Peking Opera is an actor-centered stage art. The formation of artistic genres in the various lines of Peking Opera is closely related to this method of dividing trades. On the basis of this division of trades by the focus of performance, many outstanding actors who are good at the performance characteristics of a certain trade have been produced. Due to their respective natural conditions, teachers, acceptance, understanding and expression, cultural accomplishment, skill level, accumulation of social experience and artistic practice, and the degree of feeling and response to life, they have formed an art genre with unique performance characteristics and their own artistic style.
In the period of formation and maturity of Peking Opera, two groups (three each) of outstanding old and old performing artists, leading the opera circle, Biao Bingju Garden, played a prominent role in promoting the formation and development of Peking Opera art, and was then known as the new and old "Three Dingjia" in the Peking Opera industry!
Old Three DingJia
The old Three DingJia is also known as the former Three DingJia or the three masters before the old. Refers to the three outstanding artists Cheng Changgeng, Yu Sansheng and Zhang Erkui who were active on the stage in the early days of Peking Opera.
Cheng Changgeng Stills
Cheng Changgeng (1811-1880), courtesy name Chun (椿), courtesy name Yushan, was a native of Qianshan City, Anhui Province. Qing Dynasty Hui opera, Peking Opera performing arts master. Cheng Changgeng sat in the Huiban branch at an early age, and in the second year of Daoguang (1822), he went north with his father to Beijing, and first came to prominence with the performances of "Wen Zhaoguan" and "Zhan Changsha", and later became the chief actor of the Sanqing class. During the years of Tongzhi and Guangxu, he served as the head of the Sanqing class, and his colleagues honored him as his big boss. He has successively served as the head of the "Jingzhong Temple" temple, and the chief manager of the three classes of Sanqing, Chuntai and Sixi. Among the first generation of Peking Opera characters, together with Zhang Erkui of the Sixi class and Yu Sansheng of the Chuntai class, he was called "Lao Sheng Sanding Jia", and Cheng was the first of the "Three Ding Jia".
Cheng Changgeng portrait
Cheng Changgeng sings Shen Xiong's high-pitched voice, blends voices and emotions, is also good at Kun, Huang and especially proficient in Hui, is the beauty of Hui, Han and Kun and lays the foundation for Peking Opera, known as "Hui class leader", "originator of Peking Opera", "father of Peking Opera" and so on.
Cheng Changgeng's repertoire includes "Qunying Society", "Fu Hu", "Zhan Fan Cheng", "Fish Gut Sword", "Juding Guan Painting", "Let Chengdu", "ZhentanZhou", "Catching and Releasing Cao", "Drumming and Cursing Cao", "Fengyunhui", "Zhan Taiping", "Famen Temple", "Changting Hui", "Wen Zhaoguan", "Zhuangyuan Spectrum", "Qing Tang Yu", "Chao Ju Da Trial", "Eight Sledgehammers", "Zhan Changsha", "Linjiang Hui", "Huarong Dao", "Anjuping Five Roads", "Tianshui Guan" and so on. In addition to the old student drama, the roles of flower face and small life can also be performed in series. The image of Guan Yu in Peking Opera also began with Cheng Changgeng.
Yu Sansheng (1802----1866), a native of Luotian, Hubei Province, starred in the Chuntai class during the Qing DaoGuangshi period, and entered the Guanghe Cheng class in the second year of Tongzhi (1863). His singing was based on The Han tune, fusing hui tones, Kunqu operas, and Zizi cavity, and the pronunciation was mainly Hubei tone, which was called "Han School" or "Yu School" at that time.
Yu Sansheng
His voice is loud, easy to use, rounded and smooth, gentle and lingering, known for singing "flower cavity". His performances of "Zhan Fan Cheng" and "Dingjun Mountain" and other plays have been imitated and sung by posterity. In the process of transforming from Hui and Han to Peking Opera, he made great contributions, especially in the creation and innovation of the singing voice, which had a great influence on Tan Xinpei.
Zhang Erkui (1814-----1864) was a native of Beijing. At first, he made a cameo appearance in the Hechun class as a ticket friend, and then officially joined the Hechun class, once being the class leader, and later entering the Sixi class as the chief veteran actor. His singing skills are stable and wide, and his qi is full of energy, and he has absorbed a lot of Qin (梆子腔) techniques and Beijing tones on the basis of Yu Hui and Han in the pronunciation of words, and has made great contributions to the Jinghua of Pihuang opera.
Portrait of Zhang Erkui
Zhang Erkui looks graceful and dignified, and is good at playing roles such as imperial nobles, such as "Playing Golden Branches" and "Golden Water Satchels". Because his singing clip is in The Kyo tone, he is sometimes called "Kyo Pai" or "Kui Pai".