Music and Dance

A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate

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A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate is a famous Music-Conservatory Guqin (Chinese zither) Song in Chinese history. According to Chinese legends, Phoenix is a deity bird which will appear when hearing elegant music. The word "Phoenix" is compared to a couple since the word in Chinese contains both names of male and female phoenix. Accordingly, A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate is used to express the performer's adoration to the one he loves and the wishes of seeking for bosom friends.

A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate has bearing on the love story of Zhuo Wenjun and Sima Xiangru, a great author of Cifu (a literary form, sentimental or descriptive composition, often rhymed) in the Western Han Dynasty. It is a much-told story in Chinese history. At the same time, A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate has become popular with people, for it symbolizes the spirit of smashing feudal ethics and bravely pursuing love.

Lyrics and verses of A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate are concise and endowed with profound morals and characteristics of gaudy Elegies of Chu and novel Han Yue Fu (a style of poems during the Han dynasty, collected by the Bureau of Music). By contrast, its syllables are featured by mellifluence, tactfulness, vehemency, sentimentality, sincerity and appeals. Accordingly, A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate is of extremely high artistic value.

The Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate can be found in numerous literature works and dramas created by later generations. For instance, it acts as a promoter of scenarios in such famous dramas as The Romance of West Chamber, Over the Wall, On the Horse and The Story of Jade Hairpin. Moreover, the stage play Music of the Heart is a direct description of the love story of Zhuo Wenjun and Sima Xiangru. In modern films and TV plays, A Male Phoenix Seeks His Mate has served as a symbol of the youth's pursuit for love, free marriage and happy life.

Phoenix

Phoenix

Also called red bird, the phoenix is a legendary auspicious bird and king of birds. Phoenix is the general term for "Feng", the male phoenix, and "Huang",the female phoenix.
Love Story of Sima Xiangru and Zuo Wenjun

Love Story of Sima Xiangru and Zuo Wenjun

When he was young, Sima Xiangru, the celebrated man of letters in the Western Han Dynasty, once went to a banquet at the home of a wealthy man called Zuo Wangsun.
Yue Fu

Yue Fu

Yuefu (official conservatory in the Han Dynasty) originally referred to a musical institution set up in the reign of Emperor Wudi of the Western Han Dynasty.