Li Yongjun
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Li Yongjun, Male, Han, from Xining, Qinghai, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Qinghai Pingxian (Ⅴ-92). The tradition is documented in Xining, Qinghai. Within the regional tradition and school record of Qinghai Pingxian in Xining, Qinghai: Qinghai Pingxian sings its stories in the local dialect; it is sung only, not spoken. Most of these works draw on historical stories, folk legends, Tang poems and Song ci, Yuan and Ming zaju, Ming and Qing chuanqi, and classic works of classical fiction, such as The White Ape Steals the Peaches, which derives from Sun Tzu's Art of War, Confucius Pays Respects to His Teacher, which derives from the Dunhuang bianwen, The Secret Construction of the Royal Palace, which draws on the Story of the Tang, and Flooding Jinshan Hill, which draws from The White Snake, and so on.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Li Yongjun is anchored in the documented technical standards of Qinghai Pingxian in Xining, Qinghai. Within the documented technical tradition of Qinghai Pingxian in Xining, Qinghai: Qinghai Pingxian, also called 'Xining fuzi', is widely transmitted in the Haidong area centred on Xining, the capital of Qinghai Province, and has a history of more than 200 years to the present. Its performing style is intimate and unadorned. Many of its tunes, when sung, carry a 'la qiao zi', that is, the 'bang qiang' chorus singing commonly so called, so that the audience can join naturally in the performance through the bang qiang, producing a special effect in the hall. Qinghai Pingxian is commonly accompanied by a small folk ensemble, with instruments including the sanxian, yangqin, banhu, yueqin, flute, erhu and so forth. The melody played is rich and highly varied, showing the course by which classical music has changed and transformed in the Qinghai region. Qinghai Pingxian has a large number of vocal styles and tunes and belongs to the linked chain of tune patterns; it has traditionally been known as 'eighteen miscellaneous vocal styles and twenty-four tunes'. It is formed on the basis of the changing tunes of the southern 'fuzi', absorbing tune patterns from northern and southern sanqu, from xiaoqu ancient and modern, and from other genres of quyi. The fuzi-type tunes are the principal tunes marking the character of the genre. Besides these, Qinghai Pingxian also has several other large classes of tunes, such as bei gong (back work), za qiang (miscellaneous vocal styles), xiao dian (small items) and xia bei gong (lower back work); it may indeed be called a musical treasury with rich reserves. The traditional repertoire of Qinghai Pingxian is varied and colourful. More than 200 items alone have been collected and recorded in various localities, their contents covering history, politics, culture, social customs, ethics and morality and many other fields. The texts of these tunes are neatly matched in couplet, strict in prosody and highly poetic in character; some items even sing famous lines of, or whole, classical poems, ci and fu directly. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Eighteen mixed tunes and twenty-four airs": Pingxian's arias form a linked-tune system popularly summed up as "eighteen mixed tunes and twenty-four airs", built on the southern fuzi strain. "The five tune families": The fuzi family defines the genre's character; beside it stand the beigong, zachang, xiaodian and xiabeigong families. "The laqiaozi refrain": Many airs carry the laqiaozi refrain, in which the audience joins in and is drawn naturally into the performance. "The pingxian ensemble": The genre is accompanied by a small ensemble of sanxian, yangqin, banhu, yueqin, flute and erhu, tracing the drift of classical music into Qinghai.
Eighteen mixed tunes and twenty-four airs
Pingxian's arias form a linked-tune system popularly summed up as "eighteen mixed tunes and twenty-four airs", built on the southern fuzi strain.
The five tune families
The fuzi family defines the genre's character; beside it stand the beigong, zachang, xiaodian and xiabeigong families.
The laqiaozi refrain
Many airs carry the laqiaozi refrain, in which the audience joins in and is drawn naturally into the performance.
The pingxian ensemble
The genre is accompanied by a small ensemble of sanxian, yangqin, banhu, yueqin, flute and erhu, tracing the drift of classical music into Qinghai.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Li Yongjun was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Qinghai Pingxian, with Xining, Qinghai as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Qinghai Pingxian in Xining, Qinghai: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2008 (batch 2), with Xining, Qinghai as its declared area, and Xining Cultural 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
Most of these works draw on historical stories, folk legends, Tang poems and Song ci, Yuan and Ming zaju, Ming and Qing chuanqi, and classic works of classical fiction, such as The White Ape Steals the Peaches, which derives from Sun Tzu's Art of War, Confucius Pays Respects to His Teacher, which derives from the Dunhuang bianwen, The Secret Construction of the Royal Palace, which draws on the Story of the Tang, and Flooding Jinshan Hill, which draws from The White Snake, and so on.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liu Jun | Xining, Qinghai | 03-1200 | Same declared area |
| Li Yongjun | Xining, Qinghai | — | 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。