Tudanqunpei

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Tudanqunpei, Male, Tibetan, from Gongga, Tibet, is a fourth-batch national representative bearer of Qiangmu (Ⅲ-22). The tradition is documented in Gongga, Tibet. Within the regional tradition and school record of Qiangmu in Gongga, Tibet: Locally it is said that performing the A Cham brings favourable weather, peace to the household and good fortune to the whole family, and can prevent and ward off all manner of natural calamities and human misfortune. The A Cham of Qude Temple shares the same origin as the chams of the monasteries of Lhasa and Shannan but diverges in its current form: it wears no masks but paints black facial patterns, is marked by dancing with the drum carried on the back, and during the year is performed only in two places, Gongga Qude Monastery and Lhasa. In role setting and repertoire it forms a complete system of its own, distinct from the Samye Monastery cham and the Drikung Gar Cham. The A Cham of Gongga Qude Monastery was created in 1464 by Zongba Gongga Langjie and has a history of more than five hundred years. Gongga Qude Monastery is located in Gongga County on the south bank of the middle reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River; it is one of the important Sakya school monasteries in the region of central Tibet, and the A Cham is performed by the monks of this monastery. According to the records of the monastery, the A Cham of Qude Temple was created in 1464 by Zongba Gongga Langjie and has more than five hundred years of history. Because it may not be performed at will and, still less, taught to lay people, the dance segments, drum beats and formations of the A Cham were long confined to oral transmission from teacher to pupil among designated monks within the monastery.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, Tibetan ethnicity, born in June 1969, a native of Gongga County, Tibet Autonomous Region. Beginning in 1986 he studied the performance of A Qiangmu under Awang Danda, a transmitter of A Qiangmu at Gongga Qude Monastery, and became thoroughly versed in the performance forms, artistic characteristics, related history and basic content of each dance section of the monastery's A Qiangmu. For more than twenty consecutive years he has organized the monastery's monks to perform A Qiangmu at the grand assembly of the Jiana Quba Festival on the fifteenth day of the first Tibetan month, acting not only as organizer but also in the multiple roles of transmitter, performer and cymbal player. Within the documented technical tradition of Qiangmu in Gongga, Tibet: "A Cham" means beating a drum; it is a religious dance performed by the monks of Gongga Qude Monastery in Gongga County, Shannan Prefecture. The A Cham is performed twice a year: the first time on the fifteenth day of the first Tibetan month at the monastery's "Quzhui Duiqing" (religious celebration festival), the second time on the thirtieth day of the second Tibetan month when the "Cuoqu Sibang" (commonly called the "Treasure Offering Festival") is held in Lhasa. The A Cham has 16 dancers, together with one cymbal player who strikes the cymbals in accompaniment. During the performance the dancers wear no masks, painting only black facial patterns on their faces. The A Cham has no complicated plot or roles; the dancers hold the large, heavy great drum upright on their backs and beat it while dancing, with an awe-inspiring and steady manner. The performance formations consist only of clockwise circling and single-file marching, with a two-person drum dance inserted between them. Like the chams of the other monasteries, the A Cham of Qude Temple may not be performed at will and, still less, taught to lay people; it can be performed only by designated persons at prescribed times and places. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The two annual occasions": It is danced twice a year, at the monastery's Chotri Duchen festival and at the Lhasa Tsokchur Sipung, known as the Offering Assembly. "Sixteen drummers and one cymbal player": Sixteen dancers, faces painted black and large drums strapped upright to their backs, perform to a single cymbal player's accompaniment. "Circle and column formations": Without plot or characters, the dance uses only clockwise circling and column formations, with a duet drum dance interspersed. "Chongba Gonggar Namgyal and five centuries": Created in 1464 by Chongba Gonggar Namgyal, the cham has for five centuries been confined to designated monks, times and places.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of Qiangmu (Qude Monastery A Qiangmu), a fourth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. He has more than thirty disciples.

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. Tudanqunpei · National Representative Bearer Archive