my euro friend said 'explain this to me', with eyes nailed on the screen. - we were re-watching the complete version of opening ceremony on a korean channel the next day...but oh my, my eyes were busily absorbing too - too overwhelmed to say anything.
dividing the ceremony into each chapter, there're still a lot of details to explain. share some of them:
the countdown
what's used here is 2008 'drums' borrowing inspiration from an ancient ceramic wine container Fou (缶). the ancestors used to drink, sing and tap beats on it - gradually, it became a percussion instrument, more belonging to the ordinary people than to the privileged class. the cubic shape of these drums is from the container of the Fou, called Jian (鉴). it's like a wine cooler or heater (some chinese wine are to drink when heated). attached is a photo of a copper Jian Fou ("曾侯乙"铜鉴缶), 61.5x62cm, 170kg, attributed to the Era of Warring States, a period covering from some time in the 5th century BC to the unification of china by the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC. many ancient poems and writings mentioned using Fou as an instrument, although here, to be accurate, it's Jian that's being used. - I guess its cubic shape is more suitable for the performance.
the red mark on the forehead of the drummers I think is a motif borrowed from facial makeup in Peking Opera, where every color, shape and their location on the face shows a specific character of the role. red is usually reserved for characters of royalty, integrity and courage.
(to be continued.)
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