Suo Deyuan
01 · Lineage & Regional School
At the age of eleven he began learning to sing Qijiayanxi (Qi Family's Journey to the West) from his grandfather Suo Zhankui, and he later continued his study of the songs with his father. Within the regional tradition and school record of Qijiayanxi in Huzhutuzuzizhi, Qinghai: Qijiayanxi is current mainly in the Tu areas of settlement of the Huzhu Tu autonomous county and the Datong Hui-and-Tu autonomous county of Qinghai and the Tianzhu Tibetan autonomous county of Gansu; among them the Huzhu Tu autonomous county was originally the territory of the Qi tusi and is where it is most widely sung, radiating to the surrounding Tu villages. It takes its material from the story of the Qi tusi obeying the dispatch of the Ming court and repeatedly leading troops on campaign; it praises the Tu officers and men headed by the Qi tusi, who were loyal to the sovereign and loved their country and, to safeguard the unity and peace of the state, risked death and campaigned east and west, and were afterwards persecuted to death by treacherous ministers—a solemn and stirring story. Which tusi the protagonist Qi Yanxi specifically refers to is still undetermined, but from clues found in the Xining Prefectural Gazetteer and the New General Gazetteer of Gansu it can be judged that the events told in Qijiayanxi took place in the Ming dynasty; this long narrative poem was probably composed towards the end of the Ming and has been handed down to the present by folk artists in the form of narration or singing.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
Male, Tu ethnic group, born in May 1972, a native of Huzhu Tu Autonomous County, Qinghai Province. A singer and transmitter of Qijiayanxi. Influenced by him, his two daughters, Suo Lanying and Suo Lancuo, also learned to sing Qijiayanxi from him, and his disciple Suo Dejin is likewise a singer of wide renown. Within the documented technical tradition of Qijiayanxi in Huzhutuzuzizhi, Qinghai: Qijiayanxi is a relatively representative Tu heroic narrative poem, current mainly in the Huzhu Tu autonomous county of Qinghai (originally the territory of the Qi tusi), the Datong Hui-and-Tu autonomous county and the Tu areas of settlement in the Tianzhu Tibetan autonomous county of Gansu. Qijiayanxi is relatively widely sung in the Huzhu Tu autonomous county. This heroic narrative poem has intricate and moving episodes; it chiefly praises the noble sentiment of the Qi tusi's loyal defence of the state and his superb strategy and tactics, and lashes the ugly conduct of the scheming Commander Chai, who falsely transmitted an imperial edict, persecuted the loyal and good, took the credit for others' deeds and finally secretly assassinated Qi Yanxi. Each line of the Qijiayanxi poem has seven or nine characters, four lines form one stanza, and one complete episode forms one canto. Its main story line is clear, its episodes intricate and highly interesting and full of romance. It has fixed tunes and melodies, with neat metre and a deep, solemn and stirring tune, bearing the typical features of folk sung-narrative art. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "The Qi Tusi's Campaigns East and West": The story of the Qi tusi obeying the dispatch of the Ming court, leading troops on campaign, and being loyal to the sovereign and loving his country. "Commander Chai Falsely Transmits an Imperial Edict and Persecutes the Loyal": A lashing of the ugly conduct of Commander Chai in taking the credit for others' deeds and assassinating Qi Yanxi. "The Tunes and Canto System of Qijiayanxi": The system of seven- or nine-character lines, four lines to a stanza and one episode to a canto, set to fixed tunes. "Village Gatherings and Father-to-Son, Master-to-Apprentice Singing": The manner in which Qijiayanxi is sung at Tu village gatherings and between father and son and master and apprentice.
The Qi Tusi's Campaigns East and West
The story of the Qi tusi obeying the dispatch of the Ming court, leading troops on campaign, and being loyal to the sovereign and loving his country.
Commander Chai Falsely Transmits an Imperial Edict and Persecutes the Loyal
A lashing of the ugly conduct of Commander Chai in taking the credit for others' deeds and assassinating Qi Yanxi.
The Tunes and Canto System of Qijiayanxi
The system of seven- or nine-character lines, four lines to a stanza and one episode to a canto, set to fixed tunes.
Village Gatherings and Father-to-Son, Master-to-Apprentice Singing
The manner in which Qijiayanxi is sung at Tu village gatherings and between father and son and master and apprentice.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
A national representative bearer of Qijiayanxi, a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. In 2013 he received a special contribution award at a local event bringing intangible cultural heritage into schools. In the same year he took part in the selection contest for intangible cultural heritage bearers of Huzhu Tu Autonomous County and was awarded the title of Outstanding Folk Singer.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
It takes its material from the story of the Qi tusi obeying the dispatch of the Ming court and repeatedly leading troops on campaign; it praises the Tu officers and men headed by the Qi tusi, who were loyal to the sovereign and loved their country and, to safeguard the unity and peace of the state, risked death and campaigned east and west, and were afterwards persecuted to death by treacherous ministers—a solemn and stirring story. Which tusi the protagonist Qi Yanxi specifically refers to is still undetermined, but from clues found in the Xining Prefectural Gazetteer and the New General Gazetteer of Gansu it can be judged that the events told in Qijiayanxi took place in the Ming dynasty; this long narrative poem was probably composed towards the end of the Ming and has been handed down to the present by folk artists in the form of narration or singing.
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.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suo Deyuan | Huzhutuzuzizhi, Qinghai | 05-2031 | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。