Ancient Chinese culture is perhaps one of the most mysterious and unique in the world. E According to cultural experts, in Chinese dances (as well as in music and literature) the main idea is the desire for perfection and for everything beautiful.
War dance with a fan
Two thousand years ago, two styles of dance arose in China: civil (which were often ritual) and military (which imitated a battle with elements of martial arts).The military does not even use a fan during the fan dance - they simply adopted all the movements from the civilian fan dance to give the group of dancers fully coordinated movements. This is used during military exercises and exhibitions. Therefore, you can often see how the military use their weapons during the dance in the same way as civilian performers use fans, imitating the same movements, but in a more violent manner.
Suits
Fan dance costumes can range from traditional Chinese clothing to the colorful dresses found in any dance supply. Because fan dancing is used to tell stories, costumes are often tailored to suit a particular story.
Fans are used to emphasize the movements and costumes of the dancers. As fans say unusual art, the movements become even more elegant and gentle. With the help of a fan, a special beauty is added that cannot be conveyed by more modernized forms of dance. Fans can also be used as an attribute that depicts anything from a food basket to a treasure chest. Also, fans are often decorated with feathers, gems, bamboo leaves, or other similar decorations, which add an additional effect to the unusual dance.
Chinese fan dance training
Many Chinese fan dancers learn the craft from old friends or family members. Also sometimes fan dancing is included in school curriculum. There are also special dance groups that perform a fan dance for tourists during festivals and specialized productions. Such groups often offer a free lesson to the audience.
The traditional Chinese fan dance was born in China more than two thousand years ago. It is believed that the ancient form folk dance- fan dance - serves various purposes and is highly regarded by the Chinese.
Why do Chinese people fan dance?
The Chinese fan dance has its own ideology. First, it is used to help preserve the history and traditions of Chinese culture. Both tourists and younger Chinese generations learn classical lore and gain knowledge of China's past simply by watching fan dancers. That is why you can often see dancers with fans at festivals, theatrical performances and other public events. Secondly, the fan dance also serves as entertainment. And this is not surprising - after all, such a colorful spectacle is unlikely to leave anyone indifferent.
Also, the Chinese fan dance serves as a very good physical warm-up for its participants. Like many other forms of dance, fan dance choreography requires a great deal of physical fitness. Attendance at trainings at the same time well bring up a sense of responsibility.
Story
The origins of the fan dance date back to the Han Dynasty and date back to around 200 AD. The Han Dynasty was the first to appreciate and develop this art form. Therefore, this dance, for sure, has survived to this day. The uniqueness of the dance and the similar interest of the ruling dynasty in it allowed the fan dance to pass through the generations, and become more of a family tradition than a refined studio-oriented art.
Classification
Historically, fan dancing has been classified into two categories: civil and military. Most who learn this art perform a civil form of dance. These are ballet-like, graceful movements that use fans and other props, such as feathered flags, to enhance the beauty of the dance.
Every nation has its own unique traditions. Travelers visiting China often admire the colorful local customs, national clothes in a unique style, original holidays, unusual cuisine that combines sweet and spicy... Chinese dance occupies a special place in Eastern culture.
Cultural traditions of China
The Chinese, like no other people, take care of their national culture: they honor the traditions of their ancestors and do not seek to borrow the customs of other peoples. From ancient times to the present day, the traditions of greetings, wedding ceremonies, family relationships, the tea ceremony, hieroglyphs, and the specific sound of musical Chinese dance have come down almost unchanged. Surprisingly, the rapid modernization of the country had practically no effect on its traditional positions. The unity and strength of a nation lies in its great culture, thanks to the preservation of which a billion-strong society lives in stability and harmony.
Chinese dances
There are many ethnic groups living in China. Each of them has its own shade cultural traditions. This applies to dance as well. However, in every province there is always a dance in which such an attribute as a fan is used. At almost every festival, you can see a Chinese folk dance with this item. Dancers in bright colorful costumes move gracefully, like in a ballet, emphasizing their movements with a miniature fan. A festively decorated fan can fold and open, make big swings and barely flutter, shimmering with its patterns, with an airy border along the upper edge.
Nowadays, the fan dance is performed as in national costumes, and in ordinary clothes for a studio production. It can be learned from friends, in the family circle. This art is widely taught in schools. (Chinese), according to parents, should teach the younger generation to respect and cherish the traditions of their people. This is given such great importance that often fan dancing is included in the school curriculum.
At its core, this is not a studio number, but more family tradition that is passed down from generation to generation.
Varieties of action
There are two varieties of this dance: civil and military. Most often you can observe the civil form of execution. It is more smooth, graceful, sliding, the movements of the participants are aimed at expressing beauty, tranquility. In addition to creating the necessary composition, according to the production, very often the performers improvise.
Military Chinese dance imitates various kinds of fighting movements, it can be seen during military parades, exhibitions. A weapon is usually used instead of a fan. But the techniques are very similar in both types, just a military arrangement requires more clear and tough movements. Very often in the military dance there are elements of martial arts.
The birth of Chinese dance
The history of Chinese dances goes back to the 4th millennium BC. Ritual group movements are gradually reborn into real art. The movements could be both smooth and dynamic. Increasingly, additional attributes were used to give brightness and originality to the action - scarves, fans, feathers.
The Chinese fan dance appeared during the reign of the Han Empire, which lasted the longest in Chinese history (206 BC - 220 AD) and was marked by cultural and economic flourishing. The imperial family tried to collect all the dances existing in the country and document them. After their reign, the main ethnic group called "han".
Historians and culturologists are convinced that it was thanks to the efforts of the representatives of the mentioned dynasty that various traditional Chinese dances, including the amazingly beautiful performance with fans, have come down to our times.
dragon and lion
During the celebration of the New Year, the dance of the Dragon and the Lion is sure to be performed. These traditional Chinese rituals are not dances in the usual sense. In the first case, a group of people is holding a huge dragon doll on poles, on average 25-35 meters in length. The dragon must move in undulating motions. It is believed that the larger and longer the scarecrow, the more luck it will bring next year. The team that controls the puppet sometimes includes up to 50 people. During the celebration, there may be several dragons.
When performing the Lion Dance, the chief actor the puppet also performs, and not the artists who make it move. The lion is much smaller than the dragon and is controlled by only two people inside the figure. The elements of the dance are derived from martial arts movements.
court craftsmanship
The so-called court dances, created and performed in ancient times at the court of the emperor, are not forgotten either. These are, for example, the dance of Prince Qin's cavalry, the dance of Nishan Yui, Qipan, Baiyu, and others. Let's consider one of them in more detail.
The dance of Prince Qin's cavalry glorifies the strength and power of his army. He had to show the courage, the greatness of the warriors, the readiness to repel the blow of the enemy at any moment. The emperor himself composed the music and invented the movements of the performers. A huge number of participants were involved in the performance: more than a hundred dancers, singers, musicians. The performance depicted battle scenes. First they demonstrated combat training, formation, then they simulated episodes of battle and victory. Note: no defeat! Always only victories!
Fans in other cultures
The fan dance is known not only Chinese culture. There is Japanese, which has no less deep roots and its own specific differences. The period of reign (according to various sources, around 600 BC or around 300 BC) is considered to be the time of the appearance of Japanese dance with a fan, at the court of which performances with this accessory were often staged. In the Japanese production, single performances are more common. The dance is very slow, calm, its simple monotonous elements are also complemented by improvisation. A special role is given to the fan. Its beauty is put forward in the first place, so the lion's share of the effort goes into making this item. For special receptions, Japanese masters could make a sandalwood fan with ivory, mother-of-pearl, gold and precious stones.
In the 30s of the 20th century, fan dancing appeared in America and quickly became very popular there.
Chinese dance in the ballet "The Nutcracker"
Eastern culture once inspired Pyotr Tchaikovsky. In his brilliant ballet The Nutcracker, first presented on December 6, 1892 at the Mariinsky Theater, there was a place for a Chinese dance with fans. In the second act, after the arrival of Clara and the Nutcracker and before the Waltz of the Flowers, there is a divertissement (an addition to the performance, an “inserted” number that is not connected with the plot), representing the inhabitants of the sweet city of Konfetenburg. All the sweets you can imagine - sherbet, lollipops, candied fruit, marshmallows, gingerbread, marmalade, chocolate, nuts, caramel - you can drink chocolate, tea or coffee. In honor of these three drinks, 3 acts were staged. The dance of "Tea" was declared by Tchaikovsky as Chinese, "Coffee" - Arabic, "Chocolate" - as a Spanish dance.
The first divertissement is opened by Chocolate, bringing with it the sounds of trumpets, castanets, red robes. It is followed by Coffee - unhurried, thoughtful, like the frozen heat of the Arabian desert. Delicate violins are complemented by cellos. Next comes Chai.
The Chinese dance "Tea" is performed in the style of Chinese folk performance with fans. At the same time, in some productions, other objects are used instead of them, and sometimes the entire emphasis is placed purely on the location of the hands and the corresponding movements, reminiscent of a possible fan. The dancers are dressed in costumes with national symbols. Tchaikovsky diversified the Chinese dance by combining the high and low registers of the flute and bassoon, creating a slightly comical, like a toy, effect.
The divertissement is completed by an adaptation of the Russian dance “trepak”, a performance by shepherd boys and a comic number by Mother Zhigon.
The Chinese Nutcracker dance demonstrates the complexity of ballet dance movements that require long training, special skills, and efforts.
Modern attitude
Nowadays, interest in acting with fans is growing. This beautiful simple art can be learned not only in China, Japan and Korea, but also in other countries.
Although the performance is somewhat reminiscent of ballet (fluidity, tact, grace), but the movements are not so complex, and the staging itself serves other purposes. Classical Chinese dance focuses on expressiveness and coordination, the complexity of the techniques fades into the background. It's great for kids. The simplicity of the repeating elements and the colorfulness of the costumes and attributes make it possible to widely use this art in children's institutions. Preschoolers and older children are happy to demonstrate their skills at matinees, dance competitions, concerts, etc.
Children's dances (Chinese) can also be found in Russia. In order not to be unfounded, let's give an example. In 2012, a team of kids aged 6-7 took 1st place at the festival children's creativity Zhyrlysym kile for Chinese dance with fans. His performance was not too intricate, but elegant costumes, combined with picturesque fan wings, turned the dancers into little birds of paradise.