Green Field Hall opened the possession of the flowers,
Passers-by instructed the public.
Let the public peach and plum fill the world,
He used to plant flowers in front of the hall.
Nowadays, although Zhang Xuejin does not have peach and plum all over the world, all his apprentices have long been famous in the world, and his tenacious spirit has long been renowned in the world.
As the first person after ma pai Peking Opera, he always kept in mind his duty as a teacher to teach and solve puzzles, even in the last moments of his life, he did not forget to teach students, and he wanted to pass on Mapai Peking Opera well.
After Zhang Xuejin passed away, all the disciples knelt down and shouted, "Master, we are all your sons." ”
Zhang Xuejin
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > respect the teacher and teach by example</h1>
In 1941, Zhang Xuejin was born in the home of the famous Peking Opera performance artist Mr. Zhang Junqiu.
Zhang Junqiu
Because of the influence of the family environment, Zhang Xuejin has been greatly interested in Peking Opera since childhood.
The excellent opera atmosphere at home can be said to have also given him a unique learning environment.
In 1949, Zhang Xuejin was admitted to the Beijing Opera School as he wished, and studied Peking Opera with Wang Shaolou and Chen Shaowu, two old gentlemen, who spent more than ten years in the drama school.
In school, he studied a large number of Yupai plays such as "Catch and Release Cao" and "Dingjun Mountain", and the teachers who taught him praised him because of his humble attitude.
The tenacious learning attitude and the character of respecting teachers in the Xiqu school also provided a solid foundation and superior conditions for Zhang Xuejin in his future Peking Opera artistic career.
After Zhang Xuejin graduated from the Xiqu School in 1959, in order to inherit the genre, he officially entered the door of Mr. Ma Lianliang and became the inheritor of the Art of Peking Opera of the Ma School.
Opera is a cross-talk subject, which attaches great importance to the relationship between master and apprentice and the order of generations, and Zhang Xuejin, who grew up in the Peking Opera circle, also deeply remembers this.
Zhang Xuejin valued the teacher the most in his life, and he respected his teacher very much.
Although Zhang Xuejin worshiped Ma Lianliang as his teacher, he never called him by his first name, nor did he ever call Ma Lianliang "Master", but honored him as "Grandpa Ma".
Ma Lianliang
Because according to the generations in the Peking Opera circle, his father Zhang Junqiu was actually a generation younger than Ma Lianliang, so he thought that calling Ma Lianliang "Master" was disrespectful to his father and the division commander, so he respectfully called him "Grandpa Ma".
Zhang Xuejin's "Huaihe Camp" was learned while beating Ma Lianliang's legs.
If you want to learn art and learn to be a person first, this is the attitude and spirit of learning art.
Zhang Xuejin has considerable respect for Ma Lianliang and has a sincere and humble attitude, but when he encounters any confusion in learning, he will still be ashamed to ask, stand to his left and right, and lean over to please.
Because of this impeccable attitude, Ma Lianliang taught Zhang Xuejin, and Zhang Xuejin's skills became more and more exquisite.
In his daily private practice, Zhang Xuejin also carved this attitude into his bones.
He played Ma Lianliang's opera recordings in an infinite loop, whether it was cooking in the kitchen or cooling off in the afternoon, whether it was spring, summer, or autumn and winter evenings, he listened to the recordings, stepped on the threshold, one move at a time, one move at a time, one anger and one anger, one sad and one joy, pious and edifying, never slack.
In the performance on stage, Zhang Xuejin was deeply impressed by the true biography of his teacher, Mr. Ma Lianliang, who not only had Mr. Ma's unbridled elegance, but also had his own unique vitality; his singing voice was mature and stable, extremely heroic and heroic, forming a more intense singing flavor with personal characteristics.
Whether in Beijing or Shanghai, Zhang Xuejin has great respect for his stage partners, instructors, and brothers in the same discipline.
Zhang Xuejin did this from the bottom of his heart, and he also hoped that the new generation of young opera actors would also respect the teacher and adhere to morality.
Therefore, in dealing with his own disciples, he also taught carefully and taught by example like his own teachers.
Zhang Xuejin often said: "Teachers and apprentices are like fathers and sons, and if you don't respect your master as a father, you won't learn things." ”
This sentence was still said by Zhang Xuejin when he was sick, which was the basis of his life and the basis of his teaching.
The reason why Zhang Xuejin stressed as always was because he not only did it himself, but his apprentice also did it for him, and he believed that in the future, his apprentice would also teach future generations in this way, and this excellent quality would never be extinguished.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > passed down the mantle and tirelessly</h1>
In fact, in the opera cross-talk industry, when some masters teach their skills, they are not very good at all, and they will leave a few points for themselves to prevent "teaching apprentices and starving the master".
But Zhang Xuejin didn't seem to care about this at all, and taught all his disciples, using all his energy and time to teach everything he knew to his students.
As for why he did this, Zhang Xuejin was able to explain the answer in a conversation with Wang Jiaxi, a well-known researcher in the history of Peking Opera, a long time ago.
At that time, when the two discussed a very "fashionable" atmosphere that appeared on the current Peking Opera stage: "shouting like thunder", Wang Jiaxi had a clear and regrettable attitude that this was a low-style trend in the flow of Peking Opera.
Zhang Xuejin also said at the time: "When I hear this kind of singing, I often say that it is simply a 'final roar'. ”
When he said this sentence, Zhang Xuejin couldn't help but show a look of regret and loneliness.
This means that under the impact of new things in the new era, Peking Opera may no longer be as concerned as in the past, and it is "dying and struggling".
Wang Jiaxi also reluctantly agreed.
Later, in their phone calls, Wang Jiaxi also asked Zhang Xuejin many times whether he would like to express his feelings of "the last roar", and Zhang Xuejin also firmly said: "This is a reality, I think it should be clearly pointed out, I hope to quickly reverse, do not really become the 'last roar'." ”
For this goal, Zhang Xuejin had no reservations, and throughout his life, he worked hard to inherit the Mapai Peking Opera.
However, what is surprising is that Zhang Xuejin, who is determined to pass on the Mapai Peking Opera, has received only thirteen apprentices in his lifetime.
Someone once asked him, "Why don't you take a few more apprentices?" ”
Hearing this question, Zhang Xuejin took it for granted and solemnly.
He replied, "What can you do with so many disciples, take in a few disciples who are busy with yourself, and be able to concentrate on cultivating him all the time, and if you can't take care of so many disciples, it is better not to accept them." ”
He is like this, always highly responsible for his actions.
After hundreds of years of baptism, each school has its own style and strengths, so the study of Peking Opera is not in the breadth, but in the fine.
Although Zhang Xuejin only accepted thirteen disciples, his goal was also very clear, that is, after a hundred years of his own, the Ma Sect had good people to trust.
Unfortunately, Zhang Xuejin's physical condition in his later years has been bad, and serious liver cancer has made his mental state very weak.
However, in order to better inherit the fine works of the previous generations of artists, in order to let future generations of people appreciate the charm of Ma Pai Peking Opera, in Mr. Ma Lianliang's fifty-two plays, he alone undertook forty-six recordings.
Not only that, he also accompanied Mr. Li Shaochun's "Mu Guiying Hanging Commander" and Mr. Li Shengzao's "Yellow Crane Tower".
There are even many difficult actions in some scenes, such as back grabbing, nail rolling board and other dangerous actions.
But in order to present a more perfect stage effect, he was all personally on the battlefield, every time he split, every time he lay on his side, every action was flawless.
In the performance, Zhang Xuejin seems to have unlimited energy again, as if all the illnesses in his body have disappeared.
Looking at the picture of him shooting opera images for Mr. Ma Lianliang, I felt that he was back to the picture when he studied art with Mr. Ma Lianliang.
Later generations saw the image as if they had seen Mr. Ma Lianliang himself.
<h1 class = "pgc-h-arrow-right" > a teacher for one day and a father for life</h1>
Spring silkworm to the end of the dead silk, the wax torch into gray tears began to dry.
On December 21, 2012, Zhu Qiang, Zhang Xuejin's eldest disciple, solemnly knelt down and prostrated in the direction of Beijing on the stage of the Baodao Theater in Taiwan Province to bid farewell to his mentor.
On that day, Mr. Zhang Xuejin, a famous Mapai Peking Opera actor, passed away.
In fact, before that, Zhang Xuejin was already very ill.
During Zhang Xuejin's hospitalization, his apprentices took turns on duty day and night and took good care of them.
No matter where they were, they rushed over at the first time.
They even specially arranged a duty schedule to ensure that zhang Xuejin could be taken care of throughout the day.
Because of Zhang Xuejin's careful teaching, each of his apprentices is very outstanding, and he is also well-known among Peking Opera actors, so there are more performances.
However, the apprentices still insisted on taking turns to take care of, cooking, delivering meals, etc., and everyone took leave to change shifts, just so that Zhang Xuejin could recuperate with peace of mind.
Later, Zhang Xuejin's illness worsened, and when his eldest disciple Zhu Qiang came out of the hospital, his eyes were covered with blood, his spirit was weak, his hair was messy, and his beard grew out because he had not been treated.
His face was gaunt and melancholy, and under the gray and dim sky, only one person slowly walked into the Beijing Theater without saying a word.
There is a saying in the opera industry that drama is bigger than the sky.
This is the guarantee of all opera industries to the audience and the attitude towards the stage.
At that time, the eldest disciple Zhu Qiang had to go to Taiwan because he had a performance task, and he had no choice but to tell his disciple Gao Tong before he came to Taiwan: "During this period, if there is an accident, if there is an accident, I will inform you immediately, and you will each take responsibility for your own responsibilities and arrange the aftermath." ”
This is a big family.
Zhu Qiang, as the eldest brother of this close family, is the main backbone of this family.
In this kind of crisis, he could not be by his "father's" side because of his official duties, and the most he could do was to arrange the next things and instruct his brothers.
At 3:30 p.m. on December 21, he first learned the bad news of Zhang Xuejin's death.
Before the performance that night, Zhu Qiang locked himself in the dressing room, alone, crying.
He knew that his most beloved teacher was gone, and that the pillar of the family was gone.
At that time, the cast members already knew the news of Mr. Zhang Xuejin's death, and they heard Zhu Qiang crying bitterly in the dressing room, but no one could comfort him, and the pain of losing his teacher was like the pain of losing his father.
Although his heart was full of grief, Zhu Qiang still participated in the performance.
However, at the end of the performance, Zhu Qiang knelt solemnly on the grand stage, in the continuous applause, and in the eyes of all the audience full of appreciation, bowed his head solemnly in the direction of the master who was far away in Beijing, and sent the master away, thanking the master for his teaching grace, and also bidding farewell to the master for the audience.
A generation of famous teachers thus completed his humble and brilliant life.
In the past, because of his taciturn and indisputable life, many people did not dare to approach him, thinking that he had a big temper, did not smile, and was not easy to provoke.
Even his eldest disciple said this, Zhu Qiang said: "When practicing, I didn't dare to talk to Master much, and when I looked at his eyes, I was afraid." ”
Because Zhang Xuejin's strictness of the art makes his disciples' Peking Opera skills very demanding, when they have mistakes and omissions, they will point them out very harshly and help them correct them.
But in life, he is also a very kind and responsible teacher.
He always did his best to think of his disciples, help them become talents, and bring them to the public's vision.
When his mental state is acceptable and he has not yet been sick because of the torture of illness, Zhang Xuejin will always seriously watch Zhu Qiang's performance and point out the problems to the point.
He encouraged and introduced his disciple Gao Tong to teach at the Beijing Opera School, helping Gao Tong to bring Ma Pai art back to The Northern Opera to blossom.
In order to give Mu Yu a play, he even pulled out the needle that had not yet been infused when he was excited, and only wanted to take Mu Yu home to talk about the play in detail.
Zhang Xuejin and his apprentices are as close as father and son, he has only one daughter in his life, and he is often absent from him because of work reasons, and he is inevitably a little lonely in his later years.
But with these thirteen apprentices by his side and his favorite opera, his days in the midst of illness were not so difficult.
After Zhang Xuejin's death, all his posthumous affairs were seriously completed by his disciples, and before entering the earth, his eldest disciple Zhu Qiang led all his disciples to kneel in front of Zhang Xuejin's tomb and shouted in unison in a trembling and firm tone: "Master, we are all your sons, you can rest in peace." ”
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Taishan beam wood, ancient liufang</h1>
Today, it has been nine years since Mr. Zhang Xuejin passed away due to illness.
I still remember that at Mr. Zhang Xuejin's farewell ceremony, there was no low mourning and complaining, no mournful crying, and everyone who participated in the ceremony looked solemn and regretful.
The whole ceremony was echoed by Mr. Zhang Xuejin's famous work decades ago, "Selected Passages of persuasion by the Arrow Pole River".
Listening to the sonorous and powerful voice, it was as if he hadn't actually gone far, but was still silently accompanying everyone.
Zhang Xuejin is also revered by the world as "the first person after the horse, Yu Yuan passed on the son".
Ma Long, the grandson of his mentor Mr. Ma Lianliang, also wrote a pair of elegies for Zhang Xuejin with a sentence in the Peking Opera song card: "The Spring and Autumn Pen in the Huaihe Camp casts the HongzhangYuan Spectrum, and the Arrow Pole River borrows the East Wind to nurture the talents to string dragon balls."
Everyone was impressed by his fateful but tenacious perseverance.
Because of his selfless dedication, the art of Ma Pai Peking Opera has now been well inherited, and his various apprentices have achieved their own successes and regard him as an example in their hearts.
Throughout his life, Zhang Xuejin contributed to the development of opera.
He did not want opera to be drowned by the torrent of the times, did not want opera to issue the "last roar" in sorrow, and did not want the treasures of China to gradually decline.
After he was elected vice chairman of the Beijing Federation of Literary and Art Circles, he followed the delegation to the Netherlands, Britain, Belgium and other countries for visits and artistic exchanges, in order to show the charm of opera, to show the artistic connotation of the country, but also to dedicate this art to a new generation of young people, so that they can feel the unique charm of Peking Opera and are willing to continue to carry forward this charm.
On August 10, 2021, the "Special Performance to Commemorate the 80th Anniversary of mr. Zhang Xuejin's Birth" jointly sponsored by the Beijing Opera House kicked off at the Chang'an Grand Theatre.
On the day of the performance, the crowd was boiling, the alleys were empty, and people came to visit and return home, all of which were shocked by the charm of the stage.
Zhang Xuejin's disciples carefully prepared the "Peking Opera Masters Concert to Commemorate the 80th Anniversary of Mr. Zhang Xuejin's Birth" was also held on August 29.
People are also telling him with actions that people will not forget him, will not forget the surprises and emotions he brought.
Before his death, with a tired body and regardless of his own safety, Zhang Xuejin used his best efforts to teach his disciples more than a dozen Ma Pai operas, just to sow the seeds of Ma Pai Peking Opera in the Chinese Opera School, which could be appreciated by lovers and inherited by inheritors.
In this life, he was born for opera, died for opera, and lived for opera.
The planet fell forever, but the heat of his light and heat was permanently sealed in the human world.