An Exploration Of The Application Of Breath In Guzheng Performance: Taking Yaoye As An Example

Guzheng performance consists of various elements, the major three being performing techniques, music connotations, and emotion expressions. Success in these elements enables the audience to clearly feel what the performer wants to express. However, many fail to notice the fact that breath, which signifies the coherence of the performance, is what strings all these elements together. Both the physiological breath of the performer and the musical breath of the Guzheng music piece are essential to Guzheng performance. Physiological breath is one of the primary substances which sustain our lives, and it exists in our daily life, work, and entertainment. For example, when we sing we maneuver our breath to vibrate our vocal cords to produce different tones and tunes. Guzheng playing can be viewed as if the Guzheng is singing, where there are also tones, tunes, pauses, inhales and exhales. Each piece of Guzheng music has its own overture, development, climax and finale, and they form several periods in a music piece. Each period is composed of several phrases, long and short. All these require the performer to carefully manage the breath of the Guzheng music. Therefore, the performer has to deliver the inner singing to the audience through Guzheng playing.Based on the author’s own performing experience and lessons learnt from external sources, the paper discusses how to manage musical breath in Guzheng performance by analyzing a particular piece of Guzheng music:Yaoye. The paper consists of three chapters. In Chapter One, the author discusses the definition and significance of breath in Guzheng performance. It gives a basic description of breath in Guzheng performance from the perspectives of relaxation degree and artistic treatment, in order to help readers to understand breath as an abstract concept in actual Guzheng performance. Chapter Two analyzes the management of breath in the performance of Guzheng music piece Yaoye from the angles of both theory and artistic treatment. The author further points out in Chapter Three how external lessons are incorporated in the Guzheng performance of Yaoye. It is found that lessons learnt from Chinese painting and calligraphy and some Taichi techniques, once properly used, could make Guzheng performance vividly expressive.