There is no one in the world
Reading the comparative biographical literature "Chang Xiangyu and Chen Suzhen" has a feeling.
Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Li Haiting.
Dear Teacher Shi Lei:
Hello!On November 11, 2023, to arrive in Zhengzhou from Shandong Province ** "The opening of the Fifth Henan Opera Festival - tribute to Xiangyu" event performance, I specially take this book to read, a month ago, the book has been read, I have feelings, I write this article, and I pay tribute to the author Shi Lei.
I am an opera fan from Shandong and currently in my sophomore year. Recently, I read your old "Chang Xiangyu and Chen Suzhen", I have a little experience, and I have admired Fangcai for a long time, so I wrote this letter to express my admiration and humble opinion. The writing is gloomy, and I hope you will forgive me.
Let's talk about how I fell in love with Henan Opera. When I was a child, I lived in the countryside of southwest Luxi, and the customs and folklore of that land had many similarities with those of the Central Plains. Henan Opera has a very broad market in Shandong, especially in the southwest of Shandong Province, there are a lot of audiences listening to Henan Opera, I followed my father to listen to "Mulan", "Hitting the Golden Branch", "Three Crying Palace" and so on when I was very young, but at that time I just listened to it, and there was no so-called love in it.
In the spring of 2015, when I hadn't graduated from primary school, my village held a temple fair, and a particularly good troupe came (it was written at the time of Qilu ** College, and the two teachers starring Cao Hong and Cao Hua left a deep impression on me), the actors' typhoon is upright and the singing rules are really fascinating, and I have had a strong interest in Henan Opera since then. At that time, the Internet was already relatively common, so I cradled to one of my earliest smartphones and frantically searched for information about Henan Opera. The first thing I learned was the deeds and art of Master Chang Xiangyu, I was immediately attracted, I admired Master Chang's pattern and courage to do things, and appreciated her artistic humility and earnestness, it can be said that Master Chang Xiangyu's personality charm opened my artistic door, until today, I still have a deep awe of Master Chang Xiangyu, and have endless love for Chang School art.
How did I learn about you, there is no one and one play here - the person is Wang Hui, and the play is "The Righteous Martyr". As soon as I searched for "Chang Xiangyu", there will always be a related ** Henan Opera "Chang Xiangyu" starring the famous teacher Wang Hui, so I paid special attention to this Chang Pai**. It wasn't until the winter of 2015 that I saw the first time I saw the play of "The Righteous Martyr's Daughter: Jade Death" sung by Teacher Wang Hui on the Internet, and I was deeply attracted by her. The earliest version I watched was an excerpt recorded by CCTV, and only Tong Yushan and Zhuang Hongwen sang in the last big section of the scene - just this part of the singing is enough to make people have endless memories. The lyrics are elegant and easy to understand, the singing is exciting, and with the emotional investment of Mr. Wang Hui, this play can be called a first-class masterpiece.
Let's talk about the text of Wang Hui's "Righteous Martyr Girl", omitted.
Shi Lei and Chang Xiangyu (Zhengzhou, 1982).
Shi Lei and Chang Xiangyu (Zhengzhou, 1978).
I'm so ashamed that when I talk about "The Righteous Martyr", it's easy to gush endlessly, and I should go back to this book.
I heard in mid-October that your book was about to be released, but the time has not been set. At that time, I made an appointment with a friend that I would have to keep a copy of the book after it was released. On November 11th, I went to the Henan Provincial Art Center from Shandong to see a performance, and I specially asked a friend to bring me a book. It's an honor that I still have your autograph for this book, and today is exactly the whole month since I got the book, 12On the 11th, it snowed heavily in Jinan, and I wrote my sincere respect with a warm heart in the cold winter.
Nowadays, the Internet is developed, and all kinds of rumors are spreading everywhere along the Internet. The ranking of the "Sanding Jia", the feelings of Master Chen Suzhen, the dispute between Master Chang and Santuan and others mentioned in the book, etc., are often added to the fire by people with ill intentions to attack the two outstanding artists, and even directly deny the credit of Master Chang Xiangyu's donation of fighter jets. For so many years, some extreme fans of the Chang School and the Chen School have also been in constant disputes, with ill remarks against each other and unfounded words. There are rumors that make fools gullible and wise men worried. At first, I read this book for the purpose of "breaking the rumors", but after reading not much, I realized that the value of this book does not stop there. Nearly 700 pages of the book, every page is your old painstaking work.
The first is the subject matter of the book. Often the biography that the public sees is the autobiography or other biography of a person, or it is a biography with more characters but less space, and the advantage of "comparative biographical literature" is that it can tell the life trajectory and situation gap between the two masters in more detail, more regulation, and more clearly. There are also many introductions to the historical background in the book, which is also an important historical material for history lovers to understand the situation of opera literature and art in the past.
What impresses me the most is the abundance of content.
There is a passage that impressed me very much, and you wrote this when describing the voice of Master Chen Suzhen:
From her singing, I seem to be able to hear the bell ringing from the "Sonic Earthquake Tianzhong" pavilion standing on the drum tower in the center of the city in Kaifeng as a child;Smell the fragrance of locust flowers emanating from the ancient acacia planted on both sides of the streets and alleys of Kaifeng;I heard the sound of the water of the clear and turbid Pan and Yang Er Lakes on both sides of the Gulong Pavilion slapping on the embankment;Taste the "new" soup dumpling ...... that "looks like a chrysanthemum and picks it up like a lantern".”
I'm really amazed by this extraordinary talent!
More importantly, every factual conclusion you write is supported by strong arguments, like a full score in writing and content, appropriate and full, serious and rigorous. As a person who often writes **, I know very well how difficult it is to collect this information as an argument, newspapers from decades ago, biographies of famous artists, and ** across the Strait. There are so many precious materials. Decades of dedication can lead to today's masterpieces. (Especially when I saw that you quoted the Book of Fu Lei's Family in your book, I began to doubt the meaning of my previous reading.) I read this book at the request of my school when I was very young, but I don't remember the words mentioned in the book about Master Chang - many dull and careless readers like me in the world, and it is rare to find a meticulous observer like you. ）
The Si people are gone, but the afterglow remains. Both masters are outstanding contributors to the history of Henan Opera, and their artistic strengths are different, and I think it is pointless to score which one is higher or the other. The wise appreciate each other, and the fool compares. What the current inheritors of Henan Opera and the audience should do is to "unite as one", just as you also summarized when you wrote about the contradiction between Mr. Fan Cuiting and Master Chen Suzhen: to do one thing, be sincere and united, trust and rely on each other. However, there are some things that often make people feel that the world is declining, people's hearts are not ancient, and there are very few partners who trust and rely on each other. I can only hope that the opera people in Henan can concentrate on their art, and bring more masterpieces to the audience.
It is difficult to have a second Chen Suzhen in the world, and there is no second Chang Xiangyu, and there are even fewer gentlemen who work silently in the art world like you, so I take the title of "Gentleman is unparalleled in the world" to express my respect.
Not showy, not reserved, not self-conscious, not beautiful. The gentleman's integrity should be like this.
The snow falls and the frost freezes, and everything complains of cold. When you travel regularly, pay attention to safety, and don't forget to add clothes. Wishing you good winter and seeing you soon.
Junior Li Haiting.
December 11, 2023.