Xinjiang Quzi
01 · Historical Records
Xinjiang quzi is a local quyi genre with a style of its own, commonly called "xiao quzi" (little quzi); it was conceived and took shape in the late Qing period. After the "quzi" (yuediao) of Shaanxi, the "guzi" (guzi diao) of Lanzhou, the "pingxian" (pingdiao) of Qinghai and other folk tunes of the northwest had flowed into Xinjiang, they were influenced by the word tones of the Han dialect spoken in Xinjiang and fused with the music and art of Xin's many ethnic groups, and Xinjiang quzi gradually took shape.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Its performance form is that several people each hold a sanxian, an erhu, a banhu, crotal bells and the like and accompany themselves, singing in turns; its vocal music is very rich. The very existence of Xinjiang quzi is powerful proof that Xinjiang has been jointly developed and built by the people of all its ethnic groups since ancient times, and that the colourful culture and art here have likewise been created and developed jointly by all the peoples.
Xiaoquzi, the little tunes
The popular name of the genre, formed when Shaanxi, Lanzhou and Qinghai tunes met the Chinese dialects and multi-ethnic music of Xinjiang.
The three sources
The three tributary traditions — Shaanxi yuediao, Lanzhou guzi and Qinghai pingxian — from which the genre's music descends.
The pellet bells and banhu
The accompanying instruments — sanxian, erhu, banhu and pellet bells — played by the seated singers themselves in turn.
Liu Hai Fells Firewood
Traditional titles collected by the inheritor Guo Tianlu, together with his own newly written pieces.
Hou Yumin's composite style
The inheritor Hou Yumin blended Hebei bangzi, Peking opera, Qin opera and Xinjiang dance into a style of his own.
Created and performed by several peoples
The genre is created and performed jointly by Han, Hui, Xibe and other peoples along the northern Tianshan belt.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
This quyi genre, jointly created and jointly performed by people of the Han, Hui, Xibe and other ethnic groups, is mainly current and distributed in the eight counties and cities of Changji Prefecture along the Tianshan in northern Xinjiang, as well as in Urumqi, Shihezi, Shawan, Yining, Huocheng and Qapqal, and in Hami and Barkol in the east and Yanqi in the south.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Xinjiang Quzi.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Xinjiang quzi is the crystallization of the fusion of the art of many ethnic groups; it is warmly welcomed and loved by the broad masses of the people, and in its long transmission and development it has performed an important service both to the handing on of the traditional culture of the various ethnic groups in the places where it is current and to the moral education of the community. With the rapid development of the social economy, the audience for Xinjiang quzi has gradually diminished and its living space has become ever narrower. Some accomplished quzi performers are now advanced in years and have gradually stopped singing, some have died in succession, the shortage of successors is growing more and more evident, and as a result some singing and playing techniques are difficult to hand down. The endangered Xinjiang quzi urgently needs rescue and protection. Guo Tianlu (official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Han nationality, born in 1937, a native of Fuping, Shaanxi Province. He formerly served on the Economic and Trade Commission of Mulei Kazak Autonomous County, Xinjiang. His singing is resonant and his tone is accurate and well-rounded. For decades he has toured the countryside for performance and has been warmly received by the masses. The traditional pieces he has collected and organized include Liang Qin Jia Da Jia (The Two Prospective In-Laws Fighting It Out), Liu Hai Kan Qiao (Liu Hai Cutting Firewood) and Lao Huan Shao (Old Bartered for Young); the pieces he has created include Wang San Shuan Qian (Wang San Gambling), Zhang Xiansheng Zui Jiu (Mr Zhang Getting Drunk) and Yi Gen Sheng Zi (A Single Rope). Representative inheritor of Xinjiang quzi in the second national-level batch of intangible cultural heritage projects. Hou Yumin (official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Han nationality, born in 1924, a native of Qitai, Xinjiang. His performance style is vivid and lively, humorous and amusing, and his characterization of the figures is lifelike; it also blends features of several forms of performing art such as Hebei bangzi, Peking opera, Qinqiang and Xinjiang dance, forming a style entirely his own. His representative works include San Di Xue (Three Drops of Blood), Huang He Zhen (Yellow River Town) and Cai Lou Pei (The Match at the Brocade Tower). Representative inheritor of Xinjiang quzi in the second national-level batch of intangible cultural heritage projects.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Guo Tianlu 02-0743
- Hou Yumin 02-0744
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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