Zhang Mingxing
Mastery, Signature Works & Repertoire
He loved folk music from childhood and from the age of seven learned to sing xiaodiao (short tunes) and hua'er from three elders of his village and from artists such as Ma Rulu. At the same time he learned humbly from other artists, steadily accumulating and enriching his repertoire and forming a personal style. He can also sing Meihu tunes and Qinqiang, and is adept at playing Hui folk instruments such as the niwawu (clay ocarina) and the zhu mimi (bamboo flute). Years of practice have shaped a singing style that is high-pitched, rugged and bold, rich in rustic flavour and the pleasures of daily life; his greatest distinction is his ability to improvise and sing hua'er and short tunes of his own making. In 1964 he took part as a performer in the National Amateur Art Festival of Ethnic Minorities as a member of the Ningxia delegation. In the 1980s he supplied a large amount of detailed first-hand material for The Chinese Folk Song Compendium, Ningxia Volume and The Chinese Folk Ballad Compendium, Ningxia Volume.
Honors & Recognition
Male, Hui, born in October 1940, died in June 2012, a native of Guyuan City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. National representative bearer of Hua'er (Ningxia Hui Mountain Hua'er), a third-batch national intangible cultural heritage project.
References & Archival Sources
Representative Items of This Bearer
Profile
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