Composition and Performance Practices of Contemporary Banhu Music

Abstract

This article examines compositional and performance practices in contemporary Banhu music and systematically outlines a developmental paradigm in which “tradition provides the roots and innovation the wings.” On the compositional side, it identifies three core approaches: the contemporary transformation of traditional musical elements, cross-stylistic and cross-systemic fusion, and the expression of contemporary themes and spiritual values. Drawing on representative works, the article elucidates the breakthroughs and innovations of contemporary Banhu composition in subject matter, technique, and style. On the performance side, it proposes that contemporary Banhu players should remain grounded in the cultural origins of traditional techniques, develop a rational understanding of modern composition, and undertake secondary artistic creation on the basis of the score. In this way, traditional expressive character and contemporary aesthetics may be integrated organically. The study argues that contemporary Banhu art has formed a self-reinforcing cycle in which composition and performance empower one another and progress in coordination. Looking ahead, their collaborative innovation should be central to promoting the contemporary transmission and intercultural dissemination of Banhu art, thereby offering useful reference for the modernization of Chinese traditional instrumental music.