音乐家吴伯超的“忘”与“记”

Forget or Remember Something about Musician Wu Bochao?

吴伯超先生(1904-1949年)是20世纪中国重要的音乐家之一。早年他追随刘天华先生在北京大学音乐传习所学习二胡、琵琶,副科学习钢琴;1931—1935年留学比利时,曾入布鲁塞尔皇家音乐学院深造,具有融贯中西的音乐素养,在音乐教育、指挥、作曲等领域均有所贡献。1943—1949年初他担任重庆和南京国立音乐院院长期间,在该院的发展和培养音乐人才等方面成绩显著。值此吴伯超先生百年诞辰之际,中华民族文化促进会、中国音乐家协会、中央音乐学院等大陆以及台港地区的社会团体与院校等单位,于2004年4月5日至6日在北京联合举办了“吴伯超百年诞辰纪念活动”———召开纪念大会、学术研讨会,举办了吴伯超作品专场音乐会与图片展览;萧友梅音乐教育促进会和中央音乐学院出版社特此编辑、出版了纪念文集《吴伯超的音乐生涯》(此书以下简称为《生涯》)。但是这次纪念活动中的某些观点和提法,笔者认为是否有值得商榷之处。如《生涯》一书里的《为了不该忘却的纪念》一文中说吴伯超先生“对发展我国现代音乐文化所作的多方面可圈可点的贡献,早就随着那场海难而被大陆音乐界绝大多数人彻底忘却”;此书名为《告慰吴伯超先生》的编后记里说“几十年来,音乐文化界许许多多有良知的学人,他们敬重你,怀念你,感激你,但却只能在底?

Mr.Wu Bochao (1904-1949) is one of the major Chinese musicians in the 20th century.He studied Erhu,and Pipa with Mr.Liu Tianhua in his early years at Peking University Music School.From 1931 to 1935, he studied at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels,Belgium and completed his education in both Chinese and Western music.From then on,he made achievements in the fields of music education,conducting and composition.From 1943 to 1949,he was president of the National Conservatory of Music both in Chongqing and Nanjing.On April 5 and 6,2004,a series of commemorative activities were organized in Beijing,under the auspices of the Association for Promotion of Chinese Culture,the Chinese Musicians'Association and the Central Conservatory of Music,and with support of institutions and universities in China's Mainland as well as in Taiwan and Hong Kong,to mark the 100th anniversary of Wu Bochao's birthday.The activities include a commemorative meeting,seminars,a concert of Wu Bochao's works,a photo exhibition and a memorial book of collected works on the musician titled The Music Career of Wu Bochao,compiled and published by the Xiao Youmei Association of Music Education and the Central Conservatory of Music Publishing House.However,some of the opinions and ideas released in these activities would have to be reconsidered,in my view.For instance,the writer of the article'For the Memory Unforgettable'in that book asserts that Wu Baochao'had been completely forgotten by the majority of Mainland Chinese musicians since that shipwreck despite his remarkable contribution to the development of our country's modern music culture.'The book's postscript further proclaims that'although for decades you (Wu Baochao) have been admired,memorized and appreciated by numerous decent intellectuals in the music circle...it seems that you are never found in the music history of China for the first half of the 20th century.'Another article even suggests'Wu Bochao,former president of the National Conservatory of Music,who has been repudiated for decades...is now rising like a moon from the sea!' In my view,these over-exaggerated remarks do not conform to the truth. So far as I know,only after the end of the'Cultural Revolution'was He Luting's personality and artistic thoughts widely recognized and praised,and likewise,the memorial meeting was held only in 1980 for Xiao Youmei,forefather of professional music education in China,and his biography and memorial book were published only in 1993.When compared with his predecessors Xiao Youmei and Huang Zi,the latecomer Wu Bochao's achievements and contribution would be overshadowed (for instance,very few of his compositions have come down to get popular today).Therefore,it was not too late when his name first appeared on newspapers in 1982,and obviously he has been forgotten by no means.As regards the different views and assessments in academic terms,it is only right to let everyone speak their own mind no matter how much their opinions differ from each other.