Chen Suqin

01 · Lineage & Regional School

Chen Suqin, Female, Han, from Jincheng, Shanxi, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Shangdangbangzi (Ⅳ-21). The tradition is documented in Jincheng, Shanxi. Within the regional tradition and school record of Shangdangbangzi in Jincheng, Shanxi: From the Xianfeng reign of the Qing dynasty until the eve of the War of Resistance against Japan, Shangdang bangzi entered its heyday, with more than two hundred troupes and the formation of two markedly distinctive artistic schools, the zhoufu school and the lufu school, and the emergence of such famous masters as Zhao Qinghai, Lang Buxiang, Shen Huilu and many others. In the Daoguang reign it was called local native opera; when it went to the provincial capital of Taiyuan to perform in 1934 it was known as Shangdang gongdiao; in 1954 it was definitively named Shangdang bangzi. It was already flourishing in the middle and later years of the Qianlong reign of the Qing dynasty; in the Jiaqing and Daoguang reigns troupes multiplied, famous actors emerged in numbers, plays vied with one another in abundance and schools of style blossomed in all directions, and the genre entered a period of vigorous development. The stage setting of Shangdang bangzi observes the convention of she da chao (setting up the great court), and its facial-makeup patterns are highly distinctive in their own way.

02 · Mastery & Signature Works

The bearer record for Chen Suqin is anchored in the documented technical standards of Shangdangbangzi in Jincheng, Shanxi. Within the documented technical tradition of Shangdangbangzi in Jincheng, Shanxi: Shangdang bangzi is one of the four great bangzi genres of Shanxi Province and is popular in south-eastern Shanxi. It sings mainly bangzi tunes, while also performing Kunqu, pihuang, luoluo qiang and juan opera, popularly summed up as kun, bang, luo, juan and huang. Statistics show that Shangdang bangzi has more than seven hundred traditional plays, of which nearly six hundred are bangzi plays, more than ninety are pihuang plays, more than ten are Kunqu plays and several each are luoluo qiang plays and juan plays; representative repertoire includes San Guan Pai Yan (The Banquet at the Three Passes), Tian Bo Lou (The Heavenly Billow Tower), Yan Men Guan (Yanmen Pass), Chuang Youzhou (Breaking into Youzhou), Dong Jia Ling (Dongjialing Ridge), Qiao Yuan An (The Case of the Wondrous Marriage), Duo Qiu Kui (Seizing the Autumn Champion), Gan Quan Gong (The Ganquan Palace), Dong Men Hui (The Meeting at the East Gate) and Xu Gong An (The Case of Lord Xu), some of which are peculiar to Shangdang bangzi alone. Its vocal system combines the qupai (tune-pattern) type with the banqiang (set-metre) type, but the banqiang type predominates; its ban patterns include daban, zhong si-li, si-li, daban, daoban, sanban and gunqiang, of which si-li and daban are the most used and the most distinctive. In performance men and women sing in the same register and to the same pitch, the male voice being taken in falsetto. The principal accompanying instruments are the juqin, the erba and the huhu, known as the three principal instruments. The role types of Shangdang bangzi are chiefly the four of sheng, dan, jing and chou, and the basic performance convention of each role type is called the san ba (three grips); when it is applied the performer throws out the chest and lifts the head, moving in a steady and powerful way. Its performance style is bold in line and large in contour, going straight in and straight out, concise and lively; in the course of its later development it was gradually influenced by Beijing opera and underwent some change. The dan role also has a form of makeup called po mian (broken face), which carries over a legacy of Yuan zaju: with white powder a single horizontal stroke is drawn across the right eyelid of a character of bad conduct in the play, or a small orchid or chrysanthemum is painted on the character's right cheekbone. Shangdang bangzi contains a variety of vocal systems, from which the historical evolution and change of xiqu vocal systems can be examined. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "San Guan Pai Yan (The Banquet at the Three Passes)": Statistics show that Shangdang bangzi has more than seven hundred traditional plays, of which nearly six hundred are bangzi plays, more than ninety are pihuang plays, more than ten are Kunqu plays and several each are luoluo qiang plays and juan plays; representative repertoire includes San Guan Pai Yan (The Banquet at the Three Passes), Tian Bo Lou (The Heavenly Billow Tower), Yan Men Guan (Yanmen Pass), Chuang Youzhou (Breaking into Youzhou), Dong Jia Ling (Dongjialing Ridge), Qiao Yuan An (The Case of the Wondrous Marriage), Duo Qiu Kui (Seizing the Autumn Champion), Gan Quan Gong (The Ganquan Palace), Dong Men Hui (The Meeting at the East Gate) and Xu Gong An (The Case of Lord Xu), some of which are peculiar to Shangdang bangzi alone. "Tian Bo Lou (The Heavenly Billow Tower)": Statistics show that Shangdang bangzi has more than seven hundred traditional plays, of which nearly six hundred are bangzi plays, more than ninety are pihuang plays, more than ten are Kunqu plays and several each are luoluo qiang plays and juan plays; representative repertoire includes San Guan Pai Yan (The Banquet at the Three Passes), Tian Bo Lou (The Heavenly Billow Tower), Yan Men Guan (Yanmen Pass), Chuang Youzhou (Breaking into Youzhou), Dong Jia Ling (Dongjialing Ridge), Qiao Yuan An (The Case of the Wondrous Marriage), Duo Qiu Kui (Seizing the Autumn Champion), Gan Quan Gong (The Ganquan Palace), Dong Men Hui (The Meeting at the East Gate) and Xu Gong An (The Case of Lord Xu), some of which are peculiar to Shangdang bangzi alone. "Yan Men Guan (Yanmen Pass)": Statistics show that Shangdang bangzi has more than seven hundred traditional plays, of which nearly six hundred are bangzi plays, more than ninety are pihuang plays, more than ten are Kunqu plays and several each are luoluo qiang plays and juan plays; representative repertoire includes San Guan Pai Yan (The Banquet at the Three Passes), Tian Bo Lou (The Heavenly Billow Tower), Yan Men Guan (Yanmen Pass), Chuang Youzhou (Breaking into Youzhou), Dong Jia Ling (Dongjialing Ridge), Qiao Yuan An (The Case of the Wondrous Marriage), Duo Qiu Kui (Seizing the Autumn Champion), Gan Quan Gong (The Ganquan Palace), Dong Men Hui (The Meeting at the East Gate) and Xu Gong An (The Case of Lord Xu), some of which are peculiar to Shangdang bangzi alone. "Chuang Youzhou (Breaking into Youzhou)": Statistics show that Shangdang bangzi has more than seven hundred traditional plays, of which nearly six hundred are bangzi plays, more than ninety are pihuang plays, more than ten are Kunqu plays and several each are luoluo qiang plays and juan plays; representative repertoire includes San Guan Pai Yan (The Banquet at the Three Passes), Tian Bo Lou (The Heavenly Billow Tower), Yan Men Guan (Yanmen Pass), Chuang Youzhou (Breaking into Youzhou), Dong Jia Ling (Dongjialing Ridge), Qiao Yuan An (The Case of the Wondrous Marriage), Duo Qiu Kui (Seizing the Autumn Champion), Gan Quan Gong (The Ganquan Palace), Dong Men Hui (The Meeting at the East Gate) and Xu Gong An (The Case of Lord Xu), some of which are peculiar to Shangdang bangzi alone.

03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status

In 2025, Chen Suqin was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Shangdangbangzi, with Jincheng, Shanxi as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Shangdangbangzi in Jincheng, Shanxi: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2006 (batch 1), with Jincheng, Shanxi as its declared area, and Jincheng Culture He Tourism Development Research 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

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. Chensuqin (Jincheng, Shanxi) · China ICH Official Project Archive
2. Chensuqin · China ICH Official Archive