Playing the Pipa from the Back

Playing the Pipa from the Back is a representative image of the music and dance murals in the Dunhuang Caves. In Buddhist murals, scenes of music and dance performances are often painted on the platforms at the forefront of the sutra transformation paintings to depict the beauty of the Pure Land and the brilliance of sermons. After the Tang Dynasty, the dancer in the center of such scenes is often depicted as "playing the pipa from the back", with the image from Cave 112 of the Mogao Caves being the most classic.

The painting depicts an ensemble of three musicians on each side of the dancer playing instruments such as the pipa, ruan, konghou, tao drum, flute, and clapper. The musicians accompany the celestial dancer, who gracefully performs the technique of playing the pipa from the back, moving with elegance and poise. The artist's skillful brushwork captures the figures in a full, rich manner, smooth in lines that flow seamlessly, vividly portraying the dancer's leisurely and dignified demeanor. Draped in silk and adorned with elaborate jewelry, the dancer's garments flow like swimming dragons and soaring phoenixes, swaying gracefully. With a slight bend, she holds the pipa against her neck and back, leaning to the right while drawing in her right leg, playing and dancing simultaneously. The artist freezes this moment of dynamic movement in the mural while depicting the solemnity, bliss, warmth, and brilliance of the Pure Land. This challenging dance posture of playing the pipa from the back, through the ongoing exploration of Dunhuang dance by the Chinese, has been brought back to life on today's stage.

反彈琵琶

反彈琵琶，是敦煌石窟樂舞壁畫的代表形象。佛教壁畫中為了表現凈土世界的美好、講經說法的精彩，往往在經變畫最前方的平臺上繪制樂舞表演的場景。唐代之后，這類畫面中居正中的舞者經常為反彈琵琶，其中又以莫高窟第112窟的這一形象最為經典。

畫中舞者兩側各有三人組成的樂隊，分別演奏琵琶、阮咸、箜篌、鼗鼓、橫笛、拍板，伎樂天伴隨著仙樂翩翩起舞，舉足旋身，使出“反彈琵琶”的絕技。畫師妙筆傳神，人物造型豐腴飽滿，線條流暢，一氣呵成，將伎樂天神態悠閑雍容、落落大方之態躍然壁上。其絲帛繞身，瓔珞莊嚴，天衣裙裾如游龍驚鳳，搖曳生姿，上身微曲，雙手將琵琶置于項背，屈身向右，吸右腿，邊彈邊舞。畫師將伎樂天剎那間動勢定格在壁畫中，同時也描繪出凈土世界的莊嚴、極樂、熱烈與輝煌。反彈琵琵這種極具難度的樂舞表演，在中國人對敦煌舞的不斷探索中，已于今天的舞臺上得以再現。