Jiehuiqian

01 · Lineage & Regional School

He is the fourth-generation transmitter of the Southern Hebei Siguxian. Within the regional tradition and school record of Siguxian in Julu, Hebei: Southern Hebei sixian centres on the counties of Julu, Guantao, Wei and Feixiang and reaches as far as Beijing, Tianjin, Shandong and Henan; the county troupes mostly perform at rural temple fairs and festivals and are transmitted through family troupes and master-disciple teaching, among which the Julu Longgang sixian art troupe is a well-known one. It first developed out of folk flower-drum opera, came from Shandong to Hebei in the early nineteenth century, and on the basis of folk ditties absorbed the nourishment of such genres as luantan, Peking opera and Hebei bangzi, gradually evolving into its present scale.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

Male, Han ethnicity, born in April 1962 in Julu County, Hebei Province. He began learning Siguxian in 1978, taking the veteran artist of the Siguxian troupe Xie Huangfu as his master. He is currently head of the Julu Longgang Siguxian Art Troupe, and leads the company in more than three hundred performances each year. A performer of consummate skill, he sings and speaks with clarity and carries himself with dignity on stage, possessing a distinctive personal style. He is particularly skilled in the hualian (painted-face) and wusheng (martial male) roles. His representative works include Beheading the Prince of Zhao, Hong Feng Kou, Luo Tong Sweeps the North and Three Promotions. Within the documented technical tradition of Siguxian in Julu, Hebei: Southern Hebei sixian, also called “four strings”, is one of the local operatic genres of Hebei; its chief accompanying instrument, the big xian also called the “sihu”, has four silk strings, from which the genre takes its name. Southern Hebei sixian circulates in the counties of Julu, Guantao, Wei and Feixiang and reaches as far as Beijing, Tianjin, Shandong and Henan, with a history of more than two hundred years. Its roles of sheng, dan, jing and chou are complete; early on it mostly played small domestic plays of folk life, and after gradual development it also staged traditional historical plays and serial grand plays. Its singing is long and unhurried, gentle and flowing, with male and female voices distinguished. The characters' language is restrained and humorous, easy to understand, much loved by audiences. Its repertory is numerous, among which Liu Jinding Descends to Southern Tang, Empress He Curses the Court, Entering the Palace Twice and Upstairs to Kill Xiren are representative works. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Liu Jinding Descends to Southern Tang": A representative work among the numerous plays of southern Hebei sixian. "Empress He Curses the Court": A representative work among the numerous plays of southern Hebei sixian. "Entering the Palace Twice": A representative work among the numerous plays of southern Hebei sixian. "Upstairs to Kill Xiren": A representative work among the numerous plays of southern Hebei sixian.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

National representative bearer of Siguxian (Southern Hebei Siguxian), a fifth-batch national intangible cultural heritage project. Over the past few years he has trained more than thirty students, some of whom have become principal actors of the troupe.

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. Jiehuiqian · National Representative Bearer Archive