Also known as Masked Face or Painted Face, King Lanling Going to Battle is a kind of masquerade originated in the Northern Qi Dynasty of the Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties and flourished in the Tang Dynasty. The simple-plot male solo dance demonstrates the heroic bearing of King Lanling of the Northern Qi Dynasty as a courageous fighter.

 

Legend has it that King Lanling was exceptionally handsome and he feared he couldn’t frighten the enemy while fighting. So he would wear a fierce-looking mask to lead his army into battle. He was brave and skilful in battle and would care for his soldiers. Out of respect for him, his men created the tune King Lanling Going to Battle to praise him. And the tune was popular among the army. The dance of the same name was choreographed according to the tune in later ages as a way of commemoration. The dance was categorized as soft dance of palace music dances in the Tang Dynasty. From the painting of Dancing Music featuring the dance, we can see that the masked dancer wearing something similar to a battle robe wields a baton in his hand and abruptly turns back his head while advancing.

 

King Lanling Going to Battle was introduced to Japan and it is still part of Japanese gagaku music today. And various versions of illustrations of the dance have been handed down.