After the Sui united China , the music and dances were sorted out and categorized into “seven divisions of music” . Emperor Yang of Sui himself again categorized them into “nine divisions of music”. The Administration in charge of the music and dances had control over more than 30,000 music artists , evidencing the prevalence of the music and dances .
　　The Tang Dynasty was a great feudalist empire . Owing to its stabilized society and prosperous economy , music enjoyed a high esteem . Emperor Tai of the Tan Dynasty categorized music into “ten divisions”. In the reign of Emperor Xuan , the imported music and the native music were fully integrated with little distinction . He divided the music and dances into two sections , the sitting section and the standing section . The musicians at the sitting section had a higher status . They played stringed and wind instruments and san and danced inside the hall . The musicians of the standing section had a lower status . They beat drums , blew reed pipes and performed acrobatics in front of the hall . The Tang music and dances included both the “grand music” , such as the “northern tribe’s dances”, etc,. and the minor song and dances , called the “miscellaneous music” .

　　In the Tang Dynasty , the musical instruments were prolific in varieties . There were over three hundred kinds of musical instruments . In the Tang court were set up the “Musicians Department” and the “Training Department” , for administration and training the musicians . In the second year of the reign of Kaiyuan (734 A.D. ) of Emperor Xuan , there were three “musicians training departments . But Emperor Yuan was not contented . He gathered thousands of male and female musicians and stationed them in the Pear Garden within the palace and in the Western Capital and Luoyang . He himself composed songs and asked them to perform , and he acted as their “art adviser” . He and his concubine Madame Yang Yuhuan taught the musicians at the “Pear Garden” to perform the “Colorful Feathered Gown Dance”. The musicians were therefore called the “Imperial Pear Garden disciples” . Also , a “young singers section” was set up at pear garden as a reserve , consisting of young musicians below 15 years of age .

　　As the Western palaces provided the Western musicians and artists with a base for the development of music and art , so did the Chinese palaces . A distinction between them is : Whereas the Western royalties whiled away their time by appreciating music and art , the Chinese royalties took part in them actively .
Emperor Xuan had very high musical attainments , particularly in playing the jie drum ( northern tribal drum) , which was spread to China from the Western Regions in the Sui-Tang Dynasties , and was made a part of the “feast music” . The sounds of the Jie drum were very varied and rich , so , many people liked to play it . Emperor Yuan regarded it as the best of all musical instruments . He not only played it , but also composed scores of jie drum tunes .
　　The famous melody “Colorful Feathered Gown Music” was said to be composed by Emperor Xuan . In it he incorporated partly the Indian melody entitled “Brahman”.
.　　Beside the emperor , many royalties and ministers were keen on music as well . According to the “Grand Records in Peace” , the prime minister Du Hongjian was also good at playing jie drum . When he headed for Sichuan from the capital with some other high officials , they stopped at a post station by the Jialing River . Being drunked , he ascended the tower at the post station and played several jie drum tunes . Not only were his companions greatly astonished , but also “the monkeys and birds in the nearby mountains wee astonished and fled”. For another example , according to the “Tang Anthology of Commentaries”, the Yan Duke Li Mian liked old qin . He retained two girl singers at his home and taught them to play qin . He also composed music scores himself . Once he found a piece of old iron when he was in Runzhou . He struck it and it sounded clear and melodious . So , he kept it as a musical instrument . Whenever he was elated , he took with him the old qin and the piece of iron to ascend the mountain , in the company of a monkey he tamed called “mountain lord” . There he played these instruments in the moon-lit night , to accompany the cries of the “mountain lord” . He got in a really romantic mood .