Lishuichuangong Work Songs
01 · Historical Records
This is an important town of north-western Hunan, known as the “gateway of the nine Li waters”; in the Ming and Qing it became an important commercial wharf and the distributing centre for goods entering and leaving the whole of north-western Hunan.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Lixian county lies in the north of Hunan, on the western edge of Lake Dongting. Because of its special geographical environment, long-distance transport here could only be by water; the labouring people along the Li, Cen and Dao rivers within Lixian county mostly made their living by shipping goods, with nearly a thousand vessels and a forest of masts, and the boatmen numbering eight thousand if not ten thousand, each large wooden boat having no fewer than twenty trackers. In the course of hauling upstream against the current, in order to concentrate their strength, raise their spirits and unify their pace, there naturally appeared a distinctive work chantey transformed from the local ditty—and this is the Lishui boatmen's chantey. It takes as its theme the boatmen's life of suffering and scenes of labour, has no fixed song-book or lyrics, requires no special instruction from a master, and depends wholly on the oral teaching of the forebears, handed down from generation to generation. These chanteys mostly arise impromptu from time, place and person, spoken out as they come; though fairly popular in style, they are full of soaring spirit and brim with artistic charm. Their lines are of seven and five characters, and they are generally led by one man and answered by all, majestic and deep and powerful. There are also chanteys sung specially for the boat owner and the onlookers, such as “dark clouds on the high hills come in a moment, hauling is like crossing a bridge to heaven; the mud is rotten and the road slippery and hard to walk, and sweat and rain run down in channels”, and “the wind blows and the river bends, my sweetheart sends word that he wants shoes to wear”. The upper-river style is sung in the stretch above Shimen and below Sangzhi. Because here the hills are high and the water swift, the river narrow and the shoals strewn with reefs, shipping goods is very hazardous, so that the boatmen's chantey is high and powerful, brisk in rhythm, with more padding words than lyrics and full of dauntless fighting spirit. This kind of boat chantey consists mainly of the rowing chantey and the counted beat.
The Upper-River Style and the Lower-River Style
The two styles of the Lishui boatmen's chantey formed by difference of locality; the upper-river style is sung in the stretch above Shimen and below Sangzhi.
The Rowing Chantey and the Counted Beat
The boat chanteys of the upper-river style consist mainly of the rowing chantey and the counted beat, brisk in rhythm and with more padding words than lyrics.
The Trackers' Chantey
The work chantey sung when hauling upstream against the current, in order to concentrate strength, raise spirits and unify the pace.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Because of differences of locality the Lishui boatmen's chantey may be divided into two kinds, the upper-river style and the lower-river style. Since reform and opening up, transport has advanced by leaps and bounds; motor and rail transport have replaced water transport in the Lishui basin, more than ninety per cent of the boat people have long since changed their trade and sought a living elsewhere, and the boatmen's hauling has become a thing of the past.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The Lishui boatmen's chantey formed with the rise of the merchant vessels and developed with their growth, and has become endangered with the disappearance of the wooden merchant vessels. The boatmen of the older generation, too, are advanced in years and have passed away one after another; in these circumstances this ancient chantey of the Lishui, once famous at home and abroad, stands on the verge of being lost.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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