Music in China is traditionally associated with ritual observances and government affairs.
In 1999, Chinese archeologists unearthed what is believed to be the oldest know playable instrument – a seven-holed flute fashioned 9,000 years ago from the hollow wing bone of a large bird.
To establish the age, a U.S. chemist at the Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory analyzed data from carbon-14 dating done in China on materials taken from the site.
The 9,000-year-old flutes were “exquisitely-crafted” from the wing bone of a red-crowned crane.
Music from the Book of Songs
In the Book of Songs, an ancient collection of Chinese poetry from the 6th century BC, the three-hole Yue is the most frequently mentioned wind instrument.
By the Tang Dynasty, the Yue had all but vanished. Source: China Daily
Discover more with The Hsiao (Xiao) – Chinese Flute
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Lloyd Lofthouse is the award-winning author of the concubine saga, My Splendid Concubine & Our Hart. When you love a Chinese woman, you marry her family and culture too.
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