Liu Caiju

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Liu Caiju, Female, Han, from Yaoan, Yunnan, is a fifth-batch national representative bearer of Yaoanbaziqiang (Ⅱ-96). The tradition is documented in Yaoan, Yunnan. Within the regional tradition and school record of Yaoanbaziqiang in Yaoan, Yunnan: Yao'an baziqiang is circulated among the Han-dominated villages of Yao'an County in the north-west of Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, and is usually sung in antiphonal duets by Han young men and women during the spring ploughing and sowing season and when the rice seedlings turn green. By legend it was brought in from the central plains after Zhu Yuanzhang pacified Yunnan during the Hongwu reign of the Ming, and in its development it was continually fused with local folk ditties. It is divided into upper baziqiang and lower baziqiang: the upper baziqiang absorbs the tonal system of the mountain Yi love-song ditties and is popularly called the “small sickness style”, while the lower baziqiang has a high, ringing voice and a broad range. Yao'an baziqiang has a remote history. By legend it was brought in from the central plains after Zhu Yuanzhang pacified Yunnan during the Hongwu reign of the Ming, and in the course of its development it was continually fused with local folk ditties, gradually reaching a settled form.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Female, Han, born in October 1970 in Yao'an County, Yunnan Province. From childhood she was influenced by the huadeng atmosphere of her village, known as a nest of huadeng, and from the age of five she learned to sing Bazi tunes with her grandmother and mother; by her early teens she could sing them on her own. After graduating from junior middle school she farmed at home while learning Bazi tunes from Wang Caifang and other elderly artists of the village, and she came to command the singing technique, with a sweet, bright timbre, a broad range and a soft, clear, ringing vocal style. She has considerable influence among the people. Over the years her travels have taken her to every village in the county, with more than one hundred touring performances, and she enjoys a high reputation among the local people. Within the documented technical tradition of Yaoanbaziqiang in Yaoan, Yunnan: Yao'an baziqiang is a distinctive form of folk song found in the north-west of Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province. It is circulated mainly among the Han-dominated villages of Yao'an County and is usually sung in antiphonal duets by Han young men and women during the spring ploughing and sowing season and when the rice seedlings turn green. It is divided into upper baziqiang and lower baziqiang. The upper baziqiang absorbs the tonal system of the love-song ditties of the mountain Yi people; sung, the voice is round and soft and the tonal flow is low and elegant, and it is popularly known as the “small sickness style”. The lower baziqiang has a high, ringing voice, with a compass ranging from d1 to a2, wide leaps between notes and a broad range. The texts of Yao'an baziqiang are divided into main words and secondary words. The two differ greatly in content, yet in the whole vocal line they are inseparable from the melody and set each other off. The secondary words are also called “duoban” or “duoyezi”; in effect they are tongue-twisters within the singing, borrowed from the “duoban” of Peking opera and Dian opera. When “counting” is joined to “singing” they are delivered in one unbroken flow with no pause at all, which requires a singer with a high range, clear diction and good articulation. In the singing of “duoban” the villages and place names of the Yao'an bazi are commonly counted in, running on continuously and full of interest, fully displaying the singer's verbal skill. Yao'an baziqiang is mostly sung in the open air and in the fields, accompanied by flute, erhu and percussion instruments; its representative tunes include Shi Er Shu, Shi Er Yue Cai Hua, Cai Diao, Shu Yao Zhou and Shu Di Ming. Antiphonal duets of male and female baziqiang generally take up one whole morning or afternoon, and some continue for several days and nights until one side concedes defeat. Yao'an baziqiang has long been handed down unbroken among the people. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Shi Er Shu": One of the representative tunes of Yao'an baziqiang. "Shi Er Yue Cai Hua": One of the representative tunes of Yao'an baziqiang. "Cai Diao": One of the representative tunes of Yao'an baziqiang. "Shu Yao Zhou": One of the representative tunes of Yao'an baziqiang, belonging to the “duoban” type that counts place names.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of Yao'an Bazi Tunes, a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. She has taken part many times in provincial, prefectural and county artistic exhibitions and performances and has repeatedly won awards.

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. Liu Caiju · National Representative Bearer Archive