Chapter 59 Why "opera" is "Liyuan"

Chinese operas have a long history and are of various types and splendor, including various costumes, singing styles, and music.However, we have a common name for all operas, that is, we are used to calling them "Liyuanjie" or "Liyuanxing", and opera actors as "Liyuanzizi".Why is this? This title can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty.The pear garden was in the forbidden garden outside Gwanghwamun in Chang'an (now Xi'an, Shaanxi) at that time.According to the records in "New Tang Book·Li and Le Zhi": Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty was a person who both knew music and loved music. He personally selected 300 "music workers" to rehearse and guide them in the Liyuan.In the performance rehearsal, no matter who made any mistakes, Tang Xuanzong could immediately notice and correct them.These "music workers" are called "disciples of the emperor's Liyuan".As a result, Liyuan became an institution specialized in training music musicians in the court.

The main responsibility of Liyuan is to train instrumentalists. It is the three major music institutions that stand together with Taichang Temple, which specializes in rites and music, and Neijiaofang, which performs songs, dances and Sanyue.At that time, most of the musicians who were loved by people were born in Liyuan, and "disciples of Liyuan" became the synonym for the disciples of musicians. The term "Liyuan" was also borrowed to refer to the musical institution.Although many musician organizations later used the name of "Liyuan", they were not actually located in Liyuan.

Most of the musicians in Liyuan are folk artists. After being selected strictly to enter the court, they can concentrate on honing their performance skills and learn from each other. Their skills have been refined, which has played a role in promoting the development of poetry and music in the Tang Dynasty.Later people used to call the opera world "Liyuanjie" or "Liyuan Xing", and opera actors were called "Liyuan children".