The Divine Musical Hall in the Temple of Heaven
will open to the public during the week-long National Day holiday
(October 1 through 7) after two years of renovation.
The ancient hall will now serve as a museum to
exhibit China’s ancient sacrificial music and dances.
At present, there are all together more than 30
kinds of Chinese musical instruments, including qin (Chinese
zither), se (a plucked instrument with 16 to 25 strings),
dizi (bamboo flute) and xiao (vertical bamboo flute)
shown in the hall. Music books and works introducing ancient
Chinese music are also exhibited.
Unlike most museums, visitors are allowed to touch and even play
the musical instruments. The entry ticket for adults is 10 yuan
(about US$1.20). Concerts featuring ancient Chinese sacrificial
music will be held in the hall; the charge for a ticket will be
more than 100 yuan (about US$12).
The Divine Musical Hall, a complex in the Temple of
Heaven, was built in 1420, during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It
housed the Office of Divine Music, which was considered the highest
musical institution in ancient China. All professional dancers,
singers and musicians who gave performances in the imperial
sacrificial activities during the Ming and Qing
(1644-1911) dynasties received training there.
The Divine Musical Hall was taken over by the
Eight-Power Allied Forces in 1900 when they invaded Beijing. After
looting the cultural relics inside, the invaders changed the hall
into a military warehouse. During World War II, it was occupied by
the Japanese army and used as a laboratory.
After the founding of the People’s Republic of
China in 1949, civilian residents moved in, with the number of
households climbing to 170 at one time. Their cobbled-together
sheds and kitchens, heated by makeshift coal stoves and illuminated
via tangles of electrical wires, threatened the safety of the
historical site. Becoming neglected, the roof and some sections of
the walls in the main hall collapsed.
In 2000, Liu Xiuchen, a member of the Beijing
Municipal Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative
Conference, suggested to the city government that the Divine
Musical Hall be repaired and protected.
The government assisted the residents to relocate
and began the renovation in February 2002.
(China.org.cn by Chen Lin, September 30, 2004)
