Fou Presented by Spencer Lere

What is a fou? Is it a popular Vietnamese dish? Is it a simple jug to carry wine and other goods? Or is it the ancient Chinese celestial dog possessing mythical protective powers and the missing link between the Chinese Wolf and Chow Chow?

If your answer was the simple jar, you’re right!  A Fou, not Ph ở or foo, is an ancient Chinese pot, jar, crock, or similar vessel made of clay or bronze.  Fou ( 缶 ) literally is used to refer to containers in Chinese and as cans in Japanese.  The Fou was not considered a real music instrument, or a musician’s instrument, even in its hay days.  Fous can come in many shapes and sizes. The most common are the cylindrical and square shapes.

History Origins  Going back three millennia, 500 BCE. The earliest fou drums were little more than low-grade food and wine vessels, fired from clay.  Fou vessels were used as rhythm instruments for those too poor to afford the woodwinds and string instruments of the nobility.  Once after the common era, the fou became a specialized instrument of primal expression. Before the Qin emperor unified the warring states of China, it was the fou drum that set the beat for the emperor’s edicts.  The fou became popular during China’s Spring and Autumn Period ( BCE), and the Warring States Period ( ) BCE.  Its origin dates back to the Xia or Shang dynasties, where it was used in ritual music. It later became a standard instrument in Confucian ritual ensembles. and

History Origins and  The Book of History written by Sima Qian (145-c.90 BC), said that when the Dukes of Qin and Zhao met in Mianchi (in today's Henan province) in 279 BC, the Duke of Qin pretended to be drunk and asked his counterpart to play se (a stringed instrument).  When the Duke of Zhao finished, a Qin historian on the site immediately noted that the Duke of Qin "ordered" the Duke of Zhao to play music, a gesture of one-upmanship.  Lin Xiangru, a wise prime minister serving the Duke of Zhao, asked the Duke of Qin to play fou, which was popular in Qin. When he was refused, Lin said: "If Your Highness doesn't play, in five steps, I am willing to spray the blood of my neck onto Your Highness."  Not far away, Lian Po, a great general of Zhao, had a big army massed on the border, ready to rescue his king if necessary. Finally, the Duke of Qin struck a fou with a stick. Lin noted this: On that day, the Duke of Qin played fou "for" the Duke of Zhao.

Origins cont.  The fou as an instrument was not confirmed until the recent discovery of nearly 500 musical instruments in the Tombs for Nobles of the Yue State, Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province In  Zhang Min, director of Archeological Institute of Nanjing Museum, said, “It’s the first time that we’ve confirmed the existence of Fou, a clay musical instrument. We are sure it’s a musical instrument this time. In the past, we thought it was just a jar, or a basin made of clay. It’s not just a basin, but a delicate musical instrument, with a beautiful sound.“

What makes a fou an instrument and not just a container for wine and other goods?  Essentially a fou is a container, but can be used as a musical instrument.  The fou fits in the category of a percussion instrument.  A percussion instrument is describes as any object which produces a sound by being hit with an implement, shaken, rubbed, scraped, or by any other action which sets the object into vibration.  The fou is struck with a stick to induce vibrations and pitch, but in some cases, like the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the drum is struck with hands.

Notation and Rhythm  Gongche notation marks for the percussion, played at regular intervals and written alongside the notes.  It mimics traditional writing top to bottom and right to left.  The rhythm marks are written at the top right of the note.  In this method only the number of notes within a beat can specified. The actual length of each note is up to tradition and the interpretation of the artist.  Gongche notation was invented in the Tang Dynasty. It became popular in the Song Dynasty.

2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony!

How and when a fou is used… “Yayue and Parties”  The Fou was used in Confucius court ritual music and ceremonial events such as funerals.  Yayue is a form of Chinese Classical music that was performed at imperial courts. The basic conventions of yayue were established in the Western Zhou. Together with law and rites, it formed the formal representation of aristocratic political power. Yayue has also seen its influence in other parts of East Asia, notably the gagaku in Japan and aak in Korea.  Incorporated within yayue were elements of shamanistic or religious traditions, as well as early Chinese folk music.  Yayue is rigid and when performed stately and formal serving to distinguish the aristocratic classes.  Although the fou drums were used for music in the Qin State during the Warring State Period (476 BC BC), Qin State's music and literature were considered inferior when compared with its peer states. Since the Han Dynasty (206 BC AD), fou drums were used exclusively for funerals.  It is also often used to show the warm welcome of the host in a party.

BOO!  In the Confucian ritual music of Korea, a musical instrument made from a clay pot, called the bu (hangul: 부 ; hanja: 缶 ), derives from the Fou.  The Bu is made of clay and formed in the shape of a cooking pot. The percussionist strikes the instrument with a bamboo stick split into 9 pieces to produce the sound. The Bu was played in Aak- a genre of Korean court music, imported from Chinese ritual music “BU”  The bu was found in China's Ju Dynasty but it is not known exactly when the bu was brought to Korea. Today the bu is used in the Confucian Shrine Ceremony. Fou + Bu =