Music, in a broad sense, I think it should be an extension of culture and a crystallization form of the essence of culture. In this sense, China traditional music is the rich aesthetic experience accumulated by the Chinese nation in the long historical activities, which is obviously different from western classical music (mainly symphonies), because of the differences in the breeding soil (complex culture). We can verify this from the following examples:

The melody of a song "Mountain Flowing Water" is simple, elegant, beautiful and deep; The rhythm is smooth and stretched; The timbre is lingering, soft and beautiful; Reflect the beauty of women.

The Symphony of Destiny has a bright rhythm, a wide range, a clear tune, full of vitality, passion and great verve. Reflect the beauty of masculinity.

Therefore, if you extend it to China traditional music and western classical music, you will find that the above is not only the style difference between the two pieces of music, but also the embodiment of the cultural background difference between the East and the West in musical aesthetic views and artistic expression.

Speaking of the difference between China traditional music and western classical music, we can look at it from the following two aspects:

On the technical level, western classical music is theoretical and standardized, with a large number of text and audio documents, which are easy to spread; China's traditional music, however, does not have a complete set of composing theories and rules, and it is easy to be lost. China's traditional music is dominated by lines, while western classical music pays more attention to harmony. China traditional music pays attention to breath, while western classical music pays more attention to rhythm. The biggest technical difference between them lies in timbre and playing method.

On the artistic level, China's traditional music mainly shows the thoughts of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism, emphasizing understanding and wisdom, so it is subjective.

Western classical music emphasizes aesthetics and functionality, so it is more objective. The performance characteristics of China's traditional music realm are different from those of western classical music. Western classical music is good at being profound and serious, highlighting the opposition between subject and object, and most of them are full of drama or tragedy, which embodies the "grandeur" of an artistic spirit; China's traditional music is good at being broad-minded, emphasizing the blending of "emotion" and "scenery" and the unity of subject and object, which embodies a spirit of "harmony" and "beauty".

In the final analysis, the biggest difference between art lies in aesthetic orientation and values.

So, this is not surprising-westerners love to play symphonies, and the more musicians and musical instruments on the stage, the more imposing they are; People in China can achieve the same artistic effect without doing so. A lute can pop up a tragic siege, a guzheng can play the spring tide of the sea, and a Gu Xun can blow out the meditation of eternal rise and fall.

In short, due to the different social and cultural backgrounds, there are differences in music creation techniques and aesthetics: learning from each other and promoting each other on the basis of maintaining the original style will be the only way for them to develop and prosper in the future!