Chenbangwen

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Chenbangwen, Male, Tibetan, from Ganzi, Sichuan, is a fifth-batch national representative bearer of Duixie (Ⅲ-82). The tradition is documented in Ganzi, Sichuan. Within the regional tradition and school record of Duixie in Ganzi, Sichuan: Garzê step dance takes Garzê Town of Garzê County as its core area of transmission, radiating to the surrounding townships and administrative villages of the upper Yarlung Zangbo River; Garzê County lies on the plateau of northwestern Sichuan, where the terrain is open, the weather clear, sunshine plentiful and solar radiation strong, and hot springs are found everywhere. Known as the “city of the little sun”, the “capital of hot springs” and the “granary of northern Khampa”, these geographical and climatic conditions provide the space for the daily practice of step dance. As a distinctive school of dance in the northern part of Garzê, Sichuan, Garzê step dance originated in the ritual dance of the Tibetan Bon religion; it first branched off and evolved out of qiangmu, the masked deity dance performed in temples.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

He is a Tibetan man born in June 1946 in Ganzi County, Sichuan Province. In his youth he took an active part in the many forms of folk cultural activity in Ganzi County, learning from senior local Duixie artists, and became a representative figure of Duixie in the area. In performance his footwork is light, lively and buoyant, while the upper body is led by the arms in movements that are large and swift, bringing out the essential character of Ganzi Tiptap. He has appeared in many theatrical and artistic performances, winning the welcome of local Tibetan and Han audiences and high praise from fellow artists. Since retiring he has taught Ganzi Tiptap to local residents and schoolchildren at the local cultural service centre. Within the documented technical tradition of Duixie in Ganzi, Sichuan: This heritage item is transmitted mainly in Garzê County of the Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. Its core area is Garzê Town, radiating to a number of neighbouring townships and administrative villages. Garzê County, located on the upper reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River, is a famous cultural city of southwest China and has a continental plateau monsoon climate. The county has open terrain, clear and sunny weather, plentiful sunshine and strong solar radiation, and is known as the “city of the little sun”; hot springs are found throughout the county, so it is also called the “capital of hot springs”, and it further enjoys the fine reputation of the “granary of northern Khampa”. This heritage item is a dance performance art that integrates lyrics, qin, song, dance and the sound of stamping steps into one; it stresses not only the work of the feet but also the movements of the hands and the body. The dancers wave their light and colourful long sleeves as they step in richly varied dance patterns. At a slow tempo it gives a feeling of ease and relaxation; at a fast tempo it is coordinated and bright, uninhibited and rugged. Garzê step dance is not restricted in the number of performers — as few as one person or as many as several hundred or a thousand — and the venue is unrestricted: it can be taken up indoors, in the home, or in the fields. In performance the dancers wear full dress but do not carry a waist knife; a string of jingling bells must be hung at the feet and waist to enrich the colouring of the sound. Garzê step dance is divided into accompanied step dance, unaccompanied step dance, vocal step dance and silent step dance. It gradually changed from a dance form of monks into a folk adult step dance, and later children’s step dance and women’s step dance appeared. In recent years, through the inheritance and reference of amateur and professional dance workers, Garzê step dance has gradually enriched its expressive power, and it is one of the performing forms of Khampa dance. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "With and without accompaniment or sound": Four forms are distinguished, with and without instrumental accompaniment and with and without audible ringing, the same steps being adapted to the occasion. "Bells, but no waist sword": Dancers wear full dress but no waist sword, hanging a string of bells on foot and waist so that steps and turns add a bright ringing colour. "From monks to children and women": Rooted in Bon ritual and split off from monastery cham, it moved from monastic dance to adult village stomping and in recent decades to children's and women's versions. "Words, strings, song, dance and stamping": It unites verse, strings, song, dance and the sound of stamping, stressing hands and body as much as footwork, relaxed when slow and uninhibited when fast.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

He is a fifth-batch national representative bearer of Duixie (Ganzi Tiptap), a 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. Chenbangwen · National Representative Bearer Archive