Miao Lusheng Making Craftsmanship
01 · Historical Records
The Tianxing lusheng of Daguan is the most famous branch around the Yunnan–Guizhou border, called the Wang Lusheng after Wang Jiefeng. Wang Jiefeng comes from a lusheng-making family and is the fifth-generation transmitter of this craft; several generations of his ancestors were locally renowned lusheng makers whose fame reached as far as Weining and Bijie in Guizhou and the Miao villages of northeastern Yunnan, so the family was called a "lusheng family" and he was called "Wang Lusheng." This branch's path to mastery differs from Leishan's: Leishan excels in pipe-number expansion, while Tianxing prevails through improvement of the reeds and sounding pipes. A common lusheng generally has six sounding pipes; Wang Jiefeng, the inheritor of the lusheng craft in Daguan County, innovated on the basis of inherited family secrets—he changed the sounding pipes to eight or ten, and during the high-temperature smelting of the brass reeds he added a certain proportion of lead, enhancing the reeds' elasticity and toughness, so that the resulting lusheng sounds brighter and more pleasing. The significance of this modification lies not only in volume. After adding lead, the reeds' elasticity and toughness improve simultaneously, so the lusheng does not easily fatigue even after long playing in mountain winds, and can thus be passed on village by village among the Miao villages at the Yunnan–Guizhou border.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
In the Miao-inhabited areas of Leishan County, Guizhou, every village has a lusheng, making it an important place of production for the instrument. The lusheng-making craftsmen live respectively in Paika Village of Danjiang Town, Pingxiang Village and Queniao Village of Fangxiang Township, and Taoliang Village and Nianxie Village of Taojiang Township in Leishan County; all these villages lie deep in the mountains with extremely inconvenient transport. To make a lusheng, beyond a certain knowledge of music theory, one must also possess knowledge of physics and understand the principles of mechanics. There are many kinds of lusheng, differing in timbre and also in size and shape; to make a lusheng that meets needs, the craftsman must above all have long experience in making them. The Miao masters who inherit the lusheng-making craft need only a bellows, hammer, brass, axe, chisel, saw, drill, bitter bamboo, tung oil, and lime (some have switched to latex) to produce exquisite and practical lusheng of various kinds. The lusheng made in the Leishan area have pure timbre and a smooth, beautiful exterior, enjoying great renown. The lusheng is a symbol of Miao culture; in performance and playing, the Miao lusheng merges lyric, melody, and dance into one, preserving the originality and archaic quality of Miao historical culture and art. The lusheng-making craft has always been taught hands-on by masters, with no written materials preserved; moreover, the craft is exacting, making its transmission rather difficult. The Miao lusheng-making craft of Daguan, Zhaotong City, Yunnan Province, mainly exists in Tianxing Town, Daguan County, Zhaotong City, within the Miao-inhabited area of Yunnan. The Tianxing Town lusheng uses bitter bamboo, birch-bark, fir, and copper sheets as materials, and is made with tools such as knives, saws, planes, chisels, drills, hammers, scissors, and a smelting furnace. A lusheng is usually composed of three parts—pipes, a wind chest, and reeds—and a common lusheng generally has six sounding pipes. Wang Jiefeng, the inheritor of the lusheng craft in Daguan County, innovated on the basis of inherited family secrets: he changed the sounding pipes to eight or ten, and during the high-temperature smelting of the brass reeds he added a certain proportion of lead, enhancing the reeds' elasticity and toughness; the resulting lusheng sounds brighter and more pleasing, and the century-old Tianxing "Wang Lusheng" thereby gained renown among the Miao villages at the junction of Yunnan and Guizhou, adding luster to the Daguan Tianxing lusheng.
Raising the pipes from six to eight and ten
Six pipes are common, but Wang Jiefeng raised them to eight and ten, requiring the chamber layout and reed series to be rearranged entirely.
Adding lead to toughen the reeds
A measured proportion of lead added to smelted brass increases the reed's elasticity and toughness, giving a brighter and more resilient tone.
Drawing on local materials
Bitter bamboo for pipes, bark and fir for chamber and feet, copper plate for reeds — every principal material comes from the surrounding hillsides and the furnace.
Cutting, sawing, planing, chiselling, boring
Knife, saw, plane, chisel, drill, hammer, shears and furnace divide the work: cutting stock, trimming tubes, finishing the chamber, opening holes, tuning and shaping.
Five generations of one workshop
Wang Jiefeng is the fifth generation of a noted workshop, and has turned family inheritance into open teaching, with more than twenty disciples at his craft house.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Among the Miao-inhabited areas of Yunnan, the Miao lusheng-making craft of Daguan is mainly concentrated around Tianxing Town, Daguan County. The Tianxing Town lusheng uses bitter bamboo, birch-bark, fir, and copper sheets as materials and is made with tools such as knives, saws, planes, chisels, drills, hammers, scissors, and a smelting furnace; both materials and tools are sourced locally. The lusheng of this area has spread its fame to Weining and Bijie in Guizhou and the Miao villages of northeastern Yunnan; the Tianxing Wang Lusheng, inherited for over a century, thereby gained renown among the Miao villages at the Yunnan–Guizhou border, adding luster to the Daguan Tianxing lusheng. Wang Jiefeng has now opened a lusheng-making workshop, and more than twenty people from society have come under his tutelage; at present his lusheng-making craft has successors. This transmitter is not only a master of lusheng-making but also a master of lusheng performance; making and playing are both contained within one and the same craft.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Miao Lusheng Making Craftsmanship.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
But now, artisans who can skillfully make the lusheng like Wang Jiefeng are becoming fewer and fewer; this exquisite craft lacks successors and faces the danger of being lost, urgently awaiting rescue and protection. Wang Jiefeng (from the official archival record of the associated inheritor): Male, Miao ethnicity, born in 1962, from Daguan, Yunnan. Representative inheritor of the Miao lusheng-making craft, a national-level intangible cultural heritage project of the first batch. Wang Jiefeng was born into a lusheng-making family; he is the fifth-generation transmitter, and his ancestors were all locally famous lusheng makers whose fame reached Weining and Bijie in Guizhou and the Miao villages of northeastern Yunnan, so the family was honored as a "lusheng family" and he was called "Wang Lusheng" by the locals. Wang Jiefeng is not only a master of lusheng-making but also a master of lusheng performance. He has now opened a lusheng-making workshop, and more than twenty people from society have come under his tutelage; at present his lusheng-making craft has successors.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Mo Yanxue 01-0151
- Wang Jiefeng 01-0152
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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