Russian Bayangyishu
01 · Historical Records
'Bayan' is the Russian transliteration of the button accordion, a national instrument used widely by the Russian people; it reached China together with the migration of Russian immigrants. In the 1930s and 1940s Russian culture became fashionable in Ili.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Russian bayan art, that is, the art of playing the button accordion, is a traditional cultural expression form circulating mainly in parts of the Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Ili is a 'wet island' in the arid belt of Eurasia, with plentiful rainfall, a moist climate, fertile land, ample water, vast grasslands and rich produce, and it has long been known as the 'Central Asian oasis' and the 'lush land beyond the frontier'. Unlike the traditional keyboard accordion, the keyboard of the bayan is made up of button after button arranged in serpentine order, giving it a range that the traditional keyboard accordion cannot match. Because the buttons are set so closely together, the five fingers of the right hand can play easily over a range of two octaves. The left hand of the bayan accordion can play not only the traditional bass of the keyboard accordion but also free bass with a pitch span of four octaves, so its colouring in musical expression is richer. The earliest bayans had only three rows of buttons; later they developed to five rows, which widened the range of works that could be performed. The bayan has always been regarded as the most traditional folk instrument and the one that best expresses Russian ethnic feeling; its transmission is continuous with the development of Russian folk music culture. Solo and ensemble playing are the most traditional performing forms of bayan art; the pieces played have a wide range, a long-breathed sustain and rich harmonic expressiveness. The use of parallel chords with ethnic character is a common harmonic form in bayan art. As a traditional compositional device of Russian ethnic music, the natural mode is found in both traditional and modern bayan works. It can be said that Russian ethnic music culture is always fully expressed in bayan art and, joined to popular culture in a plain and direct way, is thereby able to circulate. The Russians of the Ili region were the last immigrant ethnic group to settle in Ili. The Russians are warm and unrestrained in character; whenever there is a gathering they take up the accordion and the balalaika, singing and dancing at once. As time has passed, the Russians of Ili have merged into the great family of the motherland; the ethnic groups exchange with one another, and bayan art has gradually come to be shared by many nationalities.
Button keyboard in serpentine order
Unlike the traditional keyboard accordion, the keyboard of the bayan is made up of button after button arranged in serpentine order, giving it a range that the traditional keyboard accordion cannot match; because the buttons are set so closely together, the five fingers of the right hand can play easily over a range of two octaves.
Free-bass with four octaves
The left hand of the bayan accordion can play not only the traditional bass of the keyboard accordion but also free bass with a pitch span of four octaves, so its colouring in musical expression is richer.
From three to five rows
The earliest bayans had only three rows of buttons; later they developed to five rows, widening the range of works that could be performed.
Parallel chords and natural modes
The use of parallel chords with ethnic character is a common harmonic form in bayan art; as a traditional compositional device of Russian ethnic music, the natural mode is found in both traditional and modern bayan works.
Solo and ensemble
Solo and ensemble playing are the most traditional performing forms of bayan art; the pieces played have a wide range, a long-breathed sustain and rich harmonic expressiveness.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Ili Prefecture lies in the western part of the Tianshan mountain range in China and is surrounded by mountains on three sides; it commands a strategic position on the northern route of the ancient Silk Road, and its geographical advantages are very marked.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
At present this heritage item is transmitted mainly by master-apprentice teaching and through formal education, drawing on the performance practice of troupes and orchestras and on teaching in schools. Russian bayan art is rooted in the life of the people, keeps pace with the times and has developed rapidly; it has distinctive artistic features, rich ethnic character and a strong sense of the age. While bringing the public genuine enjoyment, it has also offered a model for the development of other ethnic music, promoting cultural exchange and ethnic unity, and it has considerable artistic, historical, cultural and social value.
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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