Zhongshan Xianshuige
01 · Historical Records
The Zhongshan xianshuige arose from the life of the boat people, the Tanka, who made their homes afloat. Since ancient times the Tanka have gathered from all directions on the alluvial plain along the coast of the Pearl River estuary and scattered in such water-network districts as Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Shunde, singing antiphonally and contending in song on occasions of farming, boating, marriage and funerals, composing and singing as they go, and in this way gradually forming the tradition of the xianshuige.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The xianshuige, also called the salt-water lament, brother-lament and sister-lament, is a form of singing in which the Tanka amuse themselves. The people of Tanzhou town in Zhongshan, Guangdong, have long had the custom of singing antiphonally and contending in song while at agricultural labour or boating, and especially in the processes of marriage negotiation and funerals they often sing on the spur of the moment, composing and singing as they go. The main categories of the Zhongshan xianshuige include the long-and-short-line xianshuige, the gaotang song, the dazeng song, the sister song and the lament for the elder sister. The xianshuige is a form of oral culture widely sung among the Tanka. Its representative pieces include Matching Flowers and Sea-Bottom Pearls Are Easy.
Matching Flowers
One of the representative pieces of the Zhongshan xianshuige.
Sea-Bottom Pearls Are Easy
One of the representative pieces of the Zhongshan xianshuige.
The Long-and-Short-Line Xianshuige, the Gaotang Song and the Dazeng Song
The main categories of the Zhongshan xianshuige.
The Sister Song and the Lament for the Elder Sister
The categories of the Zhongshan xianshuige addressed to sisters and sisters-in-law.
The Padding Syllables “Ah Lie” and “Dear Sister, Ah Lie” and the Fitting of Tune to Words
The features of the traditional manner of singing still preserved in the xianshuige of Tanzhou, Zhongshan.
Antiphonal Singing at Marriage, Funerals and on Boats
The occasions of antiphonal singing on the spur of the moment at marriage negotiation, funerals, farming and boating, composing and singing as they go.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Since ancient times the Tanka, making their homes afloat, have come from all directions to the alluvial plain along the coast of the Pearl River estuary and scattered in the coastal and water-network districts of Zhongshan, Zhuhai and Shunde. The xianshuige has the longest history, the widest circulation and the richest repertoire in Tanzhou, Zhongshan, and to this day it still preserves the traditional manner of singing, such as singing in the Zhongshan sub-dialect of Cantonese, using “ah lie” and “ah” as padding syllables, and such padding phrases as “dear sister, ah lie” and “dear brother, ah lie”, with very strong improvisation and fitting the tune to the words. Surveys by the relevant quarters show that most local people no longer know what the xianshuige is, and the endangered state of the xianshuige may be imagined.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present no more than ten people can sing the traditional xianshuige, and most of them are advanced in years. The great influx of outside culture and the change in the cultural awareness and value orientation of the younger generation have greatly altered the ecological environment of the xianshuige. (Associated bearer recorded in the official archive:) Wu Zhihui, male, Han, born 1939, a native of Zhongshan, Guangdong. He began singing the xianshuige at sixteen. In 1958 he and his fellow singers Liang Sanmei and He Fuyou recorded their first black vinyl disc. In 1962 he joined the Tanzhou folk-song choir. In 1994 and 2004 the xianshuige he sang were included in the Zhongshan folk-song gold CD and MTV. His tones are high and broad and he excels at male-female antiphonal singing; his outstanding tenor expresses to the full the lingering, heart-turning charm of the xianshuige. His representative works include Matching Flowers and The Sister Song. He is a representative bearer of the second batch of national-level intangible cultural heritage items, the Zhongshan xianshuige. In 1964 and 1965 he twice won first place in the Zhongshan county folk-song festival.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Wu Zhihui 02-0236
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript; it mirrors the bilingual dossier. 阅读中文版，或返回 英文名录。