Mongolian Folk Songs
01 · Historical Records
Mongolian narrative folk songs are first attested in the Yuan dynasty, the most famous of them being such works as the Alaiqinbu Song and the Song of the Fawn. It was not until the late Qing dynasty and the early Republican period that this strikingly individual national art form underwent unprecedented development on the Horqin grasslands; the sheer number of its songs and the richness of their content are extremely rare in the history of Chinese folk song.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Mongolian folk songs are rich in content, free in rhythm, delicate in feeling, high and resonant in melody, extended and winding, and leave a long lingering aftertaste. They fall into two kinds, the long-tune folk song and the short-tune folk song. Long-tune songs are generally sung in Mongolian; they are of great length, draw the breath out long and are deep in feeling, their use of the shake ornament is subtle and distinctive and their melodies far-ranging, and both melody and vocal style show the breadth and vigour of grassland folk song. Short-tune songs are current mainly in the half-farming, half-pastoral districts where Mongols and Han live in mixed settlement, are mostly sung in Chinese, are short in length, have an even rhythm and a fixed metre, readily use reduplicated syllables, and have simple lyrics and a free, flexible manner. Horqin narrative folk songs, abbreviated to “Horqin folk songs”, are a form of narrative folk song handed down generation by generation among the Mongols; they are current mainly on the Horqin grasslands in the eastern part of the Inner Mongolian grasslands. In the long historical period that followed, however, Mongolian narrative folk songs, especially the long narrative folk songs, very nearly died out. Horqin narrative folk songs have a lively rhythm and content close to everyday life; long texts are usually sung again and again to short, finely crafted musical phrases, accompanied by such instruments as the four-string fiddle, sanxian, yangqin, morin khuur and chaoer. Their tunes are sharply characterised, frequently employing rich altered notes, borrowed chords, modulation and the alternation of modes, so that their melodies are clearly distinguished in style from the folk songs of other peoples and regions. Horqin narrative folk songs basically all have relatively complete story lines, and their subject matter is commonly the love of men and women, longing for home and kin, and the legends of heroes; their lyrics are generally far longer than those of folk songs in other regions, more than a dozen of them taking over two hours to sing, and The Song of Zhang and Wang even exceeding twenty-four hours. Representative works of Horqin narrative folk song include Gada Meilin, Danabala, Han Xiuying, Taogetaihu and Zhanabala Jinima.
Gada Meilin
Representative works of Horqin narrative folk song include Gada Meilin, Danabala, Han Xiuying, Taogetaihu and Zhanabala Jinima.
Danabala
Representative works of Horqin narrative folk song include Gada Meilin, Danabala, Han Xiuying, Taogetaihu and Zhanabala Jinima.
Han Xiuying
Representative works of Horqin narrative folk song include Gada Meilin, Danabala, Han Xiuying, Taogetaihu and Zhanabala Jinima.
Taogetaihu
Representative works of Horqin narrative folk song include Gada Meilin, Danabala, Han Xiuying, Taogetaihu and Zhanabala Jinima.
Zhanabala Jinima
Representative works of Horqin narrative folk song include Gada Meilin, Danabala, Han Xiuying, Taogetaihu and Zhanabala Jinima.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Horqin narrative folk songs are current mainly on the Horqin grasslands in the east of the Inner Mongolian grasslands, and the banners, counties and city districts under the jurisdiction of Tongliao city are their core area of transmission; they are mostly accompanied by such instruments as the four-string fiddle, sanxian, yangqin, morin khuur and chaoer. They are of greater length than the folk songs of other regions: more than a dozen take over two hours to sing, and The Song of Zhang and Wang even exceeds twenty-four hours. Their performers are mostly folk singers of the grasslands, who sit in a circle playing and singing at festivals, banquets and in the slack season of herding and farming, and hand the songs down from generation to generation.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs · Mongolian Folk Songs.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Horqin narrative folk songs are the product of the fusion of grassland nomadic culture and agricultural culture; they corroborate the historical process by which the people of the Horqin grasslands moved from nomadic to agricultural civilisation, show distinctive national and regional features, and are of research value in such fields as history, ethnology, folklore, literature and art. At present, with the development of the economy, of society and of science and technology, Horqin narrative folk songs are gradually losing a suitable environment in which to survive and are on the verge of disappearing, so that rescue and protection work is urgent.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Haleizhen 04-1533
- Guribasier 05-2111
- Suyaletu 05-2112
- Hanmei 05-2113
- Guli 05-2114
- Aoyunbielige
- Houqinghe
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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