In order to strengthen the cultural and people-to-people exchanges between China and South Korea, Henan Museum and the Korean National Gugak Center jointly hosted the China-South Korea International Academic Conference on Studies of Bianzhong, Bianqing and Related Music. Held virtually, the conference was attended by many experts and scholars from Henan Museum, the Korean National Gugak Center, Wuhan Conservatory of Music, China Conservatory of Music, and Chinese National Academy of Arts.

Zhang Deshui, Vice-Director of Henan Museum, said that Henan has a rich collection of musical relics and is particularly well known for the musical instruments in the prehistoric period and pre-Qin period when the ritual and music system prevailed. A large number of bianzhong and bianqing bells unearthed in the Central Plains are the best example illustrations of the “music of metal and stone”. The bianzhong bells of different shapes and structures unearthed in Henan are of great significance to the research on the tonal standards, musical performance and the ritual and music system in the making process of bronze bianzhong in the Central Plains.

Experts Share Their Expertise Held Virtually

Experts at the conference commented on the restored ancient music performance of Huaxia ancient music ensemble in Henan Museum. The restoration of musical instruments starts from theoretical research, and the performing posture, costume display and instrument restoration are all based on analysis and research of many historical materials. In terms of music creation, the creation concept follows the principle that “the principal tones are played by metal and stone instruments (bianzhong and bianqing), while the melodies are played by silk and bamboo instruments”. This fully reflects that bianzhong was first used as a ritual instrument before as a musical instrument. The modern reproduction of ancient music is a living representation of music archaeology.

The Venue in Korea

Park Jung-kyung, researcher of arts studies at the Korean National Gugak Center, put forward some questions to experts and scholars attending the conference, and professors introduced the revival of the ritual and music system of the Dasheng Bells in the Song dynasty and how this ceremonial music was introduced to Korea. Scholars of the two countries also compared the content of metallic tin and nickel of bianzhong.

More than 80 scholars attended the conference online, and offline South Korean experts and scholars in related fields also viewed the seminar in the conference room of the Art Hall of the Korean National Gugak Center. Henan Museum and the Korean National Gugak Center have conducted in-depth exchanges for many years, and the two sides signed a strategic cooperation agreement on musical culture exchanges in 2019. The seminar will certainly promote the mutual learning and integration of the research and adaptive reuse of bianzhong and bianqing between the two countries.