Bouyei Bayinzuochang
01 · Historical Records
According to available records, Bouyei bayin was in vogue for a time during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Bouyei bayin zuochang, also called 'Bouyei bayin', is a form of folk quyi storytelling and singing handed down through generations among the Bouyei people. According to legend, the prototype of Bouyei bayin belonged to the refined music of the imperial court and consisted chiefly of wind and percussion playing. From the Yuan and Ming dynasties onward, under the influence of Bouyei ethnic aesthetic consciousness, it gradually developed into a form of quyi performed to the accompaniment chiefly of sizhu string and wind instruments. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Bouyei bayin troupe of Xingyi City was invited many times to perform at home and abroad, and was praised as 'an exotic flower of the Panjiang', 'a wonder of the mortal world, the music of nature', 'a living fossil of sound' and 'the pearl of the arts on the banks of the Nanpanjiang River'. The performance format of bayin zuochang has eight people sitting in a circle, each holding one of eight instruments — the niugu hu (cow-horn fiddle), the guluqin (gourd fiddle), the yueqin (moon lute), the cigu (bamboo drum), the xiaotong (vertical flute), the chai, the baobao gong (wrapped gong) and the xiaoma gong (small horse gong) — and passing the singing and narration round in turn. The performance sings and narrates stories in the first person, 'jumping in', and explains stories in the third person, 'jumping out'; there are also cases in which Bouyei instruments such as the lelang, leyou and muye are added for accompaniment. In singing, male performers mostly use a pitch an octave higher, while women sing in the original key, which not only produces a strong contrast of pitch and timbre but also adds to the interest of the performance. The vocal styles and melodies of bayin zuochang are mainly [Zhengdiao]; all other melodies are collectively called 'xiandiao'. The most representative traditional programmes include Bouyei Wedding Custom, Hexi Hall, Huxi and Nanxiang, Welcome-Guest Melody, The Biography of Wang Yulian, Wine-Offering Song and Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, more than forty in all. Bayin zuochang was gradually created and formed by the Bouyei people through long production and life practice; it is deeply rooted among the Bouyei people, with distinct Bouyei characteristics and a broad popular base. It can be said that bayin zuochang is both a crystallization of the wisdom of the Bouyei people and a treasure in the treasury of Chinese quyi.
The eight instruments
Eight players sit in a circle with ox-bone fiddle, gourd fiddle, moon lute, bamboo drum, flute, cymbals and two gongs, handing the singing on in turn.
Principal and incidental tunes
The main tune is the Principal Mode, all other melodies being grouped together as incidental tunes.
Leaping in and leaping out
Singers leap into a character in the first person and leap out again as narrator, men singing an octave above the women.
Representative items
Over forty traditional items survive, most tied to weddings, house-warmings and the welcome of guests.
The Bayin halls
Village music halls called Bayin Tang taught the craft, and at their height more than three hundred bands performed it.
From court music to seated strings
Reputedly descended from court ceremonial music, the form shifted after the Yuan and Ming to strings and pipes.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
For thousands of years it has been handed down and continued in village after village throughout the Nanpanjiang River basin. In Bouyei villages across the Panjiang basin, music-teaching halls called 'bayin tang' are commonly set up to teach Bouyei bayin skills, and at times as many as more than three hundred bayin troupes performed bayin zuochang.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present, the survival and development of bayin zuochang face serious difficulties, and it urgently needs protection and support. Liang Xiujiang (as recorded in the official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Bouyei ethnicity, born in 1955, a native of Xingyi, Guizhou. In 1959 he began learning the art of bayin playing from his father's generation, Liang Dechao. Representative inheritor of Bouyei bayin zuochang of the second batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage projects. In 1991 he led a troupe to perform in Beijing, winning the exhibition award of the Chinese Nationalities Culture Expo, and has since taken part many times in performances at provincial, municipal and prefecture level, winning awards on many occasions. His representative works Bouyei Wedding Custom, Wine-Offering Song and others won prizes in municipal-level surveys and evaluations. Wu Tianyu (as recorded in the official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, of Bouyei ethnicity, born in 1954, a native of Xingyi, Guizhou. For more than forty years he has been engaged in playing bayin instruments, and in recent years has mainly performed at the Wanfenglin ethnic scenic area. Representative inheritor of Bouyei bayin zuochang of the second batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage projects. In 2002 he accompanied his troupe to Nanjing to take part in the ethnic art performance of Chinese national scenic areas, winning first place and the Best Creativity Award; in 2005 he won first prize in the quyi competition of the Guizhou Province 'Dujuan Cup'. His representative works include Hexi Hall and Buhei Dang, which have won awards in exchange performances at various levels and have been well received.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Liang Xiujiang 02-0771
- Wu Tianyu 02-0772
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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