唱段 (chàng duàn) — aria (vocal piece in Chinese opera or musical theater)

Definition

A sung excerpt or solo passage, most often from Chinese opera (e.g. 京剧) but also from musicals. Think of it as the equivalent of an "aria" — a named, performable vocal piece rather than a full song.

noun
aria (vocal piece in Chinese opera or musical theater)
Measure word · 段

Examples

  • 唱段。
    Zhè duàn chàng duàn shì jīng jù lǐ zuì yǒu míng de.
    This aria is the most famous in Beijing opera.
  • 唱段，。
    Tā chàng le yí gè hěn cháng de chàng duàn, guān zhòng dōu fēi cháng xǐ huan.
    She sang a very long aria, and the audience loved it.
  • 唱段？？
    Nǐ zài tīng shén me chàng duàn? shì xīn de ma?
    What aria are you listening to? Is it new?

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

唱chàngsinging
段duànsection

A 段 of 唱, a sung section or aria.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
口口kǒu
Sound part声符shēngfú
昌
昌chāng唱chàng
Same sound today

The 口 part points to the mouth, while 昌 shows how the character is pronounced.

Open 唱 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
殳殳shū
Sound part声符shēngfú
厂
厂chǎng段duàn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

段's shape shows 殳 as a hammer breaking a stone, with fragments flying off.

Open 段 →

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