Zhonghe Shaoyue Music evolved from Yayue ritual music and was exclusively used during major government ceremonies such as offering sacrifices to Heaven, Earth, and the ancestral spirits in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming dynasty, changed the name Yayue to Zhonghe Shaoyue. This name has remained in use since Zhu Di moved the capital to Beijing in 1420 (the 18th year of the Ming-dynasty Yongle Emperor’s reign). After the fall of the Qing dynasty, the music was kept alive at the Temple of Heaven and among private organizations. In 1950, the Temple of Heaven Management Office was established, and music-related articles were found, restored, and carefully preserved.

The Zhonghe Shaoyue Music of the Divine Music Administration was inscribed onto Beijing’s first Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2006 in the category of traditional music. It was included in China’s fifth Representative List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2021, with the Temple of Heaven Park designated as the responsible institution for its preservation.