Zhuangju Opera
01 · Historical Records
Zhuang opera, also called “Zhuang xi”, developed on the basis of the folk literature, the song and dance and the narrative-singing skills of the Zhuang people. In former times the Zhuang called themselves “butuo”, meaning “natives” or “local people”, and called their opera “changtuo”, that is “native drama”, in order to distinguish it from the operatic genres of the Han Chinese. Because of differences in regional setting, dialect and vernacular, music and vocal style, performance style and accompanying instruments, Zhuang opera has produced such branches as the northern-road Zhuang opera and the southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi, the Zhuang shigong opera (Zhuang shidrama) and, in Yunnan, the Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera; and it has become a bridge of ethnic cultural exchange in the region of Southeast Asia.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Zhuang opera, also called “Zhuang xi”, developed on the basis of the folk literature, the song and dance and the narrative-singing skills of the Zhuang people. Because of differences in regional setting, dialect and vernacular, music and vocal style, performance style and accompanying instruments, Zhuang opera has produced such branches as the northern-road Zhuang opera and the southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi, the Zhuang shigong opera (also called Zhuang shidrama), and, in Yunnan, the Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera. The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own. Zhuang opera is rooted in the soil of the nation's own life. It is a genre of long history and distinctive character created by the Zhuang people, and a bridge of ethnic cultural exchange in the region of Southeast Asia.
Buya
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
Wenlong and Xiaoni
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
Liu Erda Fangu (Liu Er Beats the Foreign Devils)
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
Baohulu (The Precious Gourd)
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
Bainiaoyi (The Hundred-Bird Robe)
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
Mo Yi the Great King
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
The White Horse Girl
The northern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi circulates in the areas where the northern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, and is accompanied by such instruments as the maguhu (horse-bone fiddle), the hullehu (gourd fiddle) and the yueqin. Its vocal styles include chiefly the zhengdiao, the pingdiao, the buyadiao, the maochaodiao, the maban, the henban, the kudiao and the aidiao; some role types have their own fixed vocal styles, and its plays include Buya, Wenlong and Xiaoni, and Liu Erda Fangu. The southern-road Zhuang opera of Guangxi includes the Zhuang string-puppet opera and the Ma'ai Zhuang opera, and circulates in the areas where the southern dialect of Zhuang is spoken, accompanied by such instruments as the qinghu, the houhu and the small sanxian. Its vocal styles include the pingban, the tandiao, the caihua, the xidiao, the kuaixidiao, the gaoqiang, the kudiao, the handiao and the shidiao, and chorus response (bangqiang) is used in the running of the vocal line; its plays include Baohulu and Bainiaoyi. The Zhuang shigong opera grew out of the sacrificial song-and-dance entertainment of the gods in the Zhuang folk shigong religion, and is transmitted in such places as Hechi, Liuzhou and Baise in Guangxi. In performance the actors at first wore red garments and wooden masks, and later changed to stage makeup and costumes; accompaniment is by the fenggu (bee drum), gong, cymbals and the membraneless flute, and its plays include Mo Yi the Great King and the White Horse Girl. The Funing Zhuang opera and the Guangnan Zhuang opera current in Yunnan have been considerably influenced by the local operatic genres of the Han Chinese and have features of their own.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
In former times the Zhuang people called themselves “butuo”, meaning “natives” or “local people”, and called their opera “changtuo”, that is “native drama”, in order to distinguish it from the operatic genres of the Han Chinese.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Zhuangju Opera.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present, as modernisation accelerates, Zhuang opera is under the impact of plural cultures and of dominant culture, and its survival is in crisis. The younger generation pursues fashion, regards Zhuang opera as rustic and vulgar, and its enthusiasm for appreciating and inheriting the national traditional culture has sharply diminished. As the old performers of Zhuang opera have died off one after another, transmission of the genre has been interrupted in a number of localities, and this distinctive genre has begun to disappear by natural attrition. Prompt rescue and protection of Zhuang opera has become an important task that cannot be ignored. Zhang Qinyin (official archival record of the associated inheritor): Female, of Zhuang ethnicity, born in 1933, a native of Debao, Guangxi. She is skilled in the traditional vocal styles of the southern-road Zhuang opera and in the performance of its civil plays, and she is the only surviving founder of the southern-road Zhuang opera. Zhang Qinyin inherited and developed the folk traditional southern-road Zhuang opera and innovated its vocal styles and body movements; at the same time she absorbed the performance style of the northern-road Zhuang opera, bringing about the merging of the southern and northern roads of Zhuang opera and enriching the national bodily style of the genre. A representative inheritor of Zhuang opera in the second batch of national intangible cultural heritage projects, and a national second-class actor. All of the more than twenty plays in which she took part in rehearsal were well received, and she took on and trained a group of Zhuang opera performers known throughout Guangxi and indeed the whole country, such as Lin Peiyan, Zhang Yonglan and He Yiwen. Her representative works include Liu Sanjie, Wang Gui and Li Xiangxiang, the Red Leaf River, The White Snake and Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai. Bi Kejian (official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Zhuang ethnicity, born in 1936, a native of Tianlin, Guangxi. At the age of twelve Bi Kejian took as his master Huang Fuxiang, the ninth-generation artist of the northern-road Zhuang opera, and learned the performance of several role types, including the dan type and the young sheng. On the foundation of the tradition he innovated the tunes, the vocal styles and the stage steps of the traditional northern-road Zhuang opera; in particular, on the basis of the traditional “zhengdiao” he created such ban-form variations as zhengdiao lianban, zhongban, gaoban and fanban, and at the same time invented new tunes such as the “Caihua diao”, the “Twelve-Month Flower diao”, the “Taiping ge”, the “Sisters' Delight” and the “Peony diao”, enriching the music and the vocal repertoire of Zhuang opera. A representative inheritor of Zhuang opera in the second batch of national intangible cultural heritage projects. From 1985 to the present he has taught traditional Zhuang opera in the three provinces and regions of Yunnan, Guizhou and Guangxi, making the northern-road Zhuang opera current widely among ordinary people, and he is known as “the new tenth-generation master of the northern-road Zhuang opera”.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Zhang Qinyin 02-0638
- Bikejian 02-0639
- Nongxueliang 05-2393
- Wang Zhijun
- Huang Zhiyuan
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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