Sainaimu
01 · Historical Records
Ili Sainaim developed from prototypes of song and dance performed by the ancient Uyghur ancestors in folk songs, wedding songs and dances, and various celebrations; it is one of the oldest forms of folk art of the Uyghur people of Ili. It preserves complete sets of formal passages and fixed lyrics, integrating music, dance and poetry into one. According to the project files and the accounts of inheritors, the seventeen formal passages of Ili Sainaim have a relatively fixed order of performance; its performing style is distinctive, lively and humorous, and it is the form of activity most loved by the Uyghur people of Ili in their communal entertainments and gatherings.
02 · Core Techniques & Process
Ili Sainaim is a traditional folk dance of the Uyghur people of Ili that integrates music, dance and poetry and has a strong regional character; it is the oldest form of folk art, formed from the song-and-dance prototypes that ancient Uyghur ancestors performed at folk songs, wedding songs and dances, ritual ceremonies and various celebrations. The movements of Ili Sainaim dance are free and unrestrained, brisk and agile; in dancing men and women face each other, the emotional exchange between them is frank and natural. Ili Sainaim is an artistic performing form composed of seventeen formal passages, with fixed lyrics, integrating song, music and dance; it is also the form of activity most loved by the Uyghur people of Ili in their communal entertainments and gatherings. In the Ili River valley, the occasions on which Sainaim is performed include weddings, circumcision ceremonies, Meshreps and festival celebrations; the band is made up chiefly of the dap (frame drum), the dutar, the tanbuer and the ajek, the singing starts first and the dancers enter afterwards, and the rhythm accelerates gradually from a moderate tempo until the whole company dances together.
Seventeen sections
It is built of seventeen sections with fixed words, uniting song, music and dance, and remains the favourite pastime of Ili Uyghur gatherings.
Candour between partners
Its movement is free and crisp, and the frank exchange between paired dancers marks it off from other local sanam.
Weddings and meshrep in the Ili valley
Descended from the song-dances of weddings, rites and celebrations, it is still danced at weddings and meshrep across the Ili valley.
Ablimit Shahabi
Born in Yining county in 1953, Ablimit Shahabi performs with a distinct and humorous style and has long drawn students and organised competitions.
The Ili ensemble
Its band of frame drum, dutar, tambur and ghijak launches the song first, the dancers following as the tempo climbs until everyone dances.
03 · Regional Records & Related Items
Ili Sainaim is transmitted mainly in Yining County, Yining City and Qapqal in the Ili River valley, and the Yining County Cultural Centre is its protecting unit. Local artists often string Sainaim together with Ili folk songs and wedding songs and dances, forming a complete programme integrating song, music and dance, and in dancing men and women face each other with a frank and natural exchange of feeling.
Other submitting regions for the same item: Uyghur Sanam · Uyghur Sanam · Sainaimu · Sainaimu · Sainaimu · Sainaimu · Sainaimu.
04 · Cultural Value & Contemporary Safeguarding
Ablimit Shahabi (associated inheritor, as recorded in the official file): Male, Uyghur ethnicity, born in May 1953, native of Yining County, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. The Ili Sainaim he performs is distinctive in style, lively and humorous, and is deeply loved and approved by the local people. For a long time he has been devoted to the transmission and dissemination of Ili Sainaim, attracting numerous followers to learn it, and he has also actively organized and taken part in various competitions and performances. Representative inheritor of Sainaim (Ili Sainaim), a national-level intangible cultural heritage project in the fifth national batch.
05 · Associated Representative Bearers
Representative bearers recorded under this item, organized by national nomination batch:
- Aimaiti Simayi 03-0954
- Nasier Nusuer 04-1583
- Aimidouli Rehemisha 05-2283
- Yimin Yibila 05-2284
- Yasen Aisa 05-2285
- Abulimiti Xiahabi 05-2286
06 · Authoritative Sources & Bibliography
Sources
China Intangible Cultural Heritage Network (ihchina.cn)
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