China News Service, Beijing, February 10 (Reporter Du Yan and Chen Hang) At about 12 o'clock on the first day of the first lunar month of the Dragon Year in the Chinese lunar calendar (February 10), 13 drummers representing "1 year + 12 months" were in Beijing The Drum Tower beat the drums, and then 108 solemn, long-lasting bells sounded in the bell tower to the north.
Empowered by digital technology, beat drums and ring bells offline to celebrate the New Year
On February 10, the "Jiachen Dragon Year Bells and Drums Welcome the Spring" event was officially launched at the Bell and Drum Tower in Beijing, and was simultaneously presented online through MR (Mixed Reality) mixed reality technology. The event opened with the melodious and festive "Joyful" folk music ensemble, and the drum performance "Heaven and Earth", which contained the charm of the changing of the four seasons and the passage of time, won bursts of applause from the audience.
On February 10, 2024 (the first day of the first lunar month in the lunar calendar), the "Bells and Drums to Welcome the Spring in the Year of the Dragon" event was launched at the Bell and Drum Tower in Beijing. Photo by reporter Jia Tianyong
After the two actors who played Dr. Leque and Si Chen timed and sang, 13 drummers representing 1 year + 12 months took the lead in beating the exciting drums in the Drum Tower. Subsequently, 12 bell-ringing representatives composed of residents near the central axis, "Beijing role models", "cultural relic guardians", and "central axis cultural heritage protection supervisors" took turns to ring the digital clock projection located on the first floor of the bell tower. Art installation (referred to as "Digital Clock").
Why 108 sounds? According to the organizer, the 108 sounds represent the superposition of December, the twenty-four solar terms, and the seventy-two horoscopes, symbolizing the cycle of the year and eternity, evoking people's recollection of history and hope for the future.
On February 10, 2024 (the first day of the first lunar month in the lunar calendar), the "Bells and Drums to Welcome the Spring in the Year of the Dragon" event was launched at the Bell and Drum Tower in Beijing. The picture shows that ringing the bell represents ringing the large digital bell located on the first floor of the bell tower. Photo by reporter Du Yan
The digital clock is a highlight of this event. The reporter saw at the scene that the digital clock creatively turned the entire digital clock into a "screen" for 3D mapping projection. Through the production of multiple customized holographic images, it presented vivid pictures of the changing stars, the changes of the four seasons, and the changes in phenology.
The big clock is a scroll, and the light and shadow are paintings. Through the empowerment of digital creativity, the ancient and profound Chinese time culture, solar terms culture and digital art are ingeniously combined to bring an immersive visual and cultural feast to the audience, giving the excellent traditional Chinese culture the wings of science and technology, and boosting its development in the new era. "Voice of the Heart".
According to reports, the "Beijing Bell and Drum Tower's bells and drums ritual music moves the central axis" - the Jiachen Year of the Dragon series bells and drums to welcome the Spring Festival theme event (referred to as the "Spring Festival theme event") kicked off on February 5, 2024, organized by the Beijing Municipal Government Hosted by the Bell and Drum Tower Cultural Relics Preservation Office, with special support from the Beijing Beijing Enterprise Central Axis Protection Charity Foundation, and hosted by Fanghu Qiwu Society, the 22-day event will include online New Year greetings, offline New Year garden parties, small concerts, national style performances, Dragon culture themed exhibitions and other methods can unlock a variety of gameplay and experiences, bringing citizens and tourists a unique immersive New Year cultural activity experience.
Hold a dragon culture exhibition to immerse yourself in traditional culture
In order to inherit Chinese traditional culture and jointly explore and appreciate the profoundness of Chinese dragon culture, from February 10th (the first day of the Lunar New Year) to June 5th, a dragon culture exhibition with the theme of "Longrui Central Axis, Heaven, Earth and Humanity" was held on the first floor of the Bell Tower. Held inside the building.
The exhibition includes "How much do you know about Chinese dragons", "The virtue of auspicious dragons, endless life", "Riding six dragons in time, harmony between heaven and man", "As powerful as a frightening dragon, harmonious but different", "Dragon's central axis, harmonious and symbiotic", "Neutral and harmonious" The six theme sections of "Jiuji, the Sound of Yongle" combine text, pictures, intangible cultural heritage exhibits, art installations and other forms to transform the cultural images of "dragon" and "neutral" into a visual language that can be immersed and perceived by the public.
On February 10, 2024 (the first day of the first lunar month in the lunar calendar), the "Bells and Drums to Welcome the Spring in the Year of the Dragon" event was launched at the Bell and Drum Tower in Beijing. The picture shows the dragon culture exhibition with the theme of "Longrui Central Axis, Heaven, Earth and Humanity". Photo by reporter Du Yan
The digital bell that was rung during the Spring Festival activities was placed in the center of the exhibition hall, and a 3D digital light and shadow show was played in regular rotation, presenting the beautiful cultural image of the Chinese people's respect for natural rhythms and pursuit of harmony between nature and man.
Exquisite wood carvings, woodcut prints, shadow puppets, paper-cuts, gorgeous neon dragon lanterns, distinctive dragon-shaped art installations, interesting rotating light boxes, etc. displayed in different exhibition areas complement each other with the beautiful dragon-shaped patterns that follow the light and shadow on the exhibition wall.
This exhibition also carefully designed seventy-two dragon patterns, using stars, twenty-four solar terms, seventy-two phenology and poetry to match the dragon pattern imagery, showing the traces of the "dragon" in time, allowing visitors to enjoy the unique experience of collecting seals. So happy.
"New Year's Garden Tour in Bell and Drum Time" intangible cultural heritage experience runs day and night
On February 10, 2024 (the first day of the first lunar month in the lunar calendar), the "Bells and Drums to Welcome the Spring in the Year of the Dragon" event was launched at the Bell and Drum Tower in Beijing. Photo by reporter Jia Tianyong
From February 11 (the second day of the first lunar month) to February 14 (the fifth day of the first lunar month), and from February 24 (the fifteenth day of the first lunar month) to February 25 (the sixteenth day of the first lunar month), 2024, a New Year garden party will be held in the Drum Tower courtyard, including 6 daytime non-stop activities. Cultural heritage market and 3 nightly intangible cultural heritage concerts.
The eye-catching dragon-shaped display installation of the matinee intangible cultural heritage market is placed on the gentle slope on the north side of the Drum Tower, adding a festive and prosperous atmosphere to the New Year. More than 30 stalls are scattered in the courtyard of the Drum Tower. The nightly intangible cultural heritage concert integrates popular fashion, with professional orchestras such as the Beijing Chinese Orchestra and Beijing Shadow Puppet Troupe integrating cross-border integration with modern music for innovative interpretations.
The New Year Garden Party has also set up an online mini-program to carry out a treasure hunt in the Year of the Dragon. Each time you pass a level, you will get a Jiachen Dragon Ball. After clearing all levels, you will receive an exclusive badge, allowing visitors to obtain scenes and content during fun play. combined cultural experience. Intangible cultural heritage music integrates the trend of the times, traditional skills and the market with a strong sense of life. Between movement and stillness, it subtly promotes the ritual and music culture and the central axis culture represented by the Bell and Drum Tower.
Times change and everything is renewed. The organizer said that the Bell and Drum Tower Spring Festival theme activities will shape new forms and new scenes of cultural life during the Spring Festival through the form of "culture + festivals + folk customs + technology", and strive to create a joyful and peaceful festival that reflects the past and present in an upright and innovative way. The atmosphere allows the public to fully experience the unique experience of celebrating the New Year "east of the Forbidden City" on the central axis, creating a unique "Cultural New Year". (over)