Music and Dance

Musical Tradition

Taiwan’s musical tradition falls into two categories-folk music, called pei kuan, and classical music. The folk music tradition has always been more popular in Taiwan. Most songs are sung in mandarin, although dialects have been used increasingly in the past few decades. Most pei kuan performers are men, and each troupe usually has three to five, or even 10 performers.

Chinese classical music is the most ancient musical style in all of Chinese society. Taiwan has three professional orchestras that perform classical music- Taipei Municipal Chinese Classical Orchestra, the Experimental Chinese Orchestra of the National Taiwan Academy of Arts, and the Chinese Orchestra of the Broadcasting Corporation of China. Many elementary, junior high and senior high schools have classes teaching the use of traditional Chinese musical instruments.

Traditional musical instruments falls into four basic categories- those that can be blown, bowed, plucked or struck. These include erhu, a two-stringed violin, the yue chin, a four-stringed banjo, the kucheng, a zither and the pipa, a four-stringed lute.

Chinese Dance

In ancient times, music and dance were purely for rituals. With the passage of time, however, their function evolved into one of entertainment. Traditional Chinese dance has been divided into civilian and military dances for almost 3000 years. Civilian dance has more free-flowing movements, military dancers traditionally perform in large groups with coordinated movements.

A famous traditional dance in Taiwan is the Eight Rows Dance performed in temples every year during Confucius’s birthday celebrations, sixty-four young boys dressed in yellow robes are arranged in eight rows. Carrying pheasant tails and red batons, the boys bow, turn and kneel in performing this stately dance that has remained unchanged since the Sung dynasty.

Music and Dance

Musical Tradition

Taiwan’s musical tradition falls into two categories-folk music, called pei kuan, and classical music. The folk music tradition has always been more popular in Taiwan. Most songs are sung in mandarin, although dialects have been used increasingly in the past few decades. Most pei kuan performers are men, and each troupe usually has three to five, or even 10 performers.

Chinese classical music is the most ancient musical style in all of Chinese society. Taiwan has three professional orchestras that perform classical music- Taipei Municipal Chinese Classical Orchestra, the Experimental Chinese Orchestra of the National Taiwan Academy of Arts, and the Chinese Orchestra of the Broadcasting Corporation of China. Many elementary, junior high and senior high schools have classes teaching the use of traditional Chinese musical instruments.

Traditional musical instruments falls into four basic categories- those that can be blown, bowed, plucked or struck. These include erhu, a two-stringed violin, the yue chin, a four-stringed banjo, the kucheng, a zither and the pipa, a four-stringed lute.

Chinese Dance

In ancient times, music and dance were purely for rituals. With the passage of time, however, their function evolved into one of entertainment. Traditional Chinese dance has been divided into civilian and military dances for almost 3000 years. Civilian dance has more free-flowing movements, military dancers traditionally perform in large groups with coordinated movements.

A famous traditional dance in Taiwan is the Eight Rows Dance performed in temples every year during Confucius’s birthday celebrations, sixty-four young boys dressed in yellow robes are arranged in eight rows. Carrying pheasant tails and red batons, the boys bow, turn and kneel in performing this stately dance that has remained unchanged since the Sung dynasty.