Berthold Laufer China Collection: Music in Shanghai Teahouses (1901-1902)

The earliest teahouses can be traced back to the Tang dynasty (713-741). During the late Qing Dynasty, teahouses were important spaces where men gathered to socialize and enjoy musical performances, all for the price of a tea ticket.

Teahouse performers blended musical genres to attract diverse audiences. This recording of a Peking opera, Cuipingshan (“The Emerald Mountain”), is influenced by bangzi, a related style that was seen as less refined.

Most customers regarded tea drinking and socializing as the main activity, with the music in the background. Teahouses were also a desirable place for merchants and political brokers to negotiate deals.

During quieter hours, visitors could hear solo instrumental performances. 

Laufer’s recording of a huqin solo is particularly significant for capturing the performer’s solo virtuosity at a time when such instruments were normally used to accompany singing.

While the exact locations of most of Laufer’s recordings are unidentifiable, the audio presented here is believed to have been recorded at the Chunxian Teahouse in Shanghai, as noted in a 1901 letter to Franz Boas.

Teahouses were spaces marked by gender and social hierarchy. Both patrons and performers were largely male. Respectable women were kept away from their corrupting influence, while only courtesans and prostitutes could be present.

Female singers of folk and narrative songs began to appear in teahouses in the early 20th century. This recording not only features a female voice but is also the earliest known recording of the popular tune Mengjiang’nu diao (“The Song of Lady Mengjiang”).