Zhejiang folk
art has a long history. As early as in Song Dynasty, Zhejiang folk art was
very popular. The genres of the time included Jiang Shi Shu (history
telling), Xiao Shuo, Shuo Jing, Shuo Hun Hua, Tan Chang Yin Yuan, Zhu Gong
Diao, Gu Zi Ci, Chang Dao Qing, Tao Zhen, Ya Ci, He Sheng, Xiao Chang,
Piao Chang, Chang Jing Ci, Shua Ling, Chang Bo Bu Duan, Xue Xiang Sheng,
Xue Xiang Tan, etc. There are more than 30 recreational Wa Zi in Lin'an
with folk artists giving out performances all the year round. Besides the
hundred famous artists of different genres, Zhejiang folk art also had its
guild-like organizations as Xiong Bian She (the declamation society) and E
Yun She, as well as professional or amateur writers - Shu Hui Cai Ren. In
Southern Song Dynasty, folk art was brisk in Zhejiang rural areas. Ping
Hua, Tan Ci, Ci Hua, Dao Qing and Yu Gu handed down to Yuan and Ming
Dynasties, and genres like Ping Hua, Nan Ci, Gu Ci , Tan Huang and Xuan
Juan was especially prevailing in Qing Dynasty. Even after liberation,
more than 60 genres survived (including those which are different in
language and music, but same in form of performance) and continue to be
active around Zhejiang.
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As far
as its musical characteristics are concerned, Zhejiang folk art falls into
the following main categories:
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Sit-and-play |
Hangzhou Tan Huang
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Initially known as "An Kang" or "Hang Tan", it is most popular around
Hangzhou. The cast usually ranged from 5 to 7 or 9 performers, each
playing a role of the male character, the female character, the character
with a painted face and the clown. The lyrics were mainly composed of
seven charactered sentences and the singing was always accompanied by such
instruments as San-Xian (Chinese trichord), Hu-Qin (two-stringed Chinese
violin), pi-pa, Sheng (a reed pipe wind instrument), Xiao (a vertical
bamboo flute), flute and Gu-Ban (clappers). The music fell into two
categories, namely, Qian Tan (front Tan) and Hou Tan (Back Tan). The
former were mainly highlights from Qun Qu Zhui Bai Qiu (Sewing The White
Fur Coat), which were further adapted to meet the needs of Tan Huang
performance, while the latter just took in folk songs. Hang Tan originated
from Emperor Xianlong's reign of Qing Dynasty, and reached its peak in
19th and 20th century. There were more than 300 professionals, and they
set up a society called "Heng Yuan Ji", later "An Kang Zheng Shi She" at
the turn from Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China. At the time, Hang Tan
was very popular in Hangzhou. In the early thirties, Shen Chuanlin was
known as "Mei Lanfang (the most renowned Beijing Opera master) of An
Kang", and Sheng Nigui as "King of the painted face". It was during the
Anti-Japanese War that Hang Tan began to decline. In early 1949, there
were only ten old artists left: Qu Yongchun, Duan Xiaoyun, etc. In 1957, a
training class was held to rescue the art of Hang Tan but it died out
during the "Cultural Revolution". Now what is left is only the recorded
120 traditional acts.
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Walk-and-play, by
Bainikan folk band of Shengxian County |
Wulin
Ban
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Also
called "Hang Qu (tunes of Hangzhou)", it was most popular in the northern
Hangzhou-Jiaxing-Huzhou plain in Zhejiang. It evolved from "Xuan Juan" at
the turn from Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China. In the early years of
the Republic, some handicraft workers in Hangzhou entertained themselves
with "Xuan Juan" and many professional singers soon showed up. In 1920,
Qiu Fengchun and his fellowmen brought "Xuan Juan" into the Hangzhou Globe
Theater for commercial performance. With folk songs added to "Xuan Juan"
tunes, and with the accompaniment of some stringed instruments like Er-Hu
(urheen) added to the original time setter Mu-Yu (wooden fish¨Da percussion
instrument), it was a huge success. More than 40 programs were made out of
the operas and the legend stories, such as He Wenxiu, Zhao
Wuniang, Bai Hua Tai (Hundred Flower Platform), Meng
Lijun, and Chen Xiang Shan. In 1923 under the influence of
"opera reform", the performers became painted when giving performances.
Arias (music for voice in a Chinese opera) were enriched too and had
several different kinds like "Ping Ban" and "Da Lu Ban". With Gu Ban
(clappers), Xiao Luo (small gongs) and cymbals further added to the band,
the time of Wulin Ban begun. It could be either "Gao Tai (high platform)"
or "Ping Tai (platform)" performance. The former (later called Hangzhou
Opera) was quite an opera with performers playing different roles whereas
the latter (the later Hangzhou Tune) was the singing-and-talking with
performers sitting or walking around. The victory of the Anti-Japanese War
also marked the peak of Hang Qu. At the time, there were more than 100
professionals and a society "Hangzhou Opera Spring and Autumn Society".
After liberation, the most celebrated artists of Hang Qu were two sisters
Wang Guifeng and Wang Guizhen, and some others like He Meizhen. Teahouses
were the places for performance. The three teahouses on Mt. Wu, namely, Le
Yuan (paradise), Tong Le (happy together) and Lv Yin (green shed) used to
be the base of Hang Qu artists. Performances were also frequent in Xu Yu
Tai (timely rain platform) and Ya Yuan (elegant gardon) on Yanling Road
(the present Yan'an Road). In 1958, Wang Guifeng and He Meizhen were
invited to participate the first National Folk Art Joint Performance with
their modern program The Better Daughter-In-Law. Hangzhou Opera
began to go downhill in the sixties and Hangzhou Tune survived it until
the "Cultural Revolution".
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Walk-and-play, by
Shuitou folk band of Pingyang |
Xiao Re
Hun
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It is a
kind of singing-and-talking originated from the turn of the Qing Dynasty
and the Republic of China. At the time, a peddler called Du Baolin did the
"Morning Paper Telling" to promote his sells of pea syrup candies. His
news stories and jokes were fine parables which could reveal the corrupted
society. He got so famous that the art was named after his nickname "Xiao
Re Hun". The art began to get popularized in Hangzhou, Shanghai and the
south of Jiangsu. When performing, a man (later it could be two men
performing together) stood on a bench, made time with Xiao-Luo (small
gongs) and San-Qiao-Ban while singing. The common tunes were "Luo Xian
Feng (gong pioneer), "San Qiao Fu (to San-Qiao-Ban)", etc. The beginning
part was always played with Xiao-Luo to attract audience, and then
followed by "Mai Kou", jokes which were the exaggerated or twisted images
of real life and were extremely funny. Traditional jokes included San
Jia Dian (three shops), The Four Sons-In-Law, Leather Shoes
As The Match Maker, Bridge Qinghe, Three Monks, etc.
After the jokes were "Luo Xian Feng" (today it is called "Xiao Luo Shu")
accompanied by Xiao Luo, whose content were the much concerned affairs of
the time. For instance, The Evil Rice Moth used to be a great stir
among people as it was about those unscrupulous merchants. There were
other uproarious programs like The Fish Is Sick, The Long-Haired
Girl, Battle Of Vegetables and Fruit's Proposal To
Marriage. In the break, the performer began to sell his pear syrup
candies. After that, he continued to tell novels in "Dong Xiang Diao
(eastern county tune)" with accompaniment made by three bamboo boards
(viz. San-Qiao-Ban). Among the traditional master pieces were Northern
Expedition, A Yellow Dog Went To Law, Gao Fu'an's War
Against Japan, August 13, and The Suicide of Xiao
Dangui. The Northern Expedition was about the crusade against
the warlords and was the magnum opus of the Xiao Re Hun artist Xiao
Changgen. Besides him, the famous artists included Ding Yousheng, Zhao
Wensheng, Zhu Keqin, Yu Xiaofei, Zhao Meiying, and An Zhongwen. The last
one, An Zhongwen, used to write and stage many new programs about real
life after liberation, and in 1958, his work The Bold Sun Caiyao
was presented to the nation's leaders in Zhongnanhai - the headquarters of
the CPC and the State Council. Battle Of Vegetables, adapted by him
too, was on stage for thousand times and still remained a long-standing
success.
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Walk-and-play in
Fuyang |
Si Ming Nan
Ci
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Si Ming
Nan Ci, or Si Ming Wen Shu, was a kind of Tan Ci (story-telling) in Ningbo
dialect. It was popular around Ningbo, Yuyao and Fenghua. Legends had it
that when Emperor Qianlong of Qing Dynasty was on his inspection tour in
the River South, he used to watch the performance of "Si Ming Wen Shu" at
Bai Yi Si (white clothes temple) of Ningbo. After the performance, he kept
applauding and said, "the South has the best Ci poems of the country". Due
to this story, the art was renamed "Nan Ci (Southern Ci)". What's more,
Ningbo and its attached regions were located by Mt. Si Ming, hence the
name "Si Ming Nan Ci" in order to differ from the other "Nan Ci",
especially the one of Suzhou (viz. Tan Ci). It was most prevailing in
early 19th century. Thousands of people were involved in the art then.
Societies like "Chong De She (lofty virtues)" and "Yong Yu She (forever
abundant)" were established. In 1930s, the New Road of Ningbo alone had
over a hundred artists. Two artists often performed together: one sang and
talked while playing San-Xian (Chinese trichord) and the other played
Yang-Qin (dulcimer) for accompaniment. The number of performers could be
increased to three, five or seven, or even ten to thirteen at most, and
accordingly, accompanying instruments like pi-pa, Er-Hu, Sheng, Xiao,
Zheng, Gu-Ban are increased too. "Si Ming Nan Ci" did not emphasize the
different roles until later stages. Its lyrics were of seven charactered
sentences or ten charactered sentences with additional three characters in
the head. Among the hundred tunes, the most common five were Pinghu tune,
Jin Pinghu Diao (intense Pinghu tune), Ci Diao, Fu diao and Jin Fu Diao,
called as a whole "Wu Zhu Tou". There were more than 30 scripts left, such
as Retribution For Sin, Twining Dragon Bracelet, He Wenxiu
and The Pearl Pagoda. Besides, there were up to hundred introductory songs
in Tan Ci, such as Ten Scenary Spots of West Lake, Happy
Fishers, and Wedding of the Butterfly Lady. Famous artists came
forth one after another in each generation. There were Dai Chunsheng and
Li Maoxin in early 19th century; in the last years of Qing Dynasty, five
talented artists represented by Chen Jin'en were known as "five masters";
in the Republic of China, a He Guizhang excelled at singing and playing,
and won the title of "Mei Lanfang of Ningbo"; after liberation, Zhou
Tingbi, Chen Lianqin, Chai Binzhang and lots of others became famous.
However, after the eighties as the old artists passed away one by one, now
no one is in the line.
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Gongs and drums music
San Wu Qi Introductory Part. The folk artist Yan Bangzhen of Qu County
made a special set for gongs and drums so that he could play many
percussion instruments all at the same time. |
Ningbo Zou
Shu
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"Lian
Hua Wen Shu" and "Li Hua Wen Shu" were the other two names of it. It was a
kind of singing-and-talking prevailing around Ningbo and Zhoushan. Unlike
other "Wen Shu" of the region in which the performers sat and sung, the
artists kept walking around when giving performance, hence the name "Zou
Shu (walking and story-telling)". It came into being in the mid-19th
century, so it has a history of more than one hundred years so far. As
early as in its beginning, it had its own society known as "Yuhang She".
Generally, there was a leading vocal who did the singing-and-talking, a
Si-Hu player who was also the vocal accompaniment. Sometimes, pi-pa, Er-Hu
(urheen) and Yang-Qin (dulcimer) were added into the multi-player
performance. As its lyrics were simple, expressive and full of rural
flavor, it was loved by the countrymen and the fishers. As the local
saying goes, Wen Shu was for the resplendent halls whereas Zou Shu was for
the village and farms. Si Ping Diao, Fu Diao, Ma Tou Diao and Huan Hun
Diao were the common tunes of Zou Shu. Traditional programs were mainly
long literary piece as Bao Zheng, Da Hong Pao (the big red
robe), The Picture Of Ten Beauties, The Picture Of White Crane
and about 40 others. After liberation, many new works were produced.
For example, in the fifties, there were programs like War Flames At The
End Of The Bridge and Rosy Clouds Over Mt. Siming which were
about the revolutions around Mt. Siming. In 1958, the short story
General Zhude Could Invent Shield took part in the First Provincial
Folk Art Joint Performance, then the First National Folk Art Joint
Performance, and won prizes for excellent work and performance in both
contest. In the sixties, the traditional programs like Three Battles
With Six Tigers were also adapted. In the course, many famous artists
came forth, such as Xu Binzhang, Zhu Guiying, Fan Xiuying and Wan Wenbiao.
After the sixties, it waned to the close for lack of successors. Around
Ningbo, there were other kinds of "Zou Shu": "Jiaochuan Zou Shu" created
by Xie Ashu of Zhenhai (it was so named because Zhenhai was called
Jiaochuan in ancient times) and "Wengzhou Zou Shu" created by An Axiao of
Dinghai (Daishan of Dinghai was called Wengzhou in ancient times). Though
they contributed quite a lot new programs, now they are also on the
decline.
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Gongs and drums music
San Wu Qi Introductory Part. The folk artist Yan Bangzhen of Qu County
made a special set for gongs and drums so that he could play many
percussion instruments all at the same time. |
Shaoxing
Pinghu Diao
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Among
the folks, it was known as "Ping Diao" or "Yue Jun Nan Ci". The 18th
century witnessed its popularity in Zhejiang. At the turn of the century,
a Xiucai (one who passed the imperial examination at the county level in
the Ming and Qing dynasties) of Zhejiang called Hu Siyuan became famous
for he was good at singing "Shaoxing Ping Diao". More celebrities came
forth in the last years of Qing Dynasty. Among them was Zhou Dunfu,
"master of Ping Diao". At the beginning of Republic of China, Pan Zifeng
established "Su Zhu" society in Xin Yuan (new gardon) teahouse of Shaoxing
to give lessons, thus cultivated famous artists like Shi Shifu and Liu
Bin. They usually sat down when performing. The singing could either be
"San Pin (three instrumental)" with three players playing Xiao-San-Xian,
Yang-Qin and Er-Hu respectively, "Wu Pin (five instrumental)" with
additional Dong-Xiao and pi-pa, "Qi Pin (seven instrumental)" with further
Shuang-Qing and Sheng, or "Jiu Pin (nine instrumental) with even more
Yue-Qin (four-stringed plucked instrument with a full-moon-shaped sound
box) and Tou-Guan. However, no matter which way it adopted, only the
San-xian player would do the singing-and-talking. All other players were
only there for accompaniment. According to the incomplete statistics,
there were 130 programs in addition to a hundred "Jie Shi" (introductory
song). The introductory songs were usually performed first, followed by
the stories. It was sung in the official language in Shaoxing, except that
the clowns would occasionally use the dialects of Beijing, Suzhou and
Hangzhou. Besides Ping Diao which was the fundamental tune, there were the
"four major tunes", namely, the happy Fang Diao, the angry You Hu Lu, the
sad Tang Diao and the festal Luo Jin Qian, and other tunes like Suo Nan
Zhi, Ji Sheng Cao and Tan Huang Diao. Before liberation, most of its
artists and audience belonged to the upper class who did it for self
entertainment. So it soon began to decline as there was a lack of
professional performers and followers and it was too lofty to be popular.
Not reconciled to the dying of the art, artists like Shi Shifu, Qian Dake
and Hu Shaozu worked hard under the support of the provincial or the city
culture department after liberation. They compiled 5 volumes of
Shaoxing Pinghu Diao Data upon all the stories and music scores.
They opened some training classes and helped cultivate professional
performers like Wang Jiabao, Zhen Guanfu and Wang Yuying. However, their
efforts turned out to be vain as the singing team was disbanded and all
performers were transferred into other lines of business during the
Cultural Revolution. Today, the art completely died out.
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Buddhist
meeting |
Shaoxing Ci Diao
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Shaoxing
Ci Diao could also be called "Hua Diao" or "Hua Ci" among the folks. It
was a local folk art of the blind artists prevailing in Shaoxing. Judging
form the reversed order of characters "Hua Ci", it must have had close
relationship with "Ci Hua" of Yuan and Ming Dynasty. It was a kind of
singing-and-talking, but priority was given to the former. Except the
foreman, the singing team consisted of mainly female blind artists. It was
the same as the Shaoxing Pinghu Diao in its organization and its number of
instruments. The San-Xian player, nicknamed "Mr. Xian Wei", was always the
foreman and played the role of the elderly or the narrator in the
performance. There were three basic tunes-Suo Yi Pu, Ben Diao and Shi Zi
Diao, as well as some folk songs. It was said that there were altogether
18 traditional programs, but only 8 of them (totaling 36 acts) could be
staged after liberation because the others were lost. Now about 60 "Jie
Shi" (introductory stories) remained. It was usually performed on happy
occasions such as the wedding, the 30th day after a baby's birth, birthday
party and the move to a new house. Most of the artists lived on Ma Wu Qiao
Zhi Road (the present New Jian Nan Road) in the city with signs on the
door for people to find them. Once in the thirties, there were 50 to 60
artists, among whom the most famous were Wan Jingu, Jia Daxiang and Xie
Ruzhen. After liberation, as young blind men were all employed in other
lines and there were no trained successors, the art died out together with
the old artists.
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Religious ceremony at
Puji Temple on Mt. Putuo |
Shaoxing Tan
Huang
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It was a
kind of singing-and-talking popular around Shaoxing. Its initial name was
"Shaoxing Ying Ge Xi (parrot opera)" or "Yang Ge Xi" among the folks. It
developed from the original "Dui Zi Xi (pair opera)" consisting of only a
female character and a clown. The singing team was called "Ying Ge Ban
(parrot troupe)" and later renamed as "Shaoxing Tan Huang" in 1957. The
performers were also members of Shaoxing Folk Art Workers' Association.
Besides Shaoing, they used to perform in the northern plain as well as
Suzhou and Shanghai. There were usually two musicians in the back (one for
the strings and the other for the clappers), and the number of the actors
ranged from two, four to six. In the past, they often performed on "Dao
Tong Tai" (a strawed platform built on huge buckets) or just on ground.
But the Shaoxing Tan Huang Troupe set up after liberation gave
performances in Shaoxing Five Star Story-Telling Theater. The term
"seventy-two Ying Ge Xi" referred to the traditional programs such as
Da Cai Sang (Picking Mulberry Leaves Together), Grinding Beans For
Bean Curd, Da Chuang Lou, and Shuang Luo Fa (Shave the
both). They were mainly about life and affection of common people.
Focusing on only one detail or a specific plot, it mocked, teased and made
great fun. People liked its humorous way of reproducing life very much.
Besides its basic tune "Ying Ge Diao (parrot tune)", it had a subsidiary
tune called "Zou Ban" and some folk songs. In the winter of 1961, Shaoxing
held a "Ying Ge Xi" training class and the students were organized into
Shaoxing Tan Huang Troupe after graduation. In addition to the traditional
programs, the troupe also put on stage plays like Half Pair of Scissors
and Lei Feng. During the Cultural Revolution, the troupe
disbanded and all the artists transferred to other works. In 1978 after
the rebuild of the troupe, they once went to Shanghai to give performance.
However, the troupe did not last long and it disbanded again in 1981. At
present, there were no performers in the line except some amateur
singers.
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Taoist
Mass |
Luo Di Chang
Shu
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Alias
"Shengxian Wen Shu", it was very popular around Shengxian. It came into
being in mid nineteenth century when the western part of the region
suffered some disasters and the local countrymen and handicraftsmen were
forced to go around to sing door to door for a living. Then they did this
from the first lunar month to the Clear And Bright Festival every year.
They created a tune calld "Si Gong He Diao", relying mainly on "Xuan Juan
Diao"and mixing into it some folk songs like "Mu Niu Diao (oxherd's
tunes)" and "Lian Zi Xing (picking lotus seeds)". It was performed with
only one actor at first, later in pairs. After 1889, they moved from
countryside to the teahouses in the cities, and changed from the pair
performance to the multi-actor performance. It was greatly enriched with
the adoption of such stage properties as a table, two chairs, Xing-Mu
(striking wooden block), folding fans and some San-Tiao-Ban to make time.
In its beginning, it often staged short programs called "Cai Tou Hua
(auspicious words)", such as Ten Strange Things and Child Bride
Going Home. Later on, the number of medium-length or longer stories
increased. Some were adapted from Xuan Juan scripts and Story-Telling
programs, like Long Tu Juan (the rolled picture of dragons) and
Pearl Pagoda; some were introduced from "Ying Ge Ban" programs,
like Embroider the Pouch and Shuang Luo Fa (shave both);
some were made up upon the local stories and news, like Dog Comes to
Pay a Debt of Gratitude and Selling Mother-in-Law. Along with
the development of the art, it divided into the northern school and the
southern school around 1902. Since 1906, it began its impersonation
performance on the stage, and developed into a new local opera - "Xiao Ge
Ban (mini singing group) (or "Di Du Ban"), which was the predecessor of
the famous Yue Opera.
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Playing
Instruments |
Huzhou Qin
Shu
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It was a
kind of singing-and-talking popular around Huzhou. It got its name (abbr.
Qin Shu or Hu Qin Shu) because Er-Hu (urheen) was used as the main
accompanying intrument. It derived from "Xuan Juan" and "Tan Huang".
Judging from the generation tree of masters and disciples, there had
already been performances of Huzhou Qin Shu in later 19th century.
Performers usually sat while singing and the number of performers ranged
from one to three. If there was only one performer, he did all the singing
and musical accompaniment by himself. If two males, or two females, or one
male and one female sang together, the main vocal would play Er-hu while
the helper would play the clappers. When both performers did not know how
to play, a Hu-Qin player would be added. There were only two tunes of
early Qin Shu as being Ben Tan Diao and Xiao Xi Diao. Later, with the
development of the art, the number of tunes increased. It created Shao
Xiang Diao (Xing Lu Diao) and some other folk tunes while taking in music
from Shanghai Opera, Yue Opera and Ping Tan. During the Anti-Japanese War,
Qin Shu, especially the one of Deqing, began to thrive. At that time, a
couple - Yang Xiaolou and Yang Xiaotian - was the rage because of their
superior skills and was known as "double Yang Qin Shu". The traditional
programs included Si Xiang Yuan, Shuang Zhu Feng and The
Big Red Robe, etc.
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Yan Bangzhen's
specially made set for gongs and drums |
Pinghu Bo Zi Shu
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| It was a
kind of singing-and-talking popular around Pinghu. Its initial name was
"Shuo Yin Guo" as it always took comeuppances as its theme subject and
told people to be kind and honest. After liberation, it was renamed "Nong
Min Shu (peasants' tales)" because the audience were mainly peasants in
the rural areas. It got the present name due to the main instrument it
used - a cymbal. It usually needed one performer, or two at the most.
Singing and talking were both involved, and the lyrics were basically
seven charactered sentences. The performer would beat the cymbal with a
bamboo chopstick to make time for the singing-and-talking and to be the
short interlude between verses. With five modes of the ancient Chinese
music, the tunes were pure and simple. The colloquial chant got some
prolonged sounds at the end of each sentence. The program was composed of
the introductory part and the main story. Traditional introductory stories
included The Eight Immortals Crossing The Sea, while Generals In
Yang's Family, The Righteous Gangs, Wu Song and Pearl
Pagoda were the representatives of the 50 to 60 main stories
preserved. The new programs about modern times included the following:
Chang The Spring Festival Scrolls Three times, Two Elderly
Ladies, Armed Working Team In Enemy's Rear Area, Guerilla On
The Tracks and Battles In Heart Of The Enemy. Xu Apei, Chen
Jinbu and Guo Jinwen were the famous Bo Zi Shu artists of modern times.
But the art began to decline after the Cultural Revolution and now there
are only a few folk artists still singing in the rural areas. |
Wen
Zhou Gu Ci
|
| It
was a kind of singing-and-talking popular around Wenzhou. In the
ancient times, it was the art of the blind people, hence the initial
names "Gu Ci" and "Mang Ci". It was said to be handed down from the
street songs of Hengyang in Ming Dynasty. But according to musical
theories, its "fundamental tune" derived from the combination of
scholar's chanting and the local folk songs. It prevailed in 19th
century. At that time, Mang Ci could be heard every summer night and
the drum beats lasted until dawn. It fell into two categories: Da Ci
and Ping Ci. Da Ci was sung when people were worshipping God. Since
Goddess Chen Shisi was the most frequent song heard, Da Ci
was also called "Niang Niang (goddess) Ci" among the folks. When
giving performance, the artist would be dressed in long gown, beat
the drum in front him and the gongs beside him with his right hand
and percuss the clappers with his left hand. Besides Goddess Chen
Shisi (viz. Trip Southward), the traditional programs
were mainly the religious scriptures like Trip Westward,
Trip Northward and Trip Eastward. The regular
commercial performances were called Ping Ci. It could either be
indoors or in the open. The number of performers varied from one to
many. It was performed in Wenzhou dialect while priority was given
to singing rather than talking. The early "fundamental tune" was
similar to chanting "Qi Lv (an eight-line poem with seven characters
to a line and a strict pattern and rhyme scheme)", but it was
enriched day by day. Two schools appeared as being the tender south
and the wild north. In the 1950s when tunes of operas were
introduced into Gu Ci, it became even more varied in tunes and
percussions. There were more than a hundred traditional programs,
some of which were long enough to last several days. The content of
these programs were similar with the operas, except Shi Er
Hong (twelve red), a traditional program proper to only Wen Zhou
Gu Ci. The long piece Haiying and the short piece
Strategic Conquest Of Dragon Pond Bridge were two influencial
new programs about modern subject matters, and the latter won the
first prize in the national folk art joint performance. There have
been many masters especially after liberation, such as Guan Huashan,
Ren Zengdi, Ruan Shichi, Ding Lingsheng, Chen Zhixiong and Fang
Ke. |
Cangnan Yu Gu (Fishing Drum of Cangnan)
|
It
was called in southern Fujian dialect "Peng Gu Dong", and was
popular in Cangnan and Tongtou where the dialect prevailed.
According to the textual research findings, it evolved from the folk
songs of southern Fujian province. Pingyang County Annals had
it that at the turn of Ming and Qing dynasty, the southerners of
Fujian moved to Pingyang and Dongtou. Their three major immigrations
brought with them the folk songs. So the singing of "fishing drum"
adopted southern Fujian dialect instead of the local Wenzhou
dialect. The performers tied a ribbon around their right shoulders
and placed the drums beneath the left armpits. They did talking
occasionally, but sang most of the time. The lyrics were basically
sentences of seven characters and four such sentences made into a
set for tunes. Tunes varied on content, emotion and atmostphere. As
for music style, it was influenced by the local island fishing songs
with high-pitched tunes and patterned rhythms. The traditional
programs were much the same as Wenzhou Dao Qing and Gu Ci. After
liberation, the artists kept improving and producing programs for
performances and contests so the tunes were greatly enriched. Famous
artists included Zhang Jiatian and Chen Zhelian. But due to
localization and necessary support, there are only a few
professionals still pursuing the art.
Yiwu
Dao Qing
|
It was one branch of
Zhejiang Dao Qing. Performed in Yiwu dialect, it was very
popular around Yiwu, Dongyang and Pujinag. It was said to be
handed down from Southern Song Dynasty and prevail in Ming and
Qing Dynasty. The performers were mainly blind people. One man
was enough for the show. He would assist his singing with
occasional talking. When giving performance, he would beat
drum with the left hand and play the bamboo clappers with the
right hand to make time or interlude. Lyrics were made of
sentences of flexible length, some going up to more than 10
characters. There were only one basic tone, but the performer
could change it into different ones like Ping Diao, Bei Diao
(sad tune), Ku Daio (crying tune) with added content or
emotion. Rhythm could be varied from quick to slow, too. It
not only could tell stories, but also could express feelings.
Vehement sometimes, and sobbing at other times, the flow of
the language was vivid and touching. Especially when
integrated closely with drum and bamboo clappers, the melody
became delicate with reasonable setting of pauses and
transitions. It was so expressive and good at creating the
wanted atmosphere that the audience was usually very
impressed. The programs fell into three kinds: "Tan Tou (the
beginning)", "Zheng Ben (the body)" and "Chang Pian" (novel).
"Tan Tou" was much like the introductory stories of Tan Ci,
which was quite short and given as extra performance before
"Zheng Ben". "Zheng Ben" referred to the complete stories with
beginning and ending. It involved both singing and talking,
and could be either as short as one act or as long as three to
four acts, each act lasting for about two to four hours.
"Chang Pian" would have dozen acts. There were more than 100
traditional programs, most of which were about the historical
legends, the folk news or the anecdotes, such as The Flying
Dragon, Emperor Qianlong's Investigation Trip Around
River South, Wu Song and Contract. Modern
ones included "Chang Pian" like Rebuilding The 8th
Brigade, The Red Sisters and short plays like Yu
Xiaoyu, Famous Mountains In Our Homeland, On
Commemorating Wu Han, etc. Many programs won prizes in the
provincial folk art joint performance. Among the famous
artists were Ye Yingshan and Ye Yingsheng. Ye Yingmei used to
perform in the First National Folk Art Joint Performance. Her
singing was disced for publication later. So was Yingsheng's
singing.
Quzhou Tan
Huang
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"Qu Tan" as its
abbreviation, it was a kind of singing and talking
popular around Quzhou. It derived form Su Tan which
circulated to Quzhou in Jiaqing Year of Qing Dynasty. At
the turn of Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, its
coverage further expanded to the boundaries of Fujian,
Jiangxi and Anhui provinces. Most of Qu Tan performers
sat and sung. In the early years, the Jing Yue Xuan
society made up of youth from all lines were very
influential in the town of Quzhou. They could stage as
many as more than 30 programs. Not living on ticket
fares, they just perform for self-entertainment or
occasionally were invited to communal gathering for
celebration. So far in places like Hangbu, Houxi,
Shangyu and Lingtou around Quzhou, this sitting show
still was retained. Sometimes, one man sung and played
instruments all by himself; sometimes, one sang in the
male role and another sang in the female role; at other
times, three to seven people performed together, each
playing different roles and different instruments. They
were not painted, and in casual clothes, they sat around
a table and began their singing-and-talking. There were
lots of tunes as Yuan Ban, Chu fu, Jin Ban, Xian Suo,
Bei Diao, etc. The traditional programs included Pour
Water Before The Horse, The Crazy Monk Swept Away
Qin, Present Silver In The Mill, Selling
Straw Grain Bins and the introductory story of
Ten Scenic Spots Of West Lake.
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| (Writer: Jiang Zhong Qi, Translator: Zhang
Ying) | |
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