Liyuan was originally a place name in Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty. Because Li Longji, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, taught performing arts here, it was later associated with the art of opera and became synonymous with art organizations and artists. The origin of "Liyuan" is recorded in the "Records of Laolang Temple in Wu County" written by Sun Xingyan, a Jinshi during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, and in the ninth year of Jiaqing (1804); "...I came to the capital and saw Laolang Temple (: refers to According to legend, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the son of Geng Linggong, named Guangzhe, was given the surname Li. The name is Liyuan. Later generations regard it as the founder of music..." The origin of Liyuan was verified in "A Research on Liyuan" written by modern man Li Youbai. During the reign of Emperor Zhongzong of the Tang Dynasty (705-710), the pear orchard was just a fruit orchard coexisting with the jujube orchard, mulberry orchard, peach orchard, and cherry orchard in the royal forbidden garden. There are separate palaces, wine pavilions and golf courses in the orchard, which are places for the emperor, empress, relatives and noble ministers to have banquets and entertainment. Later, with the strong advocacy of Li Longji, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the nature of the pear orchard changed. It was a simple fruit orchard and gradually became a pear orchard in the Tang Dynasty where the "pear orchard children" practiced singing, dancing and opera. It became the first pear orchard integrating music in the history of our country. A comprehensive "art academy" of , dance and opera. Li Longji himself served as Cui Gong (or Ya Gong) of Liyuan, which is equivalent to the current principal (or dean). There are two sets of people below Cui Gong: the editor and Le Yingjiang (also known as Kuiling). Li Longji created works for Liyuan, and often ordered Hanlin scholars or famous literati at that time to compile programs. For example, poets He Zhizhang and Li Bai all wrote programs for Liyuan. Li Longji, Lei Haiqing, Gongsun Aunt and others have all served as Leying generals. They are not only famous artists with extremely high talents, but also tireless teachers. In his poem "Watching Lady Gongsun's Disciples Dance with Swords and Weapons", the poet Du Fu praised Lady Gongsun's heroic and unrestrained dancing, "Like the setting sun at Yishe, she is like a group of emperors flying dragons; coming is like thunder, gathering wrath, and ending like this. The river sea condenses with green light." He also said in the preface of this poem that there is a calligrapher named Zhang Xu whose cursive writing has improved greatly since he watched Aunt Gongsun's sword dance. Tang Xuanzong and Li Longji relied on these outstanding creative staff and directors to create a large number of performing artists. During the Xuanzong period of the Tang Dynasty (712-756), the so-called "Kaiyuan Heyday", the development of feudal economy and culture reached unprecedented heights. Not only has it produced a number of well-known writers and poets at home and abroad, but it has also made outstanding achievements in the fields of dance and music. The "Liyuan", which plays an important role in the history of Chinese opera, was born in the fertile soil of the Tang Dynasty.
The disciples of Liyuan are divided into the sitting group, the standing group, the small group, the male group and the female group. The sitting part is usually made up of outstanding actors, the musicians sit in the hall and play, and the dancers are usually 3 to 12 people. They dance gracefully and are accompanied by silk and bamboo music; the standing part is made up of ordinary actors, the musicians sit in the hall and play, and there are 60 dancers. The performance ranges from 80 to 80 people, with majestic and majestic dancing, and is accompanied by musical instruments such as drums and gongs (i.e. golden gongs) with a loud volume; a small part is a children's performance team. In addition, there is also a dance department, which is divided into literary dance and healthy dance. The Royal Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama with such a large number of screenwriters and both men and women appeared more than a thousand years ago, and it must be said that it is rare in the world.
Where is the pear garden? Due to the passage of time, an exact address cannot be found. Some people believe that the pear garden was located in the Xiuling Gorge of Lishan Mountain in Lintong County, east of present-day Xi'an City; some people believe that it was located near the Qujiang Pond in the southeast corner of present-day Xi'an City, in the Chunlin Village area near the site of Yiyuan built by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. , hundreds of pear trees were planted here; some people think that the pear garden is located in the northeast of Xi'an today, near the east side of the Daming Palace of the Tang Dynasty, in Wumen Village in Sanhuali; some people think that it is in or near the "Forbidden Garden", today (Xi'an Meandering) North, south of the Wei River); there are also people who say that it was in Weiyang District, west of Dabaiyang Village, 5 miles north of present-day Xi'an City, etc. However, no matter where the pear garden is, it is indeed a place for cultivating and training artists. The Jiaofang is an organization similar to the Liyuan, which mainly rehearses songs, dances and various operas. Li Yuan, Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty, set up a teaching workshop in the forbidden area. Due to the economic prosperity of the Tang Dynasty and Tang Xuanzong's preference for music and dance, tens of thousands of musicians were supported. The scale is quite large even now. In the second year of Kaiyuan (714), Xuanzong transferred the former subordinate The musical talents in Taichang Temple's advocacy for excellence were set aside and a "left and right teaching workshop was set up to teach secular music." The responsibilities of the left and right workshops are different. Generally speaking, the right ones are good at dancers, and the left ones are good at singers.
The actors in the Jiaofang are both male and female, and most of them are actresses. For example, in Yichun Yuan, there are all female singers and dancers. Many actors in Yichun Court were prostitutes. From "Jiaofang Ji" we can understand some of the living conditions of prostitutes.
"When a prostitute enters the Yichun courtyard, she is called a 'neiren', also called 'qantou' - she is always in front of Shang (according to Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty). Her family is still in Jiaofang, so she is called 'neiren'. The lucky ones are given rice in four seasons. They are given houses and houses. There are ten families who receive special favors. Those who succeed are given the imperial edict. . There are dozens of families, so they are called ten families. On the 26th day of each month, if there is a mother, the sister and the aunt will be together. On a person's birthday, his mother, aunts, sisters, and younger sisters are all allowed to come to meet him, and they will be treated accordingly. "
When prostitutes enter Yichun Court, they have certain guarantees of food and clothing, and some also have homesteads. Life is not so free. You can only see your mother, aunt, sister and other relatives on the 26th of every month and your birthday.
Actresses were also called "loose prostitutes" in the early Tang Dynasty. According to the biography of Empress Zhenshun of Emperor Xuanzong Li Longji of the Tang Dynasty: "In the early days, when the emperor was in Lu, Concubine Zhao Life advocated luck, tolerance and restraint, and was good at singing and dancing." In the "New Book of Tang" Biography of Wang Ju, it is recorded: "Shandong advocate Zhao Yuanli had a daughter who was good at singing and dancing. , Fortunately, the prince (referring to Xuanzong).
The most famous actor in the church, Huang Banchuo, was second to none in talent and moral character during the prosperous Tang Dynasty. During the Kaiyuan period, he was good at performing military dramas, and there were always people admonishing him. Said: "Huang Banchuo, Xuanzong disappeared for a day, Long Yan felt uncomfortable for this. "On weekdays, he served the emperor, but he also often joked, alerted his master, and often solved disputes and rescued troubles. He was known as the "Funny Hero" in the world. Zhang Yehu and Huang Banchuo were contemporaries. They were good at joining the army and playing tricks. (ancient wind instruments, with bamboo as tubes and reeds as mouths, introduced from the Western Regions in the Han Dynasty) and harp (ancient stringed instruments). During the rebellion in Anlu Mountain, Xuanzong entered Shu. He went to Sichuan with Xuanzong and returned to the capital together. On the way Xuanzong composed two songs, "Yulin Ling" and "Returning to the Capital". Li Keji was an actor during the Xiantong period (860-874). He was good at acting in military dramas, proficient in music, good at singing, and had a melodious and melodious tone. He was a popular actor in the capital. The young people rushed to imitate it, called it "Paitan", and composed songs and dances such as "Sighing for a Hundred Years". They felt that Tang Yizong was pleased, and he was awarded the civil and military officials such as Duzhi, Duzhi, and Weiwei General. Famous musicians such as Li Mo, Ma Xianqi, and He Huaizhi
The Song, Yuan, Ming and other dynasties all had Jiaofang Division, which was abolished in the seventh year of Yongzheng in the Qing Dynasty (1729) and changed to the "Harmony Division". , whose tasks are the same as those of the Jiaofang Division.