Northeast Errenzhuan
01 · Historical Records
Since the twentieth century the influential representative performers of erxian have included Xu Xiaolou, Lang Yanfang and Xiao Lanzhi of Liaoning, Cheng Xifa, Li Qingshan and Gu Bailin of Jilin, and Guo Wenbao, Li Tai and Hu Jingqi of Heilongjiang.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Erxian is a form of quyi singing and narration with a wide influence; because in performance song and dance go together, with the melody and the movement answering one another, it was formerly called “bengbeng”. It circulates mainly in the three provinces of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang and in the eastern part of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and is performed in speech and song in the northeastern dialect. It is generally held to have been formed around the middle of the Qing dynasty by the fusion of the northeastern dayangge with the lianhualuo brought in from inside the passes. In the course of its development it has absorbed widely the musical tunes, vocal styles and performance techniques of sister arts such as northeastern folk songs, the taiping drum and the northeastern dagu, so that its vocal styles and melodies are extraordinarily rich. Erxian has not only the “shuang wanyi” (double act), which forms its main body, and the “qun chang” (chorus) form in which several people sing and narrate together, but also the “dan chu tou” and “la chang xi” forms, which belong to the small-opera genre and in which the performers take on roles. As a quyi genre, the “shuang wanyi” and “qun chang” of erxian are performed either by two people cast as one dan and one chou, who sing and dance while speaking and singing in their own role types, or by several people each holding a different accompanying instrument and taking turns at seated singing in their role types. Its vocal music is very rich, traditionally known as “nine vocal styles and eighteen melodies, seventy-two keke”. The vocal tune patterns in common use include [Huhu qiang], [Laba pailzi], [Wen keke], [Wu keke], [Sanjie ban], [Baoban], [Siping diao], [Wuzijin] and [Hongliuzi]; the accompanying instruments include the banhu, the suona and bamboo clappers. Erxian lyrics consist mainly of seven-syllable and ten-syllable lines, with long and short lines as well; the performance stresses the combined use of the four skills of singing, speech, acting and dance. The singing skill stresses the six requirements of “zi, ju, wei, ban, qiang, jin” — the characters, the phrases, the flavour, the metre, the vocal style and the drive — and is loud and fiery, warm and pleasing to the ear. The speech skill is divided into “shuokou”, “chengkou” (also called taokou) and “lingkou”; the chou teases and the dan flatters, using rhymed speech for the most part, but also plain speech and rhythmic patter, with language that is witty, humorous and inviting laughter. The acting skill (also called the doubling skill) stresses assisting the singing with posture and movement, emphasizing the combined use of the techniques of hand, eye, body, method and step. The dance skill is based mainly on the northeastern dayangge dance and also draws on other folk dances and martial arts, with acrobatic specialities such as fan-waving, handkerchief-twirling, jade-clapper beating and big bamboo-clapper beating woven in between; the stage effect is very lively and fiery. Of the four routes the eastern one centres on Jilin City and is skilled in waving coloured sticks, with elements of martial arts; the western one centres on Heishan County in Liaoning and stresses the ban-tou opening and the singing; the southern one centres on Yingkou in Liaoning and gives equal weight to song and dance; the northern one centres on Beidahuang in Heilongjiang and seeks a sweet and moving vocal style. Hence the old saying that erxian “relies on the lang (the wave) in the south, on the singing in the north, on the ban-tou in the west and on the sticks in the east”. Later the various routes drew the strengths of one another and merged with each other, and the emphasis of the performance was no longer as clearly divided as before. The best-known traditional erxian numbers are “Lanqiao”, “Xixiang”, “Bao Gong Peiqing”, “Yang Bajie Youchun” and “Zhu Bajie Gongdi”. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, new numbers appeared such as “Sanzhi Ji”, “Jie Guniang”, “Liu Chuntao” and “Fengshou Qiao”. For a long time erxian has been deeply loved by the broad masses of the people of Northeast China, especially by the farming friends. Among the people of Northeast China there is the saying that one would rather give up a meal than give up erxian.
Northern-school vocal art
Hailun belongs to the northern school, which prizes singing above all and works with melodies such as Siping Diao and Wen Haike, accompanied by banhu, suona and bamboo clappers.
Fan, handkerchief and clapper stunts
Acrobatic stunts with fans, handkerchiefs, jade tablets and bamboo clappers are woven between the singing passages to build a fiery stage effect.
Three signature numbers of Zhao Xiaobo
Zhao Xiaobo's signature pieces, sung with the clarity and the northern-school idiom that made her recordings famous.
The Ren Gang–Shi Guiqin line
Shi Guiqin trained under Ren Gang from 1958 and became a professional in 1960, noted for her dance in Han Jiang and Wu Geng.
The four skills of singing, speech, acting and dance
The core skills of the form: comic spoken patter divided into three types, acting through codified body methods, and dance based on the northeastern rice-sprout song.
Bengbeng and its parent forms
The form was formerly called bengbeng and is generally thought to have fused the northeastern yangge with the lianhualuo brought in from within the passes in the mid-Qing.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
As the areas in which it circulated differed, erxian formed four schools in the course of its development: the eastern route, the western route, the southern route and the northern route.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Northeast Errenzhuan · Northeast Errenzhuan · Northeast Errenzhuan · Northeast Errenzhuan · Northeast Errenzhuan · Errenzhuan · Errenzhuan.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Zhao Xiaobo (as recorded in the official file of the associated inheritor): Female, of Han nationality, born in 1974, native of Heilongjiang. A third-class actress of the Hailun City People’s Art Theatre. Her representative numbers include “Yesu Huating”, “Du Shiniang” and “Kuchangcheng”, and she has recorded more than a hundred compact discs. Representative inheritor of the second national-level batch of the intangible cultural heritage project Northeastern erxian. Her singing is clear and she is skilled in using tune patterns such as [Siping diao] and [Wen keke], always maintaining the “northern school” style of erxian; her handkerchief speciality won first prize at the “First Skills Contest of Heilongjiang Local Opera”. Shi Guiqin (as recorded in the official file of the associated inheritor): Female, of Han nationality, born in 1948, native of Heilongjiang. A third-class actress of the Hailun City People’s Art Theatre. In 1958 she became a pupil of Ren Gang to study the traditional skills of the Heilongjiang “northern school”, and in 1960 became a professional performer of the Hailun County Folk Art Troupe. Her singing style brings out the characteristics of “northern school” erxian, with a vocal line that is round and bright, free and high-pitched; she has mastered more than a dozen sets of fan and handkerchief techniques, and in numbers such as “Hanjiang” and “Wugeng” her dancing can be called unique. Representative works include “Liu Chuntao”, “Lao Minbing” and “Qiangli Qiangwai”. Representative inheritor of the second national-level batch of the intangible cultural heritage project Northeastern erxian. She has won prizes many times in provincial, prefectural and municipal cultural and artistic exchange performances.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Li Xiuyuan 02-0751
- Zhao Benshan 02-0752
- Wang Zhongtang 02-0753
- Zhao Xiaobo 02-0754
- Shi Guiqin 02-0755
- Dong Xiaofang 04-1710
- Han Ziping 04-1711
- Wang Suzhen
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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