The musical language of Yuen Ren Chao : a cultural and empirical study of the modernization of Chinese music

Abstract

In the Chinese art song repertoire, "How can I help but think of you" has long enjoyed enormous prestige since its publication in the 1920s. The song is memorable not only because of its innovative use of language by Liu Bannong in the lyrics but also because of the ingenious arrangement of tonalities, forms, and melodies by Chao Yuen Ren in the music. This essay will be devoted to a cultural and empirical analysis of the song, with the aim of understanding the efforts made by eminent scholars at the early stage of modernization of Chinese music and language. To this end, we will first explore how the lyrics are structured phonetically and syntactically. Tonal complexity and ambiguity in the music will then be analyzed, followed by the discussion of qǐ-chéng-zhuǎn-hé in the musical form. The pentatonicism embedded in the song and its relationship with what generally makes music "sound Chinese" will also be examined. In the end, we will also review an essential concept, yìjìng (or mindscape), in Chinese aesthetics and philosophy to better appreciate how various components in the music and lyrics together contribute to the aesthetic success of the song. 在中国艺术歌曲曲目中，《教我如何不想他》自上世纪20 年代发表以 来便一直享有极高的声誉。作品中刘半农创造性的语言用法让人耳目一新，而赵元任融汇中西的和声技法及曲式运用更是中国音乐近代化的代表性诠释。本文旨在通过对该歌曲的文化与实证分析，探讨中国音乐和语言中的近代化元素。我们首先对歌词的语音语义以及篇章结构进行分析，然后在中西方乐理的比较框架下研究音乐的调性、曲式结构以及旋律构成。其中我们将具体讨论曲中转调的丰富性、离调的歧义性、起承转合的运用以及五声调式与中国风音乐的关系。最后，我们还将分析歌曲音乐背后所体现的中国传统美学中的一个关键概念——意境。