Lvcuiqin

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Lvcuiqin, Female, Han, from Fengtai, Beijing, is a fourth-batch national representative bearer of Jingxi Taiping Drum Dance (Ⅲ-1). The tradition is documented in Fengtai, Beijing. Within the regional tradition and school record of Jingxi Taiping Drum Dance in Fengtai, Beijing: Guai Village Taiping Drum circulates in Guai Village, Wangzuo Town, Fengtai District. It originates from the Qing imperial court; the drum heads are made of mulberry-bark paper, most drum patterns are in 2/4 metre, and the tune patterns serve both as the names of set routines and as musical tune patterns. It shares a common origin with the Mentougou and Shijingshan branches of Taiping Drum, but has since diverged. It appeared in the Beijing area as early as the Ming dynasty, and grew steadily more popular from the Qing dynasty onward, resting on a broad popular base. Early Jingxi Taiping Drum was a collective song-and-dance of Manchu women; men did not join until the early 20th century. Taiping Drum has circulated in Beijing since the Ming dynasty, and after the Manchus entered the capital it was tremendously popular both inside and outside the city. In the Qing dynasty the court also beat Taiping Drum on the eve of the Lunar New Year, seeking the sense of peace and stability, so in Beijing Taiping Drum is also called the "New Year Greeting Drum". The Taiping Drum of Guai Village in Wangzuo Town, Fengtai District, originates from the Qing imperial court and has a history of more than two hundred years.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Female, of Han ethnicity, born in September 1950 in Beijing. From the age of five she learned to play the Taiping drum from her mother Li Yunxiang, mastering the traditional technique and inheriting routines such as Stringing Flowers through the Fence (Chuanhua Liba), Four-corner Battle (Sifang Dou) and Great Round Drum (Da Yuan Gu). Her movements are expansive and her footwork light: her waist follows the drum, her eyes follow the drum, her shoulders rise and fall naturally with the beat, and the drum patterns change with the dance steps, fully displaying the floating, trembling and supple qualities of Jingxi Taiping drum rhythm. Building on tradition she developed movements such as the shaking drum, the new-style cock fight and the hopping round drum, making the performance routines richer, more vivid and attuned to the present age. Drawing on what she learned and understood, she produced notation diagrams and musical scores, enriching the written documentation of the tradition. Beyond performing, she is devoted to transmitting and promoting the tradition, actively teaching drumming skills to villagers. Within the documented technical tradition of Jingxi Taiping Drum Dance in Fengtai, Beijing: Taiping Drum is also called "fan drum", "single drum" or "goatskin drum", and is a distinctive folk festive dance of the Beijing area. Taiping Drum performances take place from the first day of the twelfth lunar month until the second day of the first lunar month of the following year, which is why the Beijing area also calls it the "New Year Greeting Drum". Beating the Taiping Drum symbolizes peace and ease throughout the land, and carries the special meaning of praying for blessings and welcoming the new year. According to elders of Guai Village, Taiping Drum was extremely popular there: every household had a drum and everyone could play one, and villagers were once invited to perform in Liangxiang, Tong County and other places in Hebei, which gave it a fairly high reputation. Its content is drawn mostly from the villagers' daily life, so the performances are steeped in the flavour of real life; the movements are simple and easy to learn, and the formations change richly and variously, making it a form of performance that local residents enjoy seeing and taking part in. The drums used as dance props in Guai Village Taiping Drum are made of mulberry-bark paper by a distinctive technique; they are sturdy and durable, and their sound is clear and pleasant. The music of Guai Village Taiping Drum consists of two parts, tune patterns and lyrics. The tune patterns are also called "drum points"; they are at once the names of set routines and musical tune patterns. Most Taiping Drum tune patterns are in 2/4 metre; during a performance the drummers beat one passage and sing one passage. The lyrics mainly include "Shengge" (Rope Song), "Ancient Names of the Twelve Months" and "Taiping Lyrics", of which at present only "Ancient Names of the Twelve Months" and "Shengge" can be collected. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "San Ren Liang Tou Mang": One of the two most distinctive routines among the thirteen traditional sets still preserved in Guaicun village. "Wo Wa Wa": One of the thirteen preserved routines of Guaicun village, marked by small, restrained movements and bright rhythm. "Chuan Hua Li Ba; Si Fang Dou; Da Yuan Gu": Traditional routines inherited by Lü Cuiqin, representative inheritor of Guaicun village, who also developed new movements such as the shaking drum and jumping round drum. "Twelve Months of Ancient Worthies; Sheng Ge": The sung lyrics of Guaicun village, performed between drum passages; the drum pattern doubles as both routine name and tune, and today only two of the original items can still be collected.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of Jingxi Taiping Drum Dance (Guai Village Taiping Drum), a fourth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project.

04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier

05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage

National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.

06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography

1. Lvcuiqin · National Representative Bearer Archive