Taiziwuwuchaozi
01 · Historical Records
During the Qianlong reign of the Qing dynasty, after Zhang Hongru, a villager of Taiziwu village, had completed his study of martial arts, he returned to the village, opened the Desheng escort agency, and in 1728 founded the Shaolin Society; from that time on Taiziwu village formed a tradition of practising martial arts. Its traditional tune patterns include "Qianchaofeng", "Wenchaofeng", "Kaishanhu", "Xiaojinshan", "Longhuye", "Daguolou", "Qianshengfo", "Chaibangzi", "Longhudou", "Longwangzan", "Douyehuang", "Liuyejin", "Chaiyangge" and "Xinghuahong", of which "Qianchaofeng", "Wenchaofeng", "Xiaojinshan" and "Daguolou" are slow pieces in 4/4 metre.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Taiziwu wuchao zi is a collective dance circulated in Yufa town, Daxing District, Beijing, which integrates physical conditioning, entertainment and village defence, and is danced to the beating of cymbals. At the time someone from the village carried a hand-copied palace music score, "Jin Liutong", back to the village, and Zhang Hongru used the piece as accompaniment for performances by the Shaolin Society and improved and innovated on it continuously, until the form of wuchao zi took shape. The hui tou (society head) of wuchao zi is responsible for all the work of the wuchao zi society, and is chosen from among the members on the basis of merit by the previous hui tou. The Taiziwu wuchao zi society has strict rules: everyone who joins must obey the leadership, is not allowed to take part in gambling, and must not waste grain, and so on. The movements of Taiziwu wuchao zi are performed in sets; the usual order is to arrange the music first, then to design the cymbal patterns, and finally to rehearse the movements. The main instruments used are the haidi (reed pipe), cheng, tang, large drum, nao, small cymbals, large cymbals, cymbal song and so on. There were originally more than 100 tune patterns; more than twenty survive today. In the formation and the changes of movement the drum holds the centre, the cymbal song and the tang occupy the two sides and the suona follows behind them; the tune patterns played are those of the suona in the centre. The performers hold large cymbals, the cymbal sound sounding in unison, and change through various formations. Accompanied by the drum music, the decorated-cumbral team performs dengjian, bengjian, duida, jiejiegao, jinjidouliangshan, fanshenda, Suqin Beijian (carrying a sword on the back), jiudishibagun (eighteen rolls on the spot), wufan, tieshukaihua, bitougaiding, haidilaoyue and jinzita (pyramid). Later a number of further movements were added, including the high-level strike of the oil-pots pouring onto the head, the mid-level rooster charge, the low-level willow with roots coiled, the willow swaying in the wind, the stacking of humans into a human pyramid, and other movements. All the rest are fast pieces; fast pieces are in 2/4 metre, matched with movements such as walking strikes, standing strikes and yangge steps. Taiziwu wuchao zi integrates martial arts, wenchao zi and the great yangge into one, and it has a long history and a broad popular base. The process in which people take part in wuchao zi is in fact a process of mutual exchange and cooperation between one person and another, between neighbours in the streets and lanes, and between village and village. To this day the heritage project still plays an important role in refreshing body and mind, promoting community harmony and cultural identity, and other fields.
The flower-cymbal team's routines
To the drum the cymbal team performs paired fighting, high leaps, the Qin sword-carrying stance, rolling on the ground, the golden pyramid and many more routines.
The old score and the escort agency
After learning martial arts Zhang Hongru opened an escort agency and founded a Shaolin society in 1728, then adapted a palace score brought back to the village into the percussion of the dance.
Slow and fast tunes
Its traditional tunes include the Qianchaofeng, Wenchangfeng, Kaishanhu and Xiaojinshan in 4/4 slow time, with the rest in 2/4 fast time.
Head, rules and invitations
The head, chosen by his predecessor from among the members, runs the society under strict rules; village visits still follow the traditional invitation and reception protocol.
Zhao Jianjun
Zhao Jianjun, born in 1962, began learning the dance at sixteen, excels at the cymbals and has headed the society since 2001.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Taiziwu wuchao zi has Taiziwu village of Yufa town, Daxing District, Beijing as its only place of transmission; it is a cymbal dance that grew out of the village community's Shaolin Society tradition, and its protection and transmission are jointly undertaken by the village share-holding economic cooperative and the village wuchao zi society. In performance, the drum holds the centre of the formation, the cymbal song and the tang are arranged on the two sides, the suona follows behind, and the tune patterns played are those of the suona in the centre. Locally, sending out the society and receiving it follow the observances of "qing hui" (inviting the society) and "jie hui" (receiving the society); the hui tou is chosen from among the members on the basis of merit by the previous hui tou, the rules of the society are strict, everyone who joins must obey the leadership, is not allowed to take part in gambling and must not waste grain. Compared with the yangge societies and chaozi societies of the Daxing and Gu'an area, the most outstanding feature of Taiziwu wuchao zi is that martial arts movements, wenchao zi tune patterns and the footwork of the great yangge are woven into a single company.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Zhao Jianjun (official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, Han ethnicity, from Beijing. He began learning wuchao zi at the age of sixteen; his movements are practised and deft, he has thoroughly mastered classic routines such as "wu fan", "haidilaoyue" and "longtenghuyue", he is skilled in playing the cymbals, and he is versed in all the traditional procedures of the society, including joining membership, "qing hui" and "jie hui". In 2009 he took part in the mass performance marking the sixtieth anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Born in July 1962, representative inheritor of Taiziwu wuchao zi, a national-level intangible cultural heritage project in the fifth national-level batch. Since taking the post of head of the local wuchao zi society in 2001, he has actively planned how the project should be transmitted and developed, compiling repertoire and teaching materials and protecting and preserving physical materials.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Zhao Jianjun 05-2295
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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