The Cultural Stratification between 19th Century European Piano and Qing Dynasty Guzheng: a Comparative Study of Music Practice Based on Bourdieu Theory

Abstract

The 19th century European Industrial Revolution propelled the rapid development of capitalism, further strengthening class power. The transformation of social structure gave rise to the differentiation of piano cultural classes; and the Qing Dynasty, societal unrest and profound transformations led to intensified class differentiation, which in turn drove the diversification of social demands. Musical practices exhibited distinct characteristics within the divide between refined and popular traditions. However, current academic research lacks robust cross-civilization theoretical dialogue in this domain. This article takes 19th-century Europe (Piano) and Qing Dynasty China (Guzheng) as the temporal and spatial framework, employs Bourdieu’s three core concepts to compare the differences in performance practices of the two instruments across different social classes, and reveals the cross-cultural logic of the “musicclass” correlation. The study shows how Bourdieu’s ideas of field, habitus, and capital help to explain the cultural hierarchy between the Qing dynasty guzheng and the European piano, exposing both similar and different paths of musical practice. It creates a cross-civilizational framework for examining the relationship between music, class, and social structure and enhances comparative music sociology.