Ambush from All Sides

Ambush from All Sides (shi mian mai fu)

Ambush from All Sides is famous Chinese classical pipa music, which was composed on the basis of the decisive battle in 202 BC at Gaixia (southeast of today’s Linbi County, Anhui Province) between the two armies of Chu and Han. The whole music gives an incisive and vivid depiction, in the form of musical narrative, of the fierce, desolate, solemn and stirring scenes of the battle. The unique techniques of pipa performance have been brought into full play in this music. The whole music is majestic and passionate, sharp in artistic image, exalting in melody, and extremely thrilling.

This music first appeared in 1818 in the 13-section Qin Music Score composed by Hua Qiuping in Wuxi. Later there were a variety of different versions in circulation, varying in section divisions but consistent basically in musical content.

Ambush from All Sides adopts the form of large-scale traditional Chinese formula-based music. The currently popular music piece consists of 13 short sections, each topped with a highly generalized title. The beginning sections of the music focus on the description of the mighty and grand battle array of the Han Army. The music in these sections is high-spirited and powerful, accompanied by the sounds of drums and horns. The beat of drums quickened gradually to create a tense explosive atmosphere before the breakout of the full-scale battles. Then comes the main body of the music, which is changeable and rapid. The techniques of flipping, sweeping, circular fingering, wringing, rolling, and halting are employed to represent the furious battle. The last sections of the music depict Xiang Yu’s suicide at Wujiang River after his defeat. The low and deep music contrasts sharply with the preceding climax. The melodies are mournful, solemn and stirring, bring out a strong and vehement artistic image of Xiang Yu.

Today Ambush from All Sides still remains one of the most popular pipa music pieces in all kinds of concerts in China.