living. Turpan is a village in the middle of the Central Asian desert, 155 metres below sea level. Carpets are shown being sold in open markets by independent Kazakh village traders. Joins a typical U

Title

Minorities of the South West

Synopsis

Part 5: Shot in the southwest of China, travels from the Stone Forest in the Yunnan Province to the Sichwan Hills. Examines some of the social habits of both the Yi and Bai minorities and shows village life, agriculture, arts and crafts, and pays particul

Title

Children, tomorrow’s artists, The

Synopsis

Part 6: The children of China, as elsewhere, represent the future of their country but here because of this, they receive very special schooling. In addition to physical training and general education, particular attention is given to the study of music a

Distributor

Name

World Microfilms

Contact

Stephen Albert

Email

microworld@ndirect.co.uk

Web

http://www.microworld.uk.com/ External site opens in new window

Phone

020 7586 4499

Fax

020 7722 1068

Address

PO Box 35488
St John’s Wood
London
NW8 6WD

Notes

World Microfilms distributes the Audio Forum collection of CDs for language learning and the Sussex Tapes library of video and audio material for sixth form and undergraduate teaching. The Sussex Tapes collection concentrates on the areas of English, history and music. Architecture programmes from the Masters of Architecture and Pidgeon Digital (qv) series of slides are sold on DVD as well as being accessible online via subscription.