海盐腔的前世今生

王英

一

海盐腔作为一种地方戏曲，因形成于浙江嘉兴海盐县而得名，是明代南戏四大声腔（余姚腔、弋阳腔、昆山腔）之一，曾风靡全国，可惜后来被昆曲（昆山腔、昆腔）所替代，这在当今已经鲜为人知。

曾經，京剧被国人称之为“国剧”，而在三百年前徽班进京之前，是昆曲主导着舞台。如果要问昆曲之前是什么戏剧活跃于大江南北的舞台上？那就是海盐腔。明嘉靖年间（1522—1566），戏曲家魏良辅从海盐腔中吸取了大量优美的曲调，并加以改造，创制出脍炙人口的昆山腔。如今，昆曲作为中国“百戏之祖”，已被联合国科教文组织列为“人类口述和非物质遗产代表作”。按此溯源推论，海盐腔堪称是“百戏之祖”的先声。

海盐腔的创始者为元代戏曲家、海盐澉浦人杨梓（康惠）。杨氏家族亦官亦商，富甲宋、元、明三代，这为海盐腔的创制奠定了物质基础。

元代，北方杂剧与南方南曲戏文（南戏）并存，中叶以后，南戏逐渐流传至当时经济、文化仍然活跃的故都临安（杭州）。杨梓时在杭州路任总管，与散曲名家贯云石交好。贯云石寄寓西湖，所制乐府、散套，俊逸为当世之冠。本来就酷爱戏曲、且擅音律的杨梓经贯云石指点，便有意识地揣摩“新声”。之后，杨梓辞官返乡醉心创作。据传，行前，贯云石将自己所创的曲调都授予了杨梓。

在澉浦，杨梓组建起自己的家乐班子，并建起梳妆楼，安置姬妾、童仆学习演唱南北歌调，并排演他的新剧本。这在当时闻名一方。据王国维考证，杨梓有《豫让吞炭》《霍光鬼谏》《敬德不伏老》三种杂剧存世。

杨梓的家乐班子每日莺歌燕舞，演唱完毕，卸妆水倾入梳妆楼旁的水池，染得五光十色，人称“胭脂湖”。明诗人朱朴《题杨宣慰妆楼》云：“罗绮香消镜匣收，碧山空对晚妆楼。楼前昨夜新秋月，犹学蛾眉翠黛愁。”

杨氏家童擅长“南北歌调”，“由是州人往往得其家法”（元姚桐寿《乐郊私语》）。所谓“家法”，也就是杨梓研制的“新声”。这种吸取了地方特色的全新声腔，原本只是杨梓“家乐班”加以演唱，没有多少年便在海盐流传开来，惹得周边的地区也纷纷效仿，可见普及程度。杨梓“家法”唱腔，柔美婉折，人们将它称为“海盐腔”，而演唱这种海盐腔的艺人，被称为“海盐子弟”，闻名于两浙。明代时，海盐腔与弋阳腔、余姚腔、昆山腔“四大声腔”，形成南戏最主要的地方流派。

二

明成化至万历年间（1465-1620），海盐腔进入全盛时期，“士大夫宴集，多用海盐戏文娱宾。间或用昆山腔，多属小唱，若用弋阳、余姚，则为不敬”（清张牧《笠泽随笔》）。海盐腔不仅在南方称雄，在北方也颇受上层社会欢迎。反映明代广阔社会生活的小说《金瓶梅词话》多达六回记载有海盐子弟演出六个剧目的盛况，可以旁证。

海盐腔鼎盛的重要标志是，明戏曲家汤显祖用海盐腔创作了“临川四梦”：《牡丹亭》《南柯记》《邯郸记》《紫钗记》。

据戏曲史料记载，海盐腔于嘉靖年间（1522-1565）由在浙江统兵抗倭的名将谭纶带到江西宜黄。谭纶酷爱戏曲，尤喜海盐腔，他命艺人在当地传授，还亲临排演现场，并将弋阳腔融入其中，形成宜黄腔。

汤显祖的戏曲创作，为海盐腔的繁荣作出了巨大的贡献。海盐腔属于定律型曲牌腔，即词有定律、腔有定格的南戏“正声”。汤显祖从浙江遂昌知县任上辞官回到临川（江西抚州），依曲谱按定律填写诗句曲词作“四梦”，并亲自指导宜黄班海盐腔艺人排练《牡丹亭》等。其代表作《牡丹亭》于万历二十七年春（1599）在新居玉茗堂首次演出，而《南柯记》《邯郸记》也在这里试演。

“四梦”影响深广且远，当年就有戏剧家沈璟等人将海盐腔《牡丹亭》改唱昆山腔。汤显祖得知后说：“彼恶知曲意哉，余意所至，不妨拗折天下人嗓子。”在汤显祖看来，沈璟等人“志趣不同如此”，岂能让昆山腔来演唱自己的作品呢？但当时的“吴江派”曲家，竟然用昆山腔的标准来衡量汤显祖的剧本，认为它不合音律。对此，在戏曲创作方面，反对拟古和拘泥于格律的汤显祖很是气愤，坚决反对别人将他的剧本改唱昆山腔。

当代的戏曲研究学者戴不凡、肖洪、叶长海等认为：汤显祖归临川后，所制剧本“为情作使，劬于伎剧”，常“游于伶党之中”。这“伶党”即“宜伶”，宜伶所演唱的腔调，一不是弋阳腔，二不是宜黄腔，也不是昆山腔，而是海盐腔。汤显祖《宜黄县戏神清源师庙记》中说：谭纶以浙人归教其子弟，能为海盐声，如今得其技者千余人，风行天下。

因了汤显祖及其《牡丹亭》，海盐腔发展很快，并且繁盛一时。当时，南昌有很多明朝宗室，他们每提到宴集演戏，除了王府戏班而外，自然也少不了宜黄班的参加。

有史料载，唱海盐腔的宜伶名角王有信曾在滕王阁公演《牡丹亭》，轰动全城，观众如堵。汤显祖也亲临观看，并欣然写下《滕王阁王有信演牡丹亭二首》诗，以示祝贺。

此外，由于汤显祖私人交情的关系，宜黄班海盐腔艺人受汤显祖的委托，也常到江西、安徽各地以及南京等地演出。

三

明万历以后，海盐腔开始衰落，昆山腔异军突起。昆山腔博采众长，尤其是吸收了海盐腔的长处，不断改进，建立了一种更适合南方人欣赏的优雅体系。海盐腔不仅在词调、腔调上与传奇旧腔、昆山腔之间存在着承上启下的密切关系，而且在伴奏方面也同样具有重要的影响。因而海盐腔《牡丹亭》竟成为昆曲的代表剧目。

海盐腔吃老本，唱法单调;雅，比不上同时代的昆山腔，土，又无法与弋阳诸腔抗衡，所以衰落也是必然的，但没有死亡。endprint

2000年6月，第一届“海盐腔学术研讨会”在杨梓故乡澉浦南北湖举行。2002年5月，在“中国·海盐南北湖旅游节”期间，江西抚州的汤显祖艺术实验团应海盐县人民政府的邀请作专场表演。

演出地点在澉浦镇吴越王庙。当原汁原味的海盐腔《牡丹亭·游园》在古戏台上唱响时，那清柔婉折、明丽妩媚的古老神韵，那夹杂着清唱、夹白、帮腔特色的优美曲调，以及曼妙的舞姿，恍惚让人回到了七百年前的梦境。当天下着雨，可长廊下、台阶上，树丛旁、花卉间，千余名观众没有一人离场。

江西戏曲家肖洪回忆：“多年前，广昌旴河剧团还存在时，我们就曾用孟戏高腔中的海盐腔编写过一些剧目的音乐和唱腔进行演出。”这次演出用的唱腔就是肖洪采用孟戏高腔中的海盐腔曲牌编的曲。

2015年5月的一个夜晚，我坐在肖洪家的书房里，从电脑上看刘家孟戏的录像。刘家孟戏，是20世纪80年代初期被一个叫流沙的戏曲研究者发现，经过专家考证认定，海盐腔就遗存于其中，是海盐腔谱系的源头之一。后来，流沙和浙江戏剧家钱贵成主编了一种《论江西海盐腔音乐》的专著，引起了整个戏曲界的轰动。

荧屏上播放出刘家孟戏《王母谪星》，笛声悠扬，如行云流水般曲艺动人。金星、玉女妆容俊美，时而长袖善舞、时而辗转缠绵。它不同于昆曲，不同于宜黄腔，当年曾听过这出戏的戏曲家们共同吐露心声：雅！

“里面最好听的要数海盐腔曲牌‘红衲袄了。”随着一出出折子戏的播放，肖洪与我谈起海盐腔，说，真是优雅婉转，令人陶醉！

我又与抚州采茶舞剧团团长、杜丽娘的饰演者吴岚谈，她说，2016年10月，为纪念汤显祖与莎士比亚逝世400周年，以海盐腔为主调的新版“临川四梦”在抚州和北京两地演出，中央电视台进行录制。

在国家级非遗刘家孟戏中发现海盐腔，引起了有识人士的极大关注，浙江、江西两地对海盐腔的发掘、交流与研究积极配合，结出了丰硕成果。

近年来，从浙江省到海盐县，对海盐腔的抢救保护工作已取得了极大进展。海盐县成立了海盐腔艺术馆筹备组，政协编写了《海盐腔的兴衰》等书，文联组织成立了海盐腔研究会及海盐腔民间艺术团。

（除署名外，本文图片由作者拍攝、提供）

Haiyan Melody is a regional opera named after Haiyan， a county in northern Zhejiang. It was one of the four major regional operas in the south of China during the Ming Dynasty （1368-1644）. The other three were Yuyao Melody， Yiyang Melody and Kunshan Melody.

Before some troupes from Anhui came to Beijing three hundred years ago to take the fancy of the imperial house and gave birth to what is now known as Beijing Opera， Kunqu Opera used to be the favor of the imperial house of the Qing Dynasty （1644-1911）. Then what enjoyed national fame before Kunqu？ The answer is Haiyangqiang or Haiyan Melody.

Kunqu came into being during the years from 1522 to 1566 when Emperor Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty ruled. It was created by Wei Liangfu， a drama specialist who drew inspiration from Haiyan Melody. Today， Kunqu is one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO since 2001. If Kunqu is widely considered the ancestor that spawned a hundred of regional operas across the country， then Haiyan Melody can be considered the ancestor of Kunqu Opera.

Haiyan Melody， a kind of opera， was created by Yang Zi， a dramatist of the Yuan Dynasty （1279-1368）. Yang was a native of Haiyan. His family members pursued both government careers and business. The family flourished for hundreds of years spanning the dynasties of the Song （960-1279）， the Yuan and the Ming. The fortune accumulated over centuries was the material foundation of the genesis.endprint

During the Yuan， operas in the north and in the south at first existed side by side. Then in the middle decades of the dynasty， operas in the south spread to Hangzhou， which had housed the imperial house of the Southern Song （1127-1279）. Yang Zi was a local governor in Hangzhou and was a friend with Guan Yunshi， a dramatist and composer who lived in Hangzhou. Guan was probably the best known composer of the time. The tunes he composed enjoyed great popularity. Under the guidance of the composer， Yang began to explore the possibilities of new music. He became so obsessed with his new ambition and passion that he resigned from the government position. It is said that Guan Yunshi gave Yang all the music sheets as a goodbye gift before Yang went home.

Yang Zi founded a family troupe and built a small theater on the family compound. He trained performers and wrote scripts. The troupe rehearsed and performed. Wang Guowei （1877-1927）， a native of Haining and famed scholar of national renown， wrote in a research report that three scripts by Yang Zi had come down in history.

The tunes composed by Yang Zi featured Haiyan musical characteristics. Over years， the tunes spread fast in Haiyan and troupes in neighboring regions performed. The plays got the name of Haiyan Melody. During the Ming Dynasty， Haiyan Melody was one of the most famous major four regional opera genres.

Haiyan Melody climaxed from 1465 to 1620. Zhang Mu， a scholar of the Qing Dynasty， wrote in an essay that in entertaining important guests， the plays of Haiyan were first choice. Kunshan Melody was occasionally performed， and that Yiyang Melody and Yuyao Melody were considered inferior and inappropriate to honor guests. Haiyan Melody also spread to the north. ， a novel written in the Ming Dynasty and one of the greatest ancient novels of China， mentions six plays performed by Haiyan Melody artists in six separate chapters.

Tan Lun， a general who once fought Japanese pirates in Zhejiang， brought Haiyan Melody back to him home in Yihuang in neighboring Jiangxi Province. The general with a passion for Haiyan Melody asked artists from Haiyan to teach dramatists in Yihuang. He added some elements of Yiyang Melody to the tunes. What formed under his guidance is known as Yihuang Melody.

Tang Xianzu， who wrote “four dreams” scripts， made great contribution to the fame of Haiyan Melody. It is said that Tang wrote scripts for his plays to the tunes of Haiyan Melody and directed rehearsals of . History records that was performed at Tangs home in 1599.endprint

Tangs scripts were so famous that was adapted to Kunshan Melody. After learning about the adaptation， Tang Xianzu expressed his objection seriously. His objection is understandable. A dramatist criticized the innovative touches Tang Xianzu brought to the tunes and lyrics.

Thanks to Tangs support， Haiyan Melody boomed. Troupes that performed Tang Xianzus plays were often invited to entertain noble families living in Nanchang during the Ming Dynasty. History records that was performed at Prince Tengs Pavilion in Nanchang. The performance caused a huge sensation in the city and Tang attended the show and later wrote two poems in commemoration of the sensational success. Haiyan Melody troupes from Yihuang traveled and performed in Jiangxi and Anhui provinces as well as Nanjing.

During the reign of Emperor Wanli of the Ming， Haiyan Melody spiraled downwards， eclipsed by Kunshan Melody. When Haiyan Melody was all the rage in this part of the country， Kunshan Melody was fast evolving， taking Haiyan Melody as its model. It absorbed strengths from Haiyan Melody and other sources and grew into a regional opera that better appealed to the high-end theatergoers. The lyrics and tunes， which also had evolved， became very attractive. became the hallmark of what is now known as Kunqu Opera.

Haiyan Melody stopped evolving， which spelled its downfall. But it is not dead. In June 2000， a seminar was held in Kanpu， the hometown of Yang Zi， who created Haiyan Melody. Tang Xianzu Experimental Troupe from Fuzhou， Tangs birthplace in neighboring Jiangxi Province， staged a highlight of . For the first time， audiences of today in Haiyan heard the ancient Haiyan Melody. The music was composed by Xiao Hong， a dramatist based in Jiangxi. Haiyan Melody， which was brought to Jiangxi by general Tan Lun centuries ago， has spread through Jiangxi and exists in various regional operas across the province. In the 1980s， a scholar named Liu Sha traced Haiyan Melody to a local opera. Liu Sha later wrote a book on Haiyan Melody in Jiangxi in collaboration with Qian Guicheng， a theater scholar of Zhejiang. The book caused a big stir among the circle of theater scholars across the country.

Since Haiyan Melody was rediscovered， the Haiyan County Government has spared no efforts to preserve the valuable cultural heritage. Joint research work has been conducted on Haiyan Melody. A preparatory office is now in place to start a Haiyan Melody Museum. The CPPCC Haiyan Congress has had a book written on the rise and fall of Haiyan Melody. The countys Federation of Literature and Art Circles set up Haiyan Melody Research Institute and a Haiyan Melody troupe.endprint