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, under the strong advocacy of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the nature of the pear orchard changed. From a simple fruit orchard, it gradually became a pear orchard in the Tang Dynasty where "pear orchard disciples" practiced singing, dancing and opera. It became the first pear orchard in the history of our country that integrated music, dance , a comprehensive "art academy" of opera. Li Longji himself served as Cui Gong (or Ya Gong) of Liyuan, which was equivalent to the principal (or dean).
The "New Book of Tang Dynasty·Book of Rites and Music" records: "Xuanzong not only knew the rhythm, but also loved the music, so he selected three hundred disciples of Zubu Ji and taught them in the Liyuan. If the pronunciation was wrong, the emperor would be aware of it and correct it. , named Emperor Liyuan Disciple. "It can be seen that Liyuan was an institution established by the court during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty.
Tang Xuanzong was rich in musical talent and had a significant influence on the development of music in the Tang Dynasty. He likes to play the pipa and drums himself, and is good at composing music. After he ascended the throne, a studio was set up in the palace, and the "Liyuan" was a place dedicated to training actors.
Tang Xuanzong, Lei Haiqing, Gongsun Aunt and others 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, "It shines like Yi shooting at nine sunsets, as powerful as emperors flying dragons; they come like thunder to calm down their wrath. Like the blue light in the sea."
In the preface of this poem, it was said that there was a calligrapher named Zhang Xu whose cursive calligraphy improved greatly after watching Aunt Gongsun's sword dance. progress. Tang Xuanzong and Li Longji relied on these outstanding creative staff and directors to create a large number of performing artists. 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 composed of outstanding actors, and the musicians sit in the hall to perform. The dancers are usually 3 to 12 people. The performance consists of 60 to 80 dancers, with majestic and majestic movements. The accompaniment of the performance includes drums and gongs (i.e. golden gongs), etc., with a loud volume; the 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.