Tan Haize
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Tan Haize, Male, Han, from Ansai, Shaanxi, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Ansaiyaogu (Ⅲ-13). The tradition is documented in Ansai, Shaanxi. Within the regional tradition and school record of Ansaiyaogu in Ansai, Shaanxi: The Ansai waist drum is a component part of the Yellow River culture, embodying the dashing, tiger-like strength and bull-like stubborn vigour of the men of northern Shaanxi, and it is strongly marked by national style and local character. The Ansai waist drum is transmitted among the villages of the valleys and loess tablelands around Ansai District of Yan'an City. Waist drum teams are commonly established in the townships of Zhenwu Cave, ZhuanYao Wan, Gaoqiao, Zhao'an and others; in most villages the teams are organized by elders of the community, and at New Year time the drummers are gathered together, from a few dozen people to over a hundred, with the leader unifying their starting and stopping and their changes of formation. The Ansai waist drum is fast in release and fast in closure, astonishingly quick in change, natural and unforced, joyous and flowing, combining hardness and softness, free in bending and stretching. In the course of its development and evolution it fused dance, martial arts, physical exercise, percussion, wind music and folk song into one, making itself richer in content and form and more ornamental and entertaining. Ansi lies in the heart of the loess plateau of northern Shaanxi and was in ancient times a garrison outpost on the frontier. The waist drum was at first associated with the military activities of garrison soldiers in raising the alarm and encouraging the fighters, and only later was it absorbed into folk occasions such as the Spring Festival yangge processions and god-welcoming rites. After the Ming and Qing dynasties the waist drum became the most rallying programme in the shehuo of the New Year in northern Shaanxi: the drummer carries the waist drum slung across the body, holds a beater in each hand, and beats and dances at the same time, so that the sound of the drum interweaves with that of the suona, gongs and cymbals into a single whole.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Tan Haize is anchored in the documented technical standards of Ansaiyaogu in Ansai, Shaanxi. Within the documented technical tradition of Ansaiyaogu in Ansai, Shaanxi: The Ansai waist drum has a long history, but the specific period in which it arose and took shape can no longer be ascertained. To raise the alarm with the drum, to encourage the fighters with the drum, to signal urgency with the drum, to make music with the drum — these are all functions of the Ansai waist drum. The Ansai waist drum is divided into the literary drum and the martial drum: the literary drum is chiefly twist-based, stressing the twist and playing the drum lightly, while the martial drum is chiefly beat-based, stressing the beating and the twist lightly. The body of the waist drum is wooden, with cowhide stretched over both faces, and is tied horizontally to the waist with a red silk band; each hand holds a drumstick for striking it. According to the occasion of performance the Ansai waist drum is divided into the ground drum and the marching drum: the ground drum is performed in formation in squares and courtyards, and stresses the interweaving of formations and collective tableaux, while the marching drum is beaten as the procession moves, and is used mostly for welcoming deities, paying New Year greetings and festival parades. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Civil drumming and martial drumming": The civil style stresses twisting with light striking, the martial style heavy striking with little twisting; both alternate within one troupe. "Alarm, encouragement, summons and joy": The drum once served to warn, encourage, summon and entertain; its sound carried far across the loess gullies as a village signal. "Ground drumming and marching drumming": Ground drumming is staged in squares and courtyards with complex formations; marching drumming accompanies processions for festivals and New Year visits. "The waist drum and its harness": The wooden drum is skinned with ox hide on both faces and slung at the waist with a red silk band, struck by two sticks.
Civil drumming and martial drumming
The civil style stresses twisting with light striking, the martial style heavy striking with little twisting; both alternate within one troupe.
Alarm, encouragement, summons and joy
The drum once served to warn, encourage, summon and entertain; its sound carried far across the loess gullies as a village signal.
Ground drumming and marching drumming
Ground drumming is staged in squares and courtyards with complex formations; marching drumming accompanies processions for festivals and New Year visits.
The waist drum and its harness
The wooden drum is skinned with ox hide on both faces and slung at the waist with a red silk band, struck by two sticks.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Tan Haize was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Ansaiyaogu, with Ansai, Shaanxi as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Ansaiyaogu in Ansai, Shaanxi: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2006 (batch 1), with Ansai, Shaanxi as its declared area, and Yanan Ansai Qu Culture Wen Wu Hall (Yanan Ansai Qu Intangible Cultural Heritage Safeguarding Center) as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
The Ansai waist drum is fast in release and fast in closure, astonishingly quick in change, natural and unforced, joyous and flowing, combining hardness and softness, free in bending and stretching. In the course of its development and evolution it fused dance, martial arts, physical exercise, percussion, wind music and folk song into one, making itself richer in content and form and more ornamental and entertaining. Ansi lies in the heart of the loess plateau of northern Shaanxi and was in ancient times a garrison outpost on the frontier. The waist drum was at first associated with the military activities of garrison soldiers in raising the alarm and encouraging the fighters, and only later was it absorbed into folk occasions such as the Spring Festival yangge processions and god-welcoming rites. After the Ming and Qing dynasties the waist drum became the most rallying programme in the shehuo of the New Year in northern Shaanxi: the drummer carries the waist drum slung across the body, holds a beater in each hand, and beats and dances at the same time, so that the sound of the drum interweaves with that of the suona, gongs and cymbals into a single whole.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cao Huairong | Ansai, Shaanxi | 02-0360 | Same declared area |
| Liu Yanhe | Ansai, Shaanxi | 05-2220 | Same declared area |
| Tan Haize | Ansai, Shaanxi | — | 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。