A singing and dancing performance featuring Chinese Dunhuang arts was staged in Seoul Saturday to mark the 10th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the Republic of Korea (ROK).
Sixty artists of the Dunhuang Arts Theater performed for a large, enthusiastic audience.
The performance, as part of China-Korea People-to-People Exchange Year co-sponsored by the two governments, will also be given in Chonju.
The performance is based on a music book discovered in a grottoin Dunhuang, which could be dated back to China's Tang Dynasty -- the peak of Chinese imperialistic history.
The book, dubbed as Dunhuang Music Book, collected 25 pieces of ancient works written in ancient musical language. It is the only one of its type in the world, which recorded the oldest singing and dancing style.
Dunhuang, located in West China's Gansu Province, holds more than 500 grottos, in which beautiful mural paintings and antique books were found. The study of Dunhuang has become a hot academic subject in the world.
Dunhuang, since 2,000 years ago, was a place of great importance on the world-renowned Silk Road, and also a cross land for the cultures of China, India, Egypt and Islam. The performance revived the Dunhuang mural paintings and the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty.
(People's Daily August 25, 2002)
