Historical Study On The Ancient Chinese Flute Family Instruments

In the framework of history, taking the different types of flute family instruments, their origin and evaluation, their status and effects, their spreading and exchange, etc. as the research objects, with the method of music history, combining with the research method of musical instruments articulation and communication, the paper makes analysis on and research into the history of flute family instruments from different perspectives. The research of the paper centers on the ancient music history of China, excluding the the research of national musical instruments. There are many national musical instruments in existence, but few of them are recorded in the ancient data. As a result, the paper touches some of the flute family musical instrument without thorogh study. It is not an overall research about the flute family instruments of the national instruments of Chinal. Since there are few detailed historical documents despite their large number, the paper mainly illustrates the features of the flute family instruments'development through facts.The paper consists of five parts.The part of introduction defines the concept of flute family instruments, analyzes on the factors meeting the requirements of being a member of the flute family instrument. These factors are taken as the main criterion to judge whether the instrument belongs to flute family. The instruments on which disagreement exists, Chi and Qiang-flute are discussed.Chapter One is about the flute family instruments in history and the origin and evalution of the flute family instruments. The study on the history of flute family instruments in China is based on the development of different types of flute family instruments in history. Historical stages of the development of the representatives of side organ pipes are studied (including single-pipe slanting blowing, single-pipe horizontal blowing, multi-pipe erect blowing and single-pipe erect blowing). Theinherent relationship among the flute family instruments and their developing rules are analyzed. Views and opinions on which disagreement exist are explored.Chapter Two is about the status and effects of flute family instruments in music activities in different historical periods. Focusing on the bone flute of Jiahu, multi-pipe xiao, the bamboo horizontal flute, and Dongxiao, the function of these representatives of flute family instruments in different historical periods is analyzed. The position and its change in different periods are discussed.Through the study on the flute family instruflutments' spread over, exchange with, and influence on other nations, Chapter Three analyzes the main ways of the flute family instruflutments' spread, The musical exchange between Han and other minorities and that between China and foreign countries. The far-reaching influence of the ancient Chinese flute family instruments' spread on the development of world music culture is illustrated.The part of conclusion is about the achievement and significance of the research.This paper makes a rather complete analysis on the appearance and the development of Chinese flute family instruments. The different types, the inheritance, the status and function, the spread and the exchange with foreign countries, and the influence of the flute family instruments on the world music culture are specially analyzed and studied.