Do you like ancient Chinese style music? Nowadays, it has become more popular with younger people, who are increasingly interested in domestic brands and products that incorporate traditional Chinese styles and culture, a trend known as Guochao. Ancient Chinese style music can be seen in the popular media from original works to variety show.

Let’s take a look at some representative examples of ancient Chinese style music in the modern era.

"Post-00" girls sing ancient songs in Peking Opera opera tunes

5 "post-00" girls from the Shanghai Theatre Academy singing ancient songs in Peking Opera opera tunes appeared on the Douyin Hot List and the hot searches on Weibo this year. Because most of them live in the "416 Dormitory", they are called "the 416 Girls' Group in Shanghai Theatre Academy" by netizens. In April 2021, on the night of the graduation report, these girls gathered together for the first time and sang the ancient song "Red Actress" with a dramatic voice. The beautiful tunes made several girls go viral online. Their Peking Opera-related videos have a cumulative total of over 20 million likes.

Magic of Chinese folk music in Hedwig’s Theme

Wearing elegant costumes of the early Tang Dynasty, a Shanghai-based guqin (Chinese zither) studio plays the Harry Potter theme song “Hedwig’s Theme” using the pipa and Chinese zither. While adapting the music, the studio managed to find a unique tone to display some magical elements. After the sounds of wind chimes and Nepali singing bowls are added, here comes the magic!

Florasis’s international version of theme song with Chinese singer Zhou Shen

As a chinoiserie cosmetics representative, Florasis released the international versions of its brand theme song of the same name in five languages: Chinese, English, Japanese, Italian and Russian. Sung by Chinese singer Zhou Shen, the song’s music video features symbolic and picturesque scenes from China such as a series of provinces in south China shrouded in misty rain. Many overseas viewers have adored the music video, which is a multi-lingual key to the door of oriental beauty.

Kugou Guochao Music Festival

The 7th Kugou Guochao Music Festival gathering of pop, chinoiserie, electronic music, folk songs, rap, rock and other diverse music, was also broadcast live on online platforms such as Kugou Live, and shared this all-star lineup music party with the live audience on the “cloud”.

The singers Zhang Yichen and Hong Gege of the Kugou Fanxing label who participated in the music festival are popular musicians in the current Guochao music field. As the promoter of Suzhou Pingtan intangible cultural heritage, one of Zhang Yichen’s songs named “Four Seasons in Huaxia” sung at the music festival begins with a chant in Suzhou dialect. Just like a short visit to the misty and rainy Jiangnan water town, the appeal and empathy of Hong Gege’s voice are also unique.

In the six years from 2015 to 2020, the Kugou Guochao Music Festival has been committed to integrating the unique rhythm and charm of Chinese style music into modern trendy musical elements.