Su Anfu
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Su Anfu, Male, Han, from Jishan, Shanxi, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Drum Dance (Ⅲ-42). The tradition is documented in Jishan, Shanxi. Within the regional tradition and school record of Drum Dance in Jishan, Shanxi: The flower-drum tunes interspersed among the drum patterns are also strongly local in character. All come from folk minor tunes in circulation, and carry a touch of northern Shaanxi folk songs and of "Meihu opera"; the melodies are lyrical and beautiful, full of lingering meaning. The origins of the Jishan High-Platform Flower Drum are tied to the shehuo and gong-and-drum traditions of southern Shanxi. Jishan was anciently called Gaoliang and lies on the north bank of the lower Fen River, with densely settled villages inside its borders; at New Year, when shehuo was being held, flower-drum troupes were organized mostly on a village basis, and those of Wubi, Tongshang, Dongpu, Xiwei, Shizhuang and other villages were the most famous. Early flower drums were played while walking on level ground. Later, in order to attract attention amid the watching crowds, performers stacked several square tables layer upon layer to form a platform, and dancers climbed up to dance on it; hence the name "high-platform flower drum", and difficult movements such as inverted drumming on the high platform and figure-eight drumming on the chest developed along with it. The platform is built with the square table as its unit: the four legs of several tables are stacked one on another into a single column, and planks are then laid across the top of the column to form the platform, while the size and height of the platform are determined by the site and the difficulty of the piece. When climbing onto the platform, the dancers first complete the moving flower-beating and the bench duel on the lower level, then move up level by level to the top to perform inverted drumming on the high platform and waist-entangled whipping strokes; as the height rises the drumbeats tighten, while the amplitude of the movements actually grows larger. The flower-drum tunes form a current of their own within this performance: the melodies are drawn mostly from local folk minor tunes, carrying a touch of the flavour of northern Shaanxi folk songs and the vocal style of Meihu opera, lyrical and extended, forming a contrast of tension and relaxation with the tumbling drumbeats on the platform. Besides sacrificial rites and New Year shehuo, it is also performed for such occasions as trampling the courtyard, rear-yard revels, celebrating a baby's first month and seeing off new recruits, taking on the function of praying for blessings and offering congratulations. In the past, during the New Year in Jishan County every village had flower-drum performances and performers with exceptional skills appeared one after another; in recent decades, as young and middle-aged people went out to work, complete high-platform troupes remain active only in a few villages.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Su Anfu is anchored in the documented technical standards of Drum Dance in Jishan, Shanxi. Within the documented technical tradition of Drum Dance in Jishan, Shanxi: The Jishan High-Platform Flower Drum is a traditional dance widely transmitted in Jishan County, and is best known in places such as Wubi, Tongshang, Dongpu, Xiwei and Shizhuang. The distinguishing feature of the Jishan High-Platform Flower Drum is that the dancer climbs onto a high platform built from several square tables to perform the flower-drum dance; the movements are technically demanding and highly visual. Its routines include "zouchang huada" (moving flower-beating), "bandeng duida" (bench duel), "gaotai huada" (high-platform flower-beating), "gaotai daoda" (high-platform inverted drumming), "xiontou gu bazida" (figure-eight drumming on the chest) and "chan yao shuida" (waist-entangled whipping strokes), among others. Besides performing in sacrificial rites and New Year shehuo, the Jishan flower drum is also performed at occasions such as trampling the courtyard, rear-yard revels, celebrating a baby's first month and seeing off new recruits, in order to pray for blessings and offer congratulations. In the past, during the New Year in Jishan County every village had flower-drum performances, and performers with exceptional skills appeared one after another. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Walking patterns and bench duels": The ground-level sections that precede the raised-platform work, part of a sequence running from easy to difficult. "Inverted work on the platform": The form's distinction is dancing on a platform raised from stacked tables, the inverted strokes and waist-swung beats being the hardest. "Occasions of performance": Besides sacrifices and the spring festival, it is performed at house visits, after-stage revels, first-month celebrations and farewells to new soldiers. "Tunes with a Meihu flavour": The songs inserted into the drumming come from folk airs and carry a hint of northern Shaanxi song and of Meihu opera, lyrical and lingering.
Walking patterns and bench duels
The ground-level sections that precede the raised-platform work, part of a sequence running from easy to difficult.
Inverted work on the platform
The form's distinction is dancing on a platform raised from stacked tables, the inverted strokes and waist-swung beats being the hardest.
Occasions of performance
Besides sacrifices and the spring festival, it is performed at house visits, after-stage revels, first-month celebrations and farewells to new soldiers.
Tunes with a Meihu flavour
The songs inserted into the drumming come from folk airs and carry a hint of northern Shaanxi song and of Meihu opera, lyrical and lingering.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Su Anfu was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Drum Dance, with Jishan, Shanxi as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Drum Dance in Jishan, Shanxi: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2011 (batch 3), with Jishan, Shanxi as its declared area, and Jishan County Anfu Gaotaihuaguyanyi 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 origins of the Jishan High-Platform Flower Drum are tied to the shehuo and gong-and-drum traditions of southern Shanxi. Jishan was anciently called Gaoliang and lies on the north bank of the lower Fen River, with densely settled villages inside its borders; at New Year, when shehuo was being held, flower-drum troupes were organized mostly on a village basis, and those of Wubi, Tongshang, Dongpu, Xiwei, Shizhuang and other villages were the most famous. Early flower drums were played while walking on level ground. Later, in order to attract attention amid the watching crowds, performers stacked several square tables layer upon layer to form a platform, and dancers climbed up to dance on it; hence the name "high-platform flower drum", and difficult movements such as inverted drumming on the high platform and figure-eight drumming on the chest developed along with it. The platform is built with the square table as its unit: the four legs of several tables are stacked one on another into a single column, and planks are then laid across the top of the column to form the platform, while the size and height of the platform are determined by the site and the difficulty of the piece. When climbing onto the platform, the dancers first complete the moving flower-beating and the bench duel on the lower level, then move up level by level to the top to perform inverted drumming on the high platform and waist-entangled whipping strokes; as the height rises the drumbeats tighten, while the amplitude of the movements actually grows larger. The flower-drum tunes form a current of their own within this performance: the melodies are drawn mostly from local folk minor tunes, carrying a touch of the flavour of northern Shaanxi folk songs and the vocal style of Meihu opera, lyrical and extended, forming a contrast of tension and relaxation with the tumbling drumbeats on the platform. Besides sacrificial rites and New Year shehuo, it is also performed for such occasions as trampling the courtyard, rear-yard revels, celebrating a baby's first month and seeing off new recruits, taking on the function of praying for blessings and offering congratulations. In the past, during the New Year in Jishan County every village had flower-drum performances and performers with exceptional skills appeared one after another; in recent decades, as young and middle-aged people went out to work, complete high-platform troupes remain active only in a few villages.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mairemuhan Adili | Tashenkuergantajikezizhi, Xinjiang | 02-0402 | Other regional school |
| Li Chengyuan | Hengshan, Shaanxi | 03-0925 | Other regional school |
| Yang Menyuan | Wuwei, Gansu | 03-0926 | Other regional school |
| Daisanhai | Wushan, Gansu | 03-0927 | Other regional school |
| Gao Ruchang | Changping, Beijing | 04-1570 | Other regional school |
| Wang Qiren | Wanrong, Shanxi | 04-1571 | Other regional school |
| Qi Xuede | Qinshui, Shanxi | 05-2243 | Other regional school |
| Zhang Hongnian | Jilin, Jilin | 05-2244 | Other regional school |
| Chen Defu | Wenling, Zhejiang | 05-2245 | Other regional school |
| Zhang Lanqing | Guangrao, Shandong | 05-2246 | Other regional school |
| Zhang Jifu | Shanghe, Shandong | 05-2247 | Other regional school |
| Su Anfu | Jishan, Shanxi | — | This page |
| Wang Chengde | Huludao, Liaoning | — | Other regional school |
| Liu Xueguang | Yuxishieshanyizuzizhi, Yunnan | — | Other regional school |
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。