Gong and Drum Art
01 · Historical Records
The Da Tong Qi is a gong and drum art circulated mainly in Suiping County of Zhumadian City, Henan Province, and the surrounding cities and counties. Suiping County was historically an agricultural county, and the Da Tong Qi was gradually nurtured and born in its long agricultural production and life. Its performance activity spreads throughout Suiping County and the neighbouring cities and counties of Xiping, Biyang, Wuyang, Pingdingshan and Luohe, and in recent years its range of activity has extended as far as Zhengzhou, Kaifeng, Jiaozuo, Luoyang, Nanyang, Xinyang and other places.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
The Da Tong Qi is a gong and drum art circulated mainly in Suiping County of Zhumadian City, Henan Province, and the surrounding cities and counties. Its performance activity spreads throughout Suiping County and the neighbouring cities and counties of Xiping, Biyang, Wuyang, Pingdingshan and Luohe. In recent years its range of activity has extended throughout Henan Province; Suiping Da Tong Qi troupes have left their mark in Zhengzhou, Pingdingshan, Kaifeng, Jiaozuo, Luoyang, Nanyang, Xinyang and other places. Suiping County was historically an agricultural county, and the Da Tong Qi was gradually nurtured and born in its long agricultural production and life. The Suiping Da Tong Qi is a typical representative of China's ancient percussion instruments and has a history of at least a hundred years in Suiping. Suiping Da Tong Qi performance is divided into the standalone and the accompanying. Standalone performance is used mainly for sacrifice, to protect the household and to pray for blessings, with the Da Tong Qi performance itself as the focus; accompanying performance is used mainly for New Year revels, shehuo and the like, providing accompaniment for dragon dancing, lion dancing, the bamboo horse and the dry boat. Traditional Suiping Da Tong Qi scores are mostly in duple metre; triple metre is mostly used for lively, cheerful atmospheres and quadruple metre mostly for representing grand scenes. There are more than 140 traditional tune patterns, of which more than 50 are in common use today. The Da Tong Qi expresses different musical emotions mainly through percussion and the expressive movements of the dancers. Liu Shi Nao is ardent, accelerating from slow to fast and stirring to the heart; Hua Zhao is light, easy and joyful; Zhu Ba Jie Bei Xi Fu is humorous and witty, drawing the audience in; Da Nao Tian Gong is uninhibited, and when the waving of the cymbals reaches its climax the cymbal-bearers toss more than a dozen great cymbals weighing more than ten jin into the air and catch them all at once, leaving the onlookers full of admiration. Da Tong Qi performance is played from tune-pattern scores and conducted by the side drum, and is strongly dance-like. The musical structure is simple, it requires no fixed time or occasion for performance, and participation by the masses is strong. It colours the emotions mainly through changes of rhythm, and uses performing techniques such as spinning, flipping, muting and rolling of the cymbals to change the timbre and heighten its expressive power, so that it is welcome and much enjoyed by the people. The themes in its tune patterns include remote antiquity culture, the totems of the Chinese nation, exhortation to goodness, helping others, affection and mutual encouragement, and they are artistic reflections of the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation and of its spirit of unceasing self-improvement.
Liu Shi Nao
One of the tune patterns of the Suiping Da Tong Qi in common use, ardent in character, accelerating from slow to fast and stirring to the heart.
Hua Zhao
One of the tune patterns of the Suiping Da Tong Qi in common use, light in style, easy and joyful.
Zhu Ba Jie Bei Xi Fu
One of the tune patterns of the Suiping Da Tong Qi in common use, humorous in style, witty and engaging.
Da Nao Tian Gong
One of the tune patterns of the Suiping Da Tong Qi in common use, uninhibited in style; when the waving of the cymbals reaches its climax, the cymbal-bearers toss more than a dozen great cymbals weighing more than ten jin into the air and catch them all at once.
Standalone and accompanying performance
Suiping Da Tong Qi performance is of two kinds: standalone performance, used mainly for sacrifice, to protect the household and to pray for blessings, with the Da Tong Qi performance itself as the focus; and accompanying performance, used mainly for New Year revels, shehuo and the like, providing accompaniment for dragon dancing, lion dancing, the bamboo horse and the dry boat.
140-plus traditional pieces
Traditional Suiping Da Tong Qi scores are mostly in duple metre; triple metre is mostly used for lively, cheerful atmospheres and quadruple metre mostly for representing grand scenes. There are more than 140 traditional tune patterns, of which more than 50 are in common use today.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
The content it performs is largely connected with local historical legends, providing a reference basis for related research. The Suiping Da Tong Qi conveys the joys, sorrows, anger and happiness of the communities and groups concerned and is an important carrier of regional culture; transmitting and developing the Suiping Da Tong Qi plays a positive role in continuing the rich and colourful folk traditions of the locality and in promoting social harmony.
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04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
The Da Tong Qi troupes of the villages of Suiping County are made up mainly of people from their own village and are transmitted within the clan. Over a long period, following traditional scores, the Suiping Da Tong Qi has been continuously transmitted, developed and innovated, and has come to exert a certain influence in Henan Province and across the country.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Liu Yaowen 03-0882
- Zhao Manzong 05-2134
- Zhang Shushe 05-2135
- Wu Mingchang 05-2136
- Yang Renhe 05-2137
- Liu Qingyun 05-2138
- Liu Zhen 05-2139
- Li Xingguang 05-2140
- Wangdaozhang 05-2141
- Cheng Qinxiang 05-2142
- Wang Guohai
- Xuezongfeng
- Hong Yuqing
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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