Zhou Enlai and the "Long March Suite" came out

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One

"Long March Suite Song", also known as "The Red Army is not afraid of expeditions", is a brilliant and immortal red classic epic created by the founding general Xiao Hua.

Xiao Hua, born in 1916 in Xiaowu Village, East Street, Xingguo County, Jiangxi Province, to a poor working-class family, joined the revolution at the age of 12, served as the secretary of the Xingguo County Party Committee of the Communist Youth League at the age of 13, served as the political commissar of the 30th Regiment of the 10th Division of the Red Fourth Army at the age of 15, and served as the political commissar of the International Division of the Red Army at the age of 17 (later renamed the 15th Division of the Red First Army, still serving as the political commissar), leading more than 7,000 officers and men of the International Division of the Young Communist Party to participate in the anti-"encirclement and suppression" battle in the Central Soviet Region. At the beginning of the War of Resistance Against Japan, the 22-year-old Xiao Hua was appointed commander and political commissar of the Eighth Route Army's "Eastward Anti-Japanese Advance Column", known as "Doll Commander". In 1955 Chinese when the People's Liberation Army first conferred the title, Xiao Hua, who was only 39 years old, became the youngest founding general of the republic and was awarded the Order of August 1st Class, the Order of Independence and Freedom of the First Class, and the Liberation Medal of the First Class.

In February 1964, Xiao Hua, then a member of the Standing Committee of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China and deputy director of the General Political Department of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (who succeeded Luo Ronghuan, who died of illness as director of the General Political Department of the Chinese People's Liberation Army), fell ill with hepatitis and recovered from illness on the banks of Lake Xizi in Hangzhou. Xiao Hua loved to read, preferred poetry and song, and was a well-known general poet. During his recuperation, he formulated a "rest" plan, that is, reading and practicing words during the day and writing something he wanted to write at night. Xiao Hua thought that October 1965 was the 30th anniversary of the victory of the Long March of the Central Red Army (that is, the Red Army). For the Acura Long March, he had already moved, but because he had been busy with work day and night for a long time, he did not have the whole time to concentrate on writing. Therefore, Xiao Hua decided to take advantage of this "heavenly opportunity" to summarize and summarize the 25,000-mile Long March in a concentrated manner based on his real experience in the Long March and in the form of literary and artistic works.

During this period, Xiao Hua was called recuperating, and he had no leisure, and in the small building where he lived, it was often brightly lit at night. He couldn't sleep at night, for more than ten consecutive days, he couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep, and his mind always reflected the scenes of battles on the way to the Long March. The situation of writing at that time, described in Xiao Hua's own words, could not be more vivid. He said: "I wrote the Long March group song, I don't know how many tears I shed. Some passages, such as farewell, entering Zunyi, crossing the snowy mountains and meadows, and announcing good news, are written while weeping. How can we not be sad when we think of the hardships and hardships of the Long March and the sacrifice of so many good comrades? The Zunyi Conference established Chairman Mao's leadership position in the Red Army and the Party Central Committee, saved the Red Army and the Party at a critical juncture of life and death, and finally went through hardships and dangers to defeat the enemy. How can you not be happy thinking about this? Sadness and happiness will make people cry. ”

In order to use the literary form of poetry to truly reflect the human miracle of the Long March, Xiao Hua painstakingly conceived step by step from content to form. He also browsed extensively through ancient and modern poetry, learning to temper language and deliberate prosody. After months of painstaking efforts, deliberations, and changes as he wrote, he finally completed 12 magnificent and exhilarating poems. Later, after repeatedly soliciting the opinions of songwriters and composers, nearly 10 major revisions were made, which led to the extraction of Mao Zedong's "Seven Laws? A poem in the "Long March" is the general title, and the group of poems is named "The Red Army is Not Afraid of Expeditionary Difficulties".

Two

In November 1964, Xiao Hua summoned Shi Lemeng, head of the General Political Song and Dance Troupe, and Chen Geng, deputy head of the Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe of the Political Department of the Beijing Military Region, and asked them to compose music for him to compose "The Red Army Is Not Afraid of Expeditionary Difficulties." At that time, he asked the two regiments to set up a program to be performed in 1965 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the victory of the Long March. He said: "I am not asking you to cooperate in writing a song called 'The Red Army Is Not Afraid of Expeditionary Difficulties', the General Political Department Song and Dance Troupe wants to hold a chorus with dance, and the Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe can engage in a musical evening that is convenient for promotion and singing, not necessarily written into 12 songs, but also written songs like "Three Disciplines and Eight Attentions" and integrate the meaning of these 12 poems. In order to let the composer better exert his artistic creativity, Xiao Hua also said: "You can change some words and sentences according to the needs of the composition." Because Xiao Hua had a word first, the lyrics of the two song and dance troupes later engaged in their respective versions were slightly different. For example, in the first song "Farewell", the comrades-in-arms song and dance troupe is "hold the hand of the Red Army tightly / When will the relatives return to their hometown", and the General Political Song and Dance Troupe is "hold the hand of the Red Army tightly / The good news will be passed on to the hometown as soon as possible".

Subsequently, four composers, Chen Geng, Sheng Mao, Tang Hao, and Yu Qiu of the Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe of the Political Department of the Beijing Military Region, selected 10 of Xiao Hua's original 12 poems, composed music according to the different requirements of each paragraph, and depicted 10 poems as 10 interlocking different pictures of combat life. The four composers also ingeniously combined the folk tones of Jiangxi Tea Picking, Miaojia Mountain Song, Hunan Flower Drum, Yunnan Flower Lantern, Chuanjiang Trumpet, and Northern Shaanxi Yangge that the Central Red Army had traveled through in those years with the tone of the traditional songs of the Red Army, and applied them to the composition and creation of the composition, initially converging into a large-scale vocal suite with a distinct theme, rich content, novel form, and unique style——— "Long March Suite", praising the Central Red Army to overcome all difficulties and not be afraid of sacrifice. In the end, the revolutionary spirit of victory in the twenty-five thousand mile long march was obtained.

In April 1965, four composers, Chen Geng, Sheng Mao, Tang Hao and Yu Qiu, came to Hangzhou with the first draft and reported to Xiao Hua on the progress of the composition of the Long March Suite. The four of them auditioned section by section, singing while talking and drawing. When they reported to the chorus passage, Tang Hao sang soprano, Yu Qiu sang soprano, Chen Geng sang tenor, and ShengMao sang bass. After some singing, Xiao Hua felt satisfied after listening to it. Next, the general poet who was born in the red devil despite his illness took 10 mornings to "teach" to the four of them. The story of climbing snowy mountains and crossing meadows, although these four musicians who came from the war have heard many times, can be said from the general's mouth, but it is "a different style". Xiao Hua sometimes danced with flying eyebrows, sometimes passionately, sometimes in tears. When it comes to the battle of Sidu Chishui, Xiao Hua vividly sketched out the big scene of "Chairman Mao's use of troops is really like a god." Yu Qiu said with deep feeling: "General Xiao Hua's interpretation of the spirit of the Long March has laid a profound foundation for us to complete the later creation of the "Long March Suite" and several major revisions. ”

Three

After returning to Beijing from Hangzhou, the four composers began to brew and write a general score. Because Chen Geng served as the leader of the song and dance troupe, he was busy with official duties on weekdays, and he had not specifically studied staves in the past; Shengmao had been obsessed with "grasping melodies" for many years; Tang Hao had not entered the conservatory for further study and could not control such a large work, so the heavy responsibility of writing the general score naturally fell on the shoulders of Yu Qiu, who was born in the "science class".

Yu Qiu, surnamed Li Ming Yu Qiu, was born in 1929 in Shenze County, Hebei Province. In 1940, 11-year-old Li Yuqiu entered the "Anti-China" study. After undergoing strict military training, he learned a lot of anti-Japanese salvation songs, and also participated in the performance of "Yellow River Chorus", which was called "Happy Lark" by everyone. Later, he entered the "Anti-Enemy Drama Society" (the predecessor of the Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe), and was found by the leader to be a "good seedling", so he designated someone to teach him to read and compose scores, and play the accordion.

The rehearsal of "Long March Suite Song" officially began in early May 1965, and the score was changed while arranging. The Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe launched the strongest performance lineup, and the main actors of the troupe were Ma Guoguang, Jia Shijun and Ma Yutao. At that time, Zhou Enlai, who was full of opportunities, often found time to come to the scene to watch. Once, after watching the rehearsal, he said excitedly: "Very successful, congratulations, your path is right, one is revolutionary, the second is national, and the third is the mass... Of course, it is also necessary to continuously improve and continuously improve, so that it is both good to listen to and good to sing, and it is also suitable for each solo actor's own singing characteristics. ”

The later creation was in the middle of the summer of 1965, and Li Yuqiu's creative environment was carried out in a burrow of only 3 square meters in the Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe. There were no fans, no air conditioning, and the house was as hot as a "boiler room." Sometimes the heat was too hot to bear, so he simply "went shirtless" and wore only pants, his feet soaked in the cool basin of water, and he was only covered with a wet towel. At that time, he was all young and energetic, and he hardly wrote and changed day and night. People still hear many of the singing sections in the "Long March Suite", and I am afraid that few people understand how much effort Li Yuqiu has condensed in it.

After two months of intense rehearsal, on July 19, 1965, at the Tianjin People's Auditorium, Xiao Hua reviewed for the first time the "Long March Suite" composed by composers Chen Geng, ShengMao, Tang Hao and Yu Qiu, and conducted by the famous conductor Tang Jiang. After watching the performance, he said: "I was very touched by your performance, and you sang the song to life, because the Long March itself is great and touching, your song shows the face of the Great Long March, and your performance is successful." ”

Four

On August 1, 1965, "Long March Suite Song" was officially performed in the auditorium of the National Palace in Beijing.

When "Long March Suite Song" was reported and performed in the capital, Zhou Enlai went to see the performance for three consecutive nights, and after watching it each time, he talked with everyone about his feelings and exchanged views. Once Zhou Enlai said to several composers: "Comrade Xiao Hua's words are well written, the songs you compose are good, and the songs you have sung better, especially the two horses and one Jia (referring to the singers Ma Yutao, Ma Guoguang, and Jia Shijun) singing well. For example, although you broke through the wall of the chorus, how to solve the music wall? Otherwise, the performance of the chorus affects the listening. Zhou Enlai also asked the actor to teach him to sing over and over again.

Subsequently, "Long March Suite Song" toured more than 20 times in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Tianjin and other cities, and the venue was full, which was warmly welcomed by the audience and received great social repercussions.

In the autumn of 1965, on the occasion of celebrating the 16th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 30th anniversary of the victory of the Long March of the Central Red Army, the "Long March Suite" was solemnly staged in Beijing. On the night of National Day, "Long March Suite Song" was performed on the west side of the Tiananmen Tower for the central leaders and representatives of heroic models, and the old marshals applauded while watching. After the performance, Zhou Enlai said to the crew: "I am very happy that you can perform the "Long March Suite" here, and I congratulate everyone!" After that, in a not too long time, the main songs of the "Long March Suite" were quickly sung. That year, it performed more than 50 times across the country, and the audience reached more than 100,000 people.

"Long March Suite Song" is a large-scale musical suite that was widely popularized among the masses after the "Yellow River Chorus", which is solemn and magnificent but intriguing. Together with the 1964 musical and dance epic "Dongfang Hong", it represents the highest achievement of music creation at that time, and can be described as another milestone in the history of the development of Chinese choral choral.

The "Red Army Is Not Afraid of Expeditions and Difficulties——— Performance Chorus" created and performed by the General Political Song and Dance Troupe was also successfully rehearsed one after another, and in February 1966, it was performed twice in the auditorium of the Jingxi Hotel in Beijing for the report of the meeting of senior cadres of the whole army held in Beijing at that time, and the performance was very successful. At that time, Zhou Enlai and Xiao Hua watched the performance. Zhou Enlai asked Xiao Hua, which of the two versions is better? Xiao Hua said that each has its own advantages. The "General Political Edition" of "The Red Army Is Not Afraid of Expeditions and Difficulties——— Performance Chorus" once decided to be filmed by the Bayi Film Studio to make a stage art film and preserve it, but due to the impact of the ensuing "Cultural Revolution", the shooting plan was aborted. Later, for various reasons, the work was not performed again, and the songs and music in it did not circulate, so it was little known. According to the evaluation of Ma Ziyue, who participated in the performance of the "Comrades-in-Arms Edition" "Long March Group Song" at that time, the program of the General Political Song and Dance Troupe was very spectacular and very imposing, with both chorus and dance and performance, the symphony of music was also relatively strong, and the bel canto singing method and Western music elements used were very rich.

In the spring of 1966, the crew of the Comrades-in-Arms Song and Dance Troupe 'Long March Group Song' suddenly received a notice to accompany Zhou Enlai on a foreign visit. In Zhongnanhai, Zhou Enlai and Marshal Chen Yi, vice premier and foreign minister, watched the crew's debriefing performance. Zhou Enlai was not very satisfied with the song "Annunciation", and always felt that he had not yet played out the characteristics of Ma Yutao's singing, nor did he fully express the passion when he was about to meet. He said to Li Yuqiu in a deliberative tone, "Let's go back and revise it again!" Before going abroad, Zhou Enlai watched the performance again and finally expressed great satisfaction with the "Long March Suite".

Five

In the spring of 1967, it was the chaotic season of the "Cultural Revolution", and "a thousand flowers were scattered for a while" and were rare. Once, Jia Shijun performed in the Great Hall of the People, and after he sang two songs, Zhou Enlai waved to him and shouted cordially: "Comrade Jia Shijun, please come over!" Jia Shijun immediately came to Zhou Enlai's side, and Zhou Enlai personally handed him a cup of tea, and then said in his tired and hoarse voice: "Teach me to sing "Over the Snowy Mountains and Meadows", okay?" Jia Shijun was really afraid of being tired of the prime minister, so he said, "Aren't you already singing?" Zhou En: "Sing with me again, correct and correct." So Jia Shijun immediately hummed, and Zhou Enlai sang along with the beat. After they finished singing it, Jia Shijun said excitedly: "Premier, you sing not bad at all!" Zhou Enlai smiled: "If you sing it again, I am familiar with it." So they hummed again.

Why did Zhou Enlai have a special love for the song "Over the Snowy Mountains and Meadows"? This is probably because of the reason why his life was hanging by a thread when he crossed the meadow.

One day in June 1935, when the Central Red Army was crossing the first snowy mountain on the way to the Long March, ——— Jiajin Mountain, Zhou Enlai, then vice chairman of the Central Revolutionary Military Commission and general political commissar of the Red Army, suddenly fell ill due to overwork, insufficient nutrition, and a harsh natural environment. The illness came fiercely, and for several days the fever did not go away, he could not eat, and then he was unconscious. Based on symptoms such as white blood cell hypertrophy, sallow skin, and hepatomegaly, the doctor diagnosed Zhou Enlai with amoebic liver abscess, which had a very high mortality rate during the Long March. At that time, the environment was impossible to penetrate and smoke or open the knife, and the only way was to use local "freezing" to repel the inflammation. The doctor sent someone to the snowy mountains 60 miles away to carry them, and the doctor packed the ice cubes that the soldiers had brought back in bags and placed them in Zhou Enlai's dirty liver. When crossing the meadow, Mao Zedong designated the Red Third Army to carry Zhou Enlai on a stretcher. Peng Dehuai, the commander of the Third Red Army, decided to throw away two mortars (there were only 8 mortars in the entire Central Red Army at that time), which freed more than 20 soldiers to take turns carrying stretchers across the grass. Peng Dehuai entrusted the extremely important post of "stretcher captain" to Chen Geng, head of the cadre regiment of the Central Military Commission, who had deep feelings for Zhou Enlai.

Swampy meadows, the weather is changeable, sometimes windy, sometimes heavy rain, sometimes heavy snow, hail plummeting, people take every step is extremely difficult, let alone carry a stretcher? Chen Geng and Yang Lisan, station commander of the General Station of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, personally rotated the soldiers carrying stretchers. Yang Lisan's shoulders, which were very weak, were torn, and after walking out of the grass, he fell ill. After crossing the meadow, Zhou Enlai's body gradually recovered, and he jokingly said to Chen Geng: "You once saved Chiang Kai-shek's life, and now you have saved my life!" In 1954, Yang Lisan, then minister of finance of the Central Military Commission, died of brain cancer, and Zhou Enlai served as the chief priest. No matter what, he also had to personally give Yang Lisan a ride to carry the coffin, and walked to the front of the right side to carry the coffin. It can be seen from this that this experience of crossing the snowy mountains and meadows is so unforgettable for Zhou Enlai!

Six

In 1975, at the end of the "Cultural Revolution", after his comeback, Deng Xiaoping presided over the daily work of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, and the republic returned to "sunny days". On the occasion of commemorating the 40th anniversary of the victory of the Long March of the Central Red Army, the work "Long March Suite Song" has undergone several tribulations, rehearsed and reenacted, and appeared on the stage of the capital with a more brand-new attitude, which is a feat of calling for the spirit of the Long March in the late 10 years of catastrophe. At the Beijing Exhibition Center Theater, which has nearly 2,000 seats, 40 consecutive performances were performed in two months, and the venues were full, newspapers and radios broke through the resistance of the "Gang of Four" and reported continuously, and "Long March Suite" once again caused a sensation in the country. During the review, Deng Xiaoping personally wrote a lyric in the paragraph "Breaking through the Blockade Line" to "The whole army misses Chairman Mao and hopes for the sun on the way to the fog," which further highlighted Chairman Mao's leadership position and played a role in finishing touches.

At that time, Zhou Enlai was seriously ill and was undergoing surgery in the hospital, but he was still worried about the "Long March Suite Song", and after watching the live performance broadcast on TV, he sent the staff to ask for a live recording of the performance. Before his death, Zhou Enlai still remembered the lyrics of the song "Over the Snowy Mountains and Meadows", "Officers and soldiers are unanimous in their happiness and hardships, and revolutionary ideals are higher than the sky."

In 1995, in order to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the victory of the Long March of the Central Red Army, wang Xinlan, the wife of General Xiao Hua, and many old leaders and comrades jointly commissioned, and planned by Hu Defeng, a famous conductor of the General Political Song and Dance Troupe, a major revision of the "Long March Suite Song" was made. General Zhang Zhen, then vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, praised after reviewing the new version of the "Long March Suite": "The old version itself is very good, and now after you process it, it will be even more icing on the cake!"

From the successful premiere of "Long March Suite Song" in Beijing on August 1, 1965 to today, "Long March Suite Song" has accompanied the growth of several generations, and many of its singing segments have become well-known to everyone, women and children. This work, which has been cordially cared for, poured into and condensed by Zhou Enlai and other revolutionaries of the older generation, has influenced generations of Chinese with her profoundly condensed vocabulary, fresh and moving beautiful tunes, rich national style and performing arts that are popular with the masses. "Long March Suite Song" has toured more than 1,000 times at home and abroad, with millions of audiences, which can be called a miracle in the history of Chinese music and the history of Chinese performance, and is known as the classic of Chinese music in the 20th century.