Yu Zhenfei

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Yu Zhenfei was a Chinese opera singer and actor who became known in the twentieth century in the genres kunqu and jingju, Peking opera. Kunqu is one of the oldest forms of traditional Chinese musical theatre. Many pieces from the classical repertoire, such as the play The Peony Pavilion from 1598, were written for this art form. It is a theatre in which singing, gesture, dance and a soft, melodious orchestra come together, in a slower and more lyrical style than Peking opera.

Music and breakthrough

Yu Zhenfei was regarded as one of the leading performers of his time. In Shanghai he often appeared with the singer Yan Huizhu, the Queen of Peking Opera. Together they performed an adapted version of Qiangtou mashang. In 1960 they married. The marriage ended in tragedy in 1966: during the Cultural Revolution their house was ransacked by the Red Guards and Yan Huizhu was denounced. On the night of 10 September 1966 she took her own life, while Yu Zhenfei was in the same room.

Influence

The story of Yu Zhenfei shows how strongly traditional music and theatre were affected by the politics of that time. Opera performers were seen as representatives of an old culture, and many were persecuted. For anyone who wants to follow the musical story of China, he belongs among the musicians who kept centuries-old art forms alive.

Listening