A song & dance about history

Teachers and students of the School of Music of Shaanxi Normal University visited museums of Shaanxi province last year, focusing on research relating to Tang Dynasty dance forms, Liu says. They visited Shaanxi History Museum, Zhaoling Museum (the tomb of Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty), and Tang West Market Museum in Xi'an, as well as ancient tomb sites in Shaanxi province, where they collected photos and videos about murals of the Tang Dynasty.

"The choreography is faithful to the history,"Liu says. "We also designed the costumes, makeup and headwear based on the murals."

Harmony is derived from an original dance production by the university. The production, titled Tang Wu Chang'an, or dance of Chang'an, premiered on Dec 10 in the concert hall of Shaanxi Normal University.