In the spring of 2021, we drove south from Xibaipo and soon saw the Cao Mars Memorial Standing quietly. This quiet and simple building is located on the half slope of the Gangnan Reservoir Dam, with thousands of acres of blue waves behind it. The memorial hall looks east at the flowing Tuotuo River and quietly gazes at the small village that gave birth to Cao Mars, an excellent musician, Xigangnan Village, Pingshan County, Hebei Province.
At this moment, the sonorous melody of "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China" resounded over and over again in the small square of the memorial hall. My mind followed the cultural relics and pictures on display in the museum, traveling through nearly a hundred years of time and walking into the smoke of war.
On July 1, 2021, the conference to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China was held in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. Before the celebration began, with the accompaniment of the military band, Tiananmen Square sang "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China."
After coming out of the memorial hall, we went into the village to look for: what kind of water and soil are the footprints of Cao Mars's childhood hidden in? When did the germination of the ideal take root in his heart? How did that eternal melody gush out of his hot nib...
1
Walking through the streets, the quaint gatehouse is still there, and the vicissitudes of the mud wall are still there. The village secretary searched for the key, so we were able to step into the small courtyard of Cao Mars's former residence. Wooden beams and lattice windows reflect the scene of a hundred years ago.
On October 18, 1924, a thin boy was born in Xigangnan Village, Pingshan County, Hebei Province. His father, Cao Qinglian, was simple and kind, and ran a relatively wealthy family. Cao Qinglian named the child Cao Zhi (曹峙), the character 文山.
Xiao CaoZhi was intelligent and studious, and in music class he also learned to read simple notation, and became interested in an organ used by his teacher. However, in 1937, his dream of continuing his studies was shattered by artillery fire. Xiao Caozhi and his family witnessed the ruins of the Japanese army's iron hooves. But at the same time, he also saw that the "Battlefield Salvation Regiment" of the Eighth Route Army, which bravely advanced against the current, formed the "Pingshan Regiment" within a month, and more than 1,700 peasant children joined the army and generously rushed to the anti-Japanese battlefield.
A voice shouted in Xiao CaoZhi's heart--"Resist Japan!" Save the country! Resolutely do not be a slave to the country! At the age of thirteen, he was introduced by his classmates and became the director of the village youth salvation association. This young man led several young people to donate money and materials for the Eighth Route Army and to mobilize for joining the army in the village.
On the second day of the Chinese New Year in 1938, Xiao Caozhi left home and later joined the "Iron Blood Drama Society" in Pingshan County. In the process of forming the Pingshan Regiment, people realized the great role of literary and artistic propaganda. At the initiative of Wang Zhao, secretary of the Pingshan County CPC Committee, the county established a drama club with the spirit of "iron-blooded resistance" as its purpose. Some young intellectuals wrote and performed their own programs and carried out propaganda. The members of the drama club have changed their names one after another to show their strong will and determination not to be afraid of sacrifice. Xiao CaoZhi changed his name to "Mars", which implies the meaning of "the spark of a star can burn the plains".
One day in early summer, the Hongzi store in the important town of Jixi coincided with the big gathering, and the villagers gathered downstairs to watch the performance of the Iron Blood Drama Society. Only to hear a brittle female voice sing from behind the scenes: "Since last July, the devils have occupied the sand ridge, and the neighboring people have suffered, and every household has rippled with tears, and the invaders are so ferocious!" Opposing the shackles of the feudal family, I was bent on resisting the war and joining the army. When the "woman" walked to the front of the stage, the fellow villagers were puzzled when they saw it: "I didn't hear that there was Kun Jiao'er in the drama club, where did the actress come from?" ”
But the actor's long hair is real. It turned out that Cao Mars had specially kept long hair in order to perform. For a time, the people were deeply attracted by this new drama and "female lead", and the publicity effect was unexpected. Cao Mars also became famous.
2
At the beginning of the establishment of the Iron Blood Drama Society, Cao Mars gave full play to his own strengths, taught everyone to read music, and sang anti-Japanese songs. Later, he filled in the old songs with new words and changed the minor tune of folk songs to anti-Japanese songs. As the number of performances increased, this method was obviously no longer enough, and Cao Mars very much hoped that he could write songs.
In 1939, Cao Mars accidentally bought a copy of "Harmony and Acoustics" at an old book stall, and he began to teach himself, thus simply mastering some music theory knowledge. Just when he was struggling to study, a cultural unit from Yan'an, the "North China United University", waded through the mountains and waters to Pingshan County.
At the beginning of 1940, Pingshan County sent all the members of the Iron Blood Drama Society to study at north China Union University. Cao Mars chose to major in composition. He used all his time to copy textbooks, to copy music magazines, to study theories, especially the articles of Comrade Mao Zedong. Finally ready to compose the music, he thought of the scene of the Pingshan regiment on the battlefield... Well, just write the Pingshan Regiment! "On the Battlefield" is almost a wave, the tune is high and progressive.
Cao Mars took the manuscript and went to the teacher Lu Su nervously. Lu Su looked at it and changed only one note. When Cao Mars sang again, he found that it was very different! Since then, he has been more cautious about every note.
Eight months later, Cao Mars graduated from North China Union University and continued to devote himself to anti-war propaganda. Without a stage, they created a "live newspaper drama", the sky made the curtain, the ground was the stage, and the compatriots who rushed to the market were the mass actors.
At the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region Art Festival, when he saw the North China United University Cultural and Labor Troupe and the Northwest Field Service Group playing on the violin, Cao Mars was extremely envious. Based on memory and imagination, after repeated polishing, he even made a "real violin". Our literary and artistic fighters, who do not wait for or rely on others, do not have conditions, create conditions, and are stunned to create "foreign musical instruments" for anti-Japanese propaganda.
At that time, Cao Mars carried two grenades on his back and signed up to go to the enemy-occupied areas to do propaganda. He distributed leaflets in enemy-occupied areas, and was once trapped in the mountains and almost died. But he was not afraid at all, and constantly accumulated experience in the struggle.
Hardships can't overwhelm them, but the confusion of thought sometimes binds them. At that time, a "foreign drama" was staged in the border area. Cao Mars, they have never seen a sofa, have not used electric lights, and cannot perform foreign plays, so they have a pessimistic mood, and some people even want to quit the drama club.
In May 1942, Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out in his speech at the Yan'an Forum on Literature and Art: "Our literature and art are all for the masses of the people, first of all for the workers, peasants and soldiers." Inspired by the spirit of the speech, Cao Mars finally unraveled the knots in their thinking, and their confidence in creating for the people was even stronger.
Cao Mars mentions in his memoirs: "... Children's regiments, youth rescue associations, militia companies, women's rescue associations, everywhere is the ocean of songs. When meetings and productions are held, they all play songs with each other, compete in competitions, and use anti-war songs to open the way. This exciting scene promoted my desire to write songs, and I created songs such as "Attacking the Enemy" and "Warm In the Spring", which inspired my momentum. ”
The famous writer Zhou Erfu mentioned in the "Jin-Cha-Ji Xing" that the Iron Blood Drama Society and the Northwest Field Service Corps led by Zhou Weizhi trained 4,524 trainees for the border area in just two years... In Pingshan County alone, there are more than 500 villages with troupes, song teams, and overlord whip teams, which truly make literature and art "an indispensable army to defeat the enemy."
3
In the spring of 1943, in the face of the bright red party flag, Cao Mars passionately swore an oath to join the party. At that time, he did not know that his father had been killed in the "Gangnan Massacre".
In the autumn, Cao Mars was sent to Tangshang Village in Fangshan County to participate in the village's rent reduction and interest reduction campaign. He and two comrades crossed the mountains and finally reached the beautiful Xiayun Ridge. After they met with the village cadres, Cao Mars quickly put into work, teaching the local people to sing, beat the overlord whip, and actively mobilized the masses.
At that time, Cao Mars composed music in folk minor key fillers, and composed a set of songs suitable for the overlord whip, publicizing the party's anti-Japanese and rent-reduction and interest-cutting policies. But I always feel that the strength of the song is not enough. Cao Mars decided to write another song that would highlight the theme highly.
In August of that year, Jiefang Daily published an editorial entitled "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No China", fighting tit-for-tat with the Kuomintang reactionaries.
Sinking mountains, lonely late at night. Cao Mars sat down at the small wooden table and contemplated. Inspiration came suddenly, he picked up the pen, and the words fell to the paper like falling pearls...
After the lyrics were written, Cao Mars took a long breath, turned on the lights, and then read them silently. The passion of creation inspired him to compose music immediately. Folk minor tunes and opera tunes continued to pour in, and the scene of children playing the overlord whip and singing in front of them appeared. Yes, be bright, smooth, and rhythmic. According to the needs of the feelings, he rearranged the previous melody. Finally, there are several consecutive, generously raised high notes... At that moment, he finally composed the sound that had accumulated in his heart.
Cao Mars's creative manuscript (Source: CCTV)
Then, the members of the village children's group learned to sing this song, and then gradually spread it in various troupes. Two years later, the Jin-Cha-Ji Daily published the song, and since then, it has been widely sung in various border areas.
Cao Mars once wrote: "Under the leadership of the Communist Party, the broad masses of the people in the anti-Japanese base areas have overcome all kinds of difficulties to persist in the War of Resistance, engage in democratic construction, make the people the masters of their own affairs, carry out land reform, develop production, and improve the people's lives... These living facts are what I have seen with my own eyes... The party and the people live and die together and share hardships, and the masses of the people send their children and husbands to join the army for the War of Resistance, and support the front line to shed blood and sacrifice... Without the Communist Party, there would be no situation of persisting in the War of Resistance; without the leadership of the Communist Party, the broad masses of the people would not have been able to turn themselves into liberated masters; without the leadership of the Communist Party, a brand-new China would not have been created. I spoke the truth, told the truth, wrote the truth, and reflected the voice of the people. ”
At the beginning of the creation of this song, the score was suitable for singing and dancing, but later because it was mainly sung, it was modified to be more suitable for the singing habits of the masses. The lyrics of the song "More Than Six Years of The War of Resistance" were finally fixed at the time of the victory of the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression - "More than Eight Years of The War of Resistance".
The original version of the song was one word away from the version that became widely sung. According to the accounts of party history experts, one day Chairman Mao heard his daughter Li Ne singing "Without the Communist Party, there would be no China," and immediately corrected it: Without the Communist Party, China would have existed long ago, and it should be changed to "Without the Communist Party, there would be no New China." Later, the song was changed and sung to this day.
4
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Cao Mars served as deputy head of the Tianjin Music Troupe, director of the Tianjin Municipal Bureau of Culture, vice chairman of the Tianjin Municipal Federation of Literature and Literature, and chairman of the Tianjin Musicians Association, and made outstanding contributions to the development of Tianjin's literary and artistic undertakings. As a result, he became extremely busy, and his professional creation had to be carried out in his spare time.
In winter, on the snowy road, the chain of the bicycle fell off, and Cao Mars pushed the car to run, and he was afraid of delaying to attend the course at the Central Conservatory of Music. He needs to learn music systematically and use every opportunity to study. In the summer, when the eldest daughter, Cao Hongwen, wakes up in the middle of the night, she often sees her father struggling to write a book under the covered light; the weather is too hot, and the father soaks his feet in the cool water basin. In the office, colleagues saw him quietly pulling open the desk drawer after work, writing and changing notes on the paper...
In his later years, he was almost blind in both eyes and lying on a hospital bed, but he still insisted on creating. His old comrades said: "Cao Mars is a warrior with a submachine gun, and a heavy-loaded, exhausted trekker who has to go to the goal." ”
In 1999, when his life was in danger, Cao Mars was still composing songs for the return of Macao to the motherland. He said: "If my works can play a role in the construction of the motherland, it will be my greatest happiness and pleasure." ”
This warrior, this trekker, lived in silence all his life in poverty.
Cao Hongwen remembers most deeply that her father can make up and "cut the door". Cao Mars did not have any hobbies, and his clothes were patched with patches. During three years of hardship, someone exchanged food stamps for eggs to supplement his body, but he did not do that. The children were so hungry that they couldn't sleep at night, and he told stories of eating wild vegetables and scraping tree bark during the war years, but he took the food stamps he had saved to help others. When he was the deputy head of the Tianjin Music Troupe, he offered not to participate in the division of houses, and a family of six lived in a house of 30 square meters, without heating, and lived for more than ten years. Others did not understand, but he said that this is much better than the war years, as long as there is a place to create.
Later, according to the policy, the organization issued Cao Mars a living allowance of 6,000 yuan, which was a huge amount of money at the time. Qi Yuzhen, his wife who suffered with him, was not in good health, and how much he needed this money to nourish his body. His third brother was ill and came from his hometown in Pingshan, hoping to use the money to treat his illness. However, Cao Mars and his wife finally discussed that the country was in ruins and needed more money, and the money given by the organization could not be asked for, so they all paid the party fee. He squeezed money out of his salary and showed his third brother a doctor.
He was a musician who truly cared about fame and fortune. Cao Hongyi, the second daughter of Cao Mars, once wrote: "When I was a child, I didn't know that this song was written by my father, until I went to school and saw the music textbook. ”
The famous actor Tian Hua has worked in the Jin-Cha-Ji Border Region for many years, and has performed with Cao Mars, singing "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China" countless times, but Tian Hua did not know that this song was composed by Cao Mars. Many years later, Tian Hua asked Cao Mars why he hadn't told her earlier. Cao Mars replied: "We are the party's literary and artistic fighters, writing songs, composing music, and creating are all our professions, as for that song, the important thing is to sing, not to know who created it." ”
Cao Mars condensed his life into more than 1,600 songs and song and dance dramas, silently put this wealth into the treasure house of Chinese music, and then quietly left. The song is born from the heart, and the voice of the heart is enough.
5
The Scythians are gone, and the rhyme lives on. The melody of "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China" has always been floating in the hearts of hundreds of millions of people. In 2011, CCTV broadcast ten episodes of the TV literary and art feature film "Ninety Years of Song", which ranked first in the first episode; in 2015, hundreds of thousands of netizens selected the "My Favorite Ten Anti-War Songs", which ranked second in votes, second only to the national anthem; in 2019, this song was selected by the Propaganda Department as "100 Excellent Songs Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China"; in 2021, on the occasion of the centenary of the Communist Party of China, the melody of this song came from everywhere in the north and south of the motherland. The masses of the people sang the voice of their hearts in a loud voice.
Today, in the birthplace of this song, Tangshang Village, Xiayunling Township, Fangshan District, Beijing, has also built a memorial hall of "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China", which introduces this classic song to people in a variety of ways such as graphic display, multimedia presentation, and song link.
Tangshang Village, Xiayunling Township, Fangshan District, is the birthplace of the song "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China". The village's "Without the Communist Party, There Would Be No New China" memorial is expected to reopen this month. Beijing Evening News reporter Bai Jikai photographed
The famous musician Zhou Weizhi said: "He (Cao Mars) uses music to inspire the people to move forward, and the people love his songs. In the view of the famous poet He Jingzhi: "Comrade Cao Mars is the star of the people shining in the history of Chinese music." ”
The song is proof, the song pays tribute. The artists of the people will be remembered by the people forever.