Li Jinhui
| Li Jinhui | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Chinese name | 黎錦暉 (traditional) |
| Chinese name | 黎锦晖 (simplified) |
| Pinyin | Lí Jǐnhuī (Mandarin) |
| Born |
September 5, 1891 Xiangtan, Hunan, Qing China |
| Died | February 15, 1967 (aged 75) Shanghai, PR China |
| Occupation | Producer, composer, songwriter |
| Genre(s) | Shidaiqu, Mandopop |
| Instrument(s) | Guqin |
| Spouse(s) | Xu Lai (m. 1930–35) |
| Children |
Li Minghui Li Xiaofeng (died 1935) Li Lili (adopted) |
Li Jinhui (September 5, 1891 – February 15, 1967) was a composer and songwriter born in Xiangtan, Hunan, Qing China. He is often dubbed as the "Father of Chinese popular music". He created a new musical form with shidaiqu after the fall of the Qing Dynasty—moving away from established musical forms. Although Li's music was extremely popular, the Chinese Nationalist Party attempted to ban his music. Critics branded his music as "Yellow Music", a form of pornography, because of its sexual associations and he was branded a "corruptor" of public morals. This kind of popular music was banned in China after the Communist takeover in 1949, and Li was eventually hounded to his death, a victim of political persecution in 1967 during the height of the Cultural Revolution.
Born into a well-to-do family, Li Jinhui grew up studying the Confucian classics and attending progressive schools like Shaoshan and Xiangtan. In total he had 8 brothers, including Li Jinxi, who became a prominent linguist and educator. One of the earliest instruments Li studied was the guqin.
During his teenage years, he became fascinated with Chinese folk music, which he later incorporated into his revolutionary new musical style. Even as a student at Changsha Normal High School, Li's musical aptitude was apparent; the teen served as a musician, choir director, and part-time music instructor before he graduated in 1911.
After a brief stint in Beijing working as the new National Assembly’s secretary from 1911 to 1914, Li returned to his native Hunan to direct other student choirs. Li‘s burgeoning career began in a dramatic way. He wrote several satirical political songs for a Changsha newspaper, but one such song so angered a local warlord that Li received a beating for it.
Li decided in 1916 to move back to Beijing, where he became involved in the New Culture Movement centered at Peking University. He participated in the May 4th Movement of 1919. In Beijing, Li also delved deeper into his lifelong pursuit of his two passions: the pedagogy of language and folk music. A Mandarin Chinese and music teacher, Li spent his time writing textbooks about effective classroom language instruction and exploring many musical genres. He was inspired by local Chinese opera and Huagu flower drums (simplified Chinese: 花鼓戏; traditional Chinese: 花鼓戲; pinyin: huāgǔxì), which are performed over a stage theatre monologue. Because of this, it can be said that the very first inspirations of Chinese popular music are derived from these forms.
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