Hule Xin Sheng: Music on the Silk Road

Author: Chen Ling
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-06-01
Features: The nearly 200 years of development from the Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Northern Qi, and Western Wei to the Northern Zhou saw the continuous transmission of music from the Western Regions into the Chinese interior. These Western Regions' Hu music, like other cultural elements from the Western Regions that entered China, interacted with and were absorbed by the inherent Chinese culture, becoming an integral part of its bloodstream. It can be said that this 200-year convergence and exchange of Eastern and Western cultures paved the way for the great development of the Sui and Tang dynasties. During the Sui and Tang dynasties, especially the renowned high point of the Tang, the influx of various Western Regions' cultures reached its climax. The transmission and integration of Western Regions' music also reached its peak during this period.
"Western Regions" was a geographical concept used by ancient Chinese people, referring to the vast areas west of the Yumen Pass and Yangguan Pass, with its core including Central Asia, including Xinjiang in China. The complexity of Western Regions' history and culture, the diversity of its ethnic groups, and the variety of its languages make Western Regions studies encompass fields such as history, archaeology, linguistics, ethnology, folklore, art, religion, philosophy, literature, as well as anthropology, genetics, geography, and biology, making it a highly challenging interdisciplinary discipline. Precisely because of its rich and substantial content, its mysterious and beautiful allure, and the constant surprises encountered during the arduous exploration process, Western Regions studies are filled with a captivating charm that attracts countless scholars to dedicate themselves to it, often to the point of "narrowing the belt and not regretting death."
It can be said that Western Regions studies have opened a time and space tunnel, allowing us to trace and touch the unbroken exchange between nations, regions, ethnic groups, and civilizations over thousands of years.