Research Of Ruan Ji’s Music Theory

The relationship between ‘music and politics’ has always been the key question in the history of music and aesthetics of China, and so is the theme of ideology of Music Theory by Ruan Ji. Ruan Ji has affirmed that music has the function to eliminate corrupt customs in mores which could bring people the best qualities of saints. However, he ingeniously reconciled the relationship between the Confucianists and the Taoists, who used the perspectives of nature of Taoist school as theoretical foundation to assert the legitimacy of the perspectives of rites and music of Confucian school. Moreover, as an aesthetic monograph making special research on music, Music Theory has put forward unique perspectives on musical instruments, music composing, lyrics and dancing, and also on the views about music which have been seeking for ‘harmony and happiness’. The article will concentrate on the context of Music Theory to make deeper explorations, meanwhile, it is also an opportunity to step into the musical-aesthetic hallowed hall of Music Theory.Besides preface, the article mainly contains three chapters.The first chapter, which includes the background against which Music Theory emerged and the philosophical thoughts implied in the great work, states briefly about the history of Ruan Ji’s thoughts and the origin of Music Theory.The second chapter, basing on the context of Music Theory, includes three major sections according to the thoughts system of the book. And each section consists of four parts: the original contexts, the annotations, the translations and the understandings which are actually a deeper look into the monograph with word by word study.The third chapter mainly dwells on the external functions and internal attributions of music and contrast Music Theory with Book of Rites × Yueji and The Theory of Music without Sorrows of Ji Kang which actually elaborates the uniqueness of Music Theory further on the basis of contrastive research.The rest of the article is chiefly on the wisdom of life elaborated by Music Theory. The part faces directly to the wisdom of life of Ruan Ji in a sincere attitude and pays close attention to the enlightenments of life brought by the book Music Theory which shows the state of life seeking peace and nature.