White Girl and Black Girl were two legendary figures in the history of Chinese singing-taking art . White Girl ,the elder sister , learned playing Castanets (Pear-Blossom Drum) at the age of twelve and performed on the stage at seventeen . Later , she imparted her skills to Black Girl , the younger sister . Both of them performed in a theatre by Daming Lake , making it a daily visited resort for audience . Liu E , a writer in late Qing Dynasty , gave an account of White Girl in his book , “Travels of Handicapped Elder” : “Wang Xiaoyu (White Girl) …sang a few lines in a low pitch , then sang more lines in successively higher pitches , until the melody reached the climax . Then she lowered the pitch abruptly and continued to sing in reverberating keys , as though she was zigzagging into and out of the hillsides of the thirty six peaks of Mount Huang . While the audience was wondering , the melody came to a sudden halt . Silence reigned for a moment before thunderous cheers broke out . Miss Wang Xiaoyu was aged only 20 , but proved to be a rare artist.”
In fine , the Chinese music is divided into “refined music” and “popular music” , appreciated separately by 
scholars and the common populace . But both forms of music have three aims : recreation , moulding personality , and ethical teaching . The unification of the three is the ideal of the Chinese musicians .
Note : Ten great ancient tunes :
--A Tricking Stream in High Mountains . There is a legend handed down from Pre-Qin Period that while the qin master Bo Ya was playing Qin alone in wilderness , a woodcutter named Zhong Ziqi said he knew the implication of the tune : “My lofty aspiration is like a soaring peak ; my life-long ambition is like a trickling stream .” Astounded , Bo Ya responded : “It is wonderful that your mind is the same as mine .” When Zhong Ziqi died , Bo Ya was so grieved as to cut off the strings and fling away the qin , never playing it again .
--Guang Ling Ensemble . During the Wei-Jin period , Ji Kang was sentenced to death , because he opposed the dictatorship of the Sima family . Before execution , he played this tune to lodge his sentiments .
--Swarms of Wild Geese Landing on Sand Beach . A melodious tune depicting swarm of wild geese hovering 
round in the air before landing .
--Plum Blossom Song Repeated Thrice . It praises the characteristics of the plum blossom of pure whiteness , light fragrance and endurance in coldness , which symbolizes a virtuous man . “Repeated Thrice” refers to playing repeatedly the refrain at three different pegs .
--Ambushed on Ten Sides . It portrays the decisive battle in 202 B.C. between the Han army and the Chu Army , ending in the defeat of the Chu army .
--Playing Pipe & Drum at Twilight . A lyrical melody , adapted in 1925 by the Da Tong Music Society in Shanghai to a symphony of string and wind instruments , entitled “The Moon-Lit Night on a Flowered Spring River.”
--Dialogue between Fisherman & Woodcutter shows the complacency of the fishermen and woodcutter enjoying life in nature .
. --Eighteen Beats of Nomad Flute . Melody based on a poem of the same title , relating to the theme of “Madame Cai Wendi Returning to the Han Empire .” It is a deeply touching story about Madame Cai Wenji . She stranded in the land of the Huns , got married again and had two sons . When Cao Cao sent an official to take her back , her mind was tormented between nostalgia for her motherland and attachment to her sons .
--Autumn Moon in Han Palace , Reveals the sorrow and solitude of the maids of honor . There were two ways of playing it , one with “Zheng” (Chinese zither) , and another with erhu (two-string Chinese fiddle) . The latter was handed down by Mr.Liu Tianhua .
--White Snow in Spring . Said to be composed by Shi Kuang in the Jin State or by Liu Juanzi in the Qi State during the Spring-Autumn Period . Now there are two separated tunes : One sings the gentle breezes and the sprouting of all plants . The other sings the immaculate beauty of the snow.
