Wu Songs · A Brief History of Wu Songs

Author: Gu Jiegang et al. compiled, Wang Xuhua organized
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 1999-08-01
Features: The collection and research of modern Chinese folk songs originated with Lu Xun. As early as 1922, Lu Xun proposed suggestions and methods for collecting and organizing folk songs from various regions. In his "Proposal for Propagating Art" (Monthly Newsletter of the Education Department, December 1922), he suggested establishing a "National Literature and Art Research Association" to organize folk songs, folk sayings, legends, and fairy tales; to elaborate on their meanings, distinguish their characteristics, and further develop and promote them, thereby supporting education. This proposal summarized three points: 1) Collecting and organizing folk songs required establishing an organization like the "National Literature and Art Research Association" to handle the task; 2) The method for organizing folk songs was to "elaborate on their meanings and distinguish their characteristics," and further develop and promote them; 3) The role of folk songs was "to support education." This was the earliest proposal in the history of modern Chinese folk song collection, organization, and research. In the same December, Zhou Zuoren wrote "Research on Children's Songs," an early article on the study of children's songs, published in the January 1914 issue of the Shaoxing County Education Association Monthly, and later reprinted in the Peking University Daily and the Folk Song Weekly (issues 33-34). At that time, he was collecting children's songs from the Yue region, so he also published a notice to collect children's songs and fairy tales in the same monthly: "I wish to collect children's songs and fairy tales and compile them into a collection to preserve the characteristics of Yue culture and provide materials for folk studies and children's education. This task is too extensive to be accomplished by one person's efforts alone. I sincerely hope that the knowledgeable scholars of the time will share their knowledge and offer guidance to make this possible, which would be a great fortune." However, due to the closed mindset of the time, Lu Xun's proposal and Zhou Zuoren's notice did not attract much attention and had little impact. The true modern collection and research of Chinese folk songs began with the folk song collection efforts at Peking University. Zhong Jingwen, in the preface to the Jiangsu Folk Song Collection, stated that the meaningfully planned and scientific collection of folk songs in China began with the folk song collection office at Peking University in the seventh year of the Republic of China, which was later renamed the folk song research association. He also pointed out the differences between ancient and modern folk song collection, saying: "In ancient China, there were also people who compiled folk song collections, such as Yang Shen's Ancient Style Folk Songs (Ming Dynasty), Li's Yue Style (Qing Dynasty), and Du Wenlan's Ancient Folk Sayings." However, these collections were either limited to compiling from classic collections or to collecting from ethnic minorities, with the intention of preserving ancient traditions and curiosity, which was very different from the modern scientific organization and preservation. I believe that in addition to organization and preservation, there should be further scientific research on these folk songs from various perspectives, including literary folklore and social life.