Xi Xiaobo was the last master of the glory period of Chinese Peking Opera.
Xi Xiaobo, (1910-1977), Manchu, whose grandfather Yude was a former scholar of the Wen Yuange University of the Qing Dynasty, and later joined the cabinet to worship the prime minister. In 1921, he became a teacher of Yan Jupeng, Zong Tan Xinpei singing, and later asked Yu Shuyan for art. In 1926, he studied Tan (Xinpei) from Wang Rongshan, Lü Zhengyi, Hu Zijun and others, learned from Yu Lenghua, and asked the owner of the Red Bean Pavilion for advice, and took in Gao Qingkui, Shi Huibao, Wang Fengqing and other family leaders.
Xi Xiaobo's words are sloppy but not turbid, the line is new and not good, the drama road is big but not obscured, the style is vigorous but not hot, and the collection of hundreds of schools of thought is the same. With a tactful and delicate, fresh and elegant artistic style, independent of the stage, together with Ma Lianliang, Tan Fuying and Yang Baosen, he is known as the "Four Great Students" by the Peking Opera industry.
From the perspective of the history of Peking Opera, the origin of actors is nothing more than sitting in science since childhood and becoming a professional actor because of his love, and Xi Xiaobo belongs to the outstanding of the latter category. He not only came from a noble background, the key is to have extremely high cultural literacy and artistic temperament, coupled with his deep love of Peking Opera, from hobby to study, from ticket to sea, step by step to complete the life ideal of becoming a Peking Opera actor, and in decades of ups and downs and practice grinding, he fulfilled the dream of becoming famous. Xi Xiaobo's success lies in consciously building an art building on the basis of his own cultural temperament, although elegant is the noble, but elegant and common appreciation. He respects tradition, not conformism; Be humble and seek benefits, not eat the past; Sticking to the norms, rather than standing still, the result is a "fresh and elegant, tactful and delicate", a distinctive artistic style like a sonata.
According to rumors, Mr. Xi Xiaobo had 14 disciples: Diao Yuanli, Han Zhi'an, Su Chenglong, Ouyang Zhongshi, Meng Xiaobo, Zhang Zongnan, Zhang Rongpei, Sun Baocheng, Zhang Gongming, Zhao Juyang, Wang Yunsheng, Zhao Luzhong, Peng Juan, Jin Futian, etc.
First, the four major disciples before the founding of the People's Republic of China: Diao Yuanli, Han Zhi'an, Su Chenglong, and Ouyang Zhongshi
1. Diao Yuanli, Mr. Xi's founding disciple, studied in Shandong in 1942. However, there is very little information about Diao Yuanli, and famous Xi scholars such as Su Chenglong and Li Bopei were all enlightened by Diao Yuanli.
Han Zhi'an
2, Han Zhi'an, Xi Pai famous ticket, Mr. Xi's second disciple, in 1943 to worship the teacher, studied a lot of drama, and never went to the sea in his life.
3, Su Chenglong, Peking Opera actor. Born in August 1928, he lived in Xi Xiaobo's house in 1945, Xi Xiaobo asked Tan Fuying's brother-in-law Song Jiting to play for Su Chenglong, and later worshiped Xi Xiaobo for further study, and was one of Xi Xiaobo's four major disciples before liberation. Su Chenglong studied drama in Xi Xiaobo's house for three years, and at the beginning he was told by his master brother Diao Yuanli, and half a year later, Xi Xiaobo guided Su Chenglong to tune his voice and practice drama.
Later, he studied and performed with teacher Zhou Xiaotian until 1957.
4. Ouyang Zhongshi (described later)
Second, Mr. Xi's disciple after the founding of the People's Republic of China
1. Meng Xiaobo (1923-2011), a disciple of Mr. Xi Xiaobo.
In 1949, Mr. Xi became a teacher, and Mr. Xi gave him the name "Xiaobo". Later, he followed Mr. Xi to and from Shijiazhuang, Beijing for several years, eating and living with Mr. Xi, and deeply understood the essence of Xi school art. He has worked in Hebei Shijiazhuang Peking Opera Troupe, Jiangxi Fuzhou Peking Opera Troupe, Fujian Yong'an Peking Opera Troupe, etc.
2, Zhang Rongpei, (1926-) male, old student of Peking Opera. At an early age, he entered the "Rongchun Society" class in Beijing, studied with Cai Ronggui and Wang Shaofen, and studied Yu School art under Wang Shaofen. In 1958, he became a teacher. Since 1960, he has been engaged in Chinese opera teaching, promoting the art of Xi Pai and carefully apprenticeship. The main disciples are Zhang Jianguo, Li Bopei, Zhang Junqiang, Zhao Jianzhong, Wang Xiaocia, Zhang Jianfeng, Wusheng and Xi Zhonglu, a veteran actor of the Xi School, and so on.
3, Sun Baocheng, a veteran actor of the original Shijiazhuang Peking Opera Troupe, a disciple of Mr. Xi Xiaobo, the true biography of Mr. Xiaobo, is said to be in poor health and has become a vegetative person.
4, Zhang Gongreson, (1925~2018) male, Peking Opera veteran.
In 1945, when he was studying at Chaoyang University in Beijing, he studied Peking Opera under Mr. Xi Xiaobo. Since 1948, Mr. Zhang has accompanied Mr. Xi and traveled all over the country, learning opera, doing paperwork at the same time, sorting out Mr. Xi's repertoire, and participating in performances at the same time. Until 1957, Mr. Zhang compiled more than 100 Xi Pai performances. In 1953, when commemorating the 2300th anniversary of Qu Yuan's birth, Mr. Zhang Gongming wrote "Qu Yuan" for Mr. Xi, with Mr. Xi Xiaobo playing Qu Yuan, which was the first time that the role of "Qu Yuan" appeared on the Peking Opera stage.
Zhao Juyang
5. Zhao Juyang, a disciple of Mr. Xi Xiaobo, a national first-class actor in the Jinzhou Peking Opera Troupe, and a famous female old student. Zhao Juyang's son Zhao Naiyi, a veteran of literary and martial arts, a disciple of the Tang Sect, and the son-in-law of Tang Yunsheng.
6, Jin Futian is a famous ticket of the horse sect who is obsessed with Ma Lianliang, and the author has not found the information of Mr. Jin Futian to worship Mr. Xi.
3. Two special disciples: Mi Jianrong and Wang Tiecheng
1. Mi Jianrong, born in 1961. In 1972, he was admitted to the Peking Opera Performance Department of Shijiazhuang Art School to study as an old student, and after graduating in 1976, he was assigned to the Peking Opera Troupe in Shijiazhuang City. Due to his love for the art of Peking Opera veterans, he began to learn the art of singing from the late 70s to Wei Ming, the piano master of Mr. Xi Xiaobo, until his mentor passed away at the end of the 90s. His singing is quite taunting, and his mellow rhyme, regular pronunciation, and luster voice seem to be unmatched today.
2, "Premier Zhou" special actor - Wang Tiecheng
Wang Tiecheng is a famous drama actor. Playing a role in his life is Premier Zhou Enlai. When Wang Tiecheng was 6 years old, he began to study Peking Opera. In 1950, he officially studied with Xi Xiaobo as a teacher, and studied with Xi Xiaobo for more than three years.
Fourth: Ouyang Zhongshi: The second generation of Xi Pai, "entrusted by Mr. Xi", a "ticket friend" master who inherits the upper and lower levels
Ouyang Zhongshi (1928-November 5, 2020) was a famous Chinese scholar, educator and calligrapher, and a professor, doctoral student and postdoctoral supervisor of Capital Normal University.
Mr. Ouyang Zhongshi is talented and elegant.
He is not only a famous calligrapher and calligraphy educator, but also the heir of the highly prestigious Peking Opera Xi School art. Calligraphy and Peking Opera built a bridge between Xi Xiaobo and Ouyang Zhongshi's master and apprentice. The two have known each other for more than 30 years, have the same love as father and son, have been very close, and know each other the deepest.
Among the disciples of the Xi Sect, Ouyang Zhongshi had mastered the most essence and achieved outstanding results.
In 1943, Ouyang Zhongshi visited Xi Xiaobo.
In addition to learning opera with Xi Xiaobo, he once learned opera from Zhang Boju and Liu Zengfu, and also received lessons from Mao Jusun, Zhang Xihou, Sun Shaoxian, Fan Jigao, Kong Fanchang, Yu Zhendong, Du Xiaoxian and others, and the dramas of Peking Opera masters Li Hongchun, Tan Fuying, Yang Baosen, Qian Fuchuan, Gao Shenglin, Li Shengyin (Yin), Jin Yuchun, Gao Boling, Yu Lenghua and others also brought a lot of inspiration to Ouyang Zhongshi. He also carefully pondered the essence of different performances of Peking Opera, and gained a lot of reference from the stage presentation of the pure and ugly life.
Xi Xiaobo and Ouyang Zhongshi were like both masters and apprentices and friends.
During that special period, Ouyang Zhongshi went to Shijiazhuang to visit Xi Xiaobo regardless of his own safety. Xi Xiaobo gave his grandson Xi Zhonglu to Ouyang Zhongshi, and also asked Xi Zhonglu to learn from Ouyang Zhongshi. In fact, this is not only entrusting his grandson to Ouyang Zhongshi, but also giving the art of Xi Pai to Ouyang Zhongshi in a greater sense.
Ouyang Zhongshi has made great achievements in passing on the torch and carrying forward the art of Peking Opera, especially the "Xi School" art of Peking Opera. Now the three generations of Xi School are most famous Zhang Jianguo of the National Peking Opera and Zhang Jianfeng of the Beijing Peking Opera, both of whom were taught by Ouyang Zhongshi.