Ethan T.
April 2, 2013
Introduction
The topic that I chose to learn more about was Dongjing music because of my
already large passion for music. I enjoy listening and playing western music, but
wanted to learn more about Chinese music and to be able to compare it to
western music (that was my original plan). However, through my experience in
Xizhou, I decided to narrow my focus down to a particular genre of music:
Dongjing music. As I looked for sources of information, I decided to collect
opinionated data from two main people: Xiao Wu and Mr. Zhao. Xiao Wu is a
village governor with a dream to revive Dongjing music, and therefore had a lot of
connections with Dongjing musicians as well as some basic background
information about it. It was him who first introduced me to this genre of music.
Through him, I was able to talk to many more people. I also talked to Mr. Zhao, a
professional musician who lived through the years of the Cultural Revolution and
could explain the large revival of Dongjing music during the reforms. After
distinguishing my topic, I came up with a list of a few major questions that fit into
two categories; the first being a technical analysis of the music, and the second
being a more philosophical approach on the importance of tradition preservation.
Therefore, my final product will provide some background information on
Dongjing music, and then talk about the importance of preserving Dongjing music
afterwards.
Dongjing Music: The Importance of Preserving Tradition
Hundreds of years ago at the time of the Ming dynasty, the scholars of Dali
traveled to the North for education, and brought culture back to Dali with them on
their return. Ever since, the Naxi people of Yunnan and Sichuan have performed
and respected Dongjing music, a traditional folk genre used in religious worship.
The essence of Dongjing reminds citizens of the importance of Buddhist,
Confucianist, and Taoist scriptures and the dispersion of philosophical ideas. 1
A week after setting foot in Xizhou, I was still unsure of the exact aspect of Bai
Minority Music that I was going to more deeply understand. The plan that I
created before this month was to get a very general idea of Bai Music, and
wasn’t very focused. Hence, it was difficult for me to know where to start, and the
amount of work I had to get done seemed overwhelming. Of course, there are
many interesting topics that I could focus on, but it was the essence and origin of
Dongjing music that caught my eye because it is what brings the music its
meaning. I therefore started to look in the direction of Dongjing music and its
importance. However, I didn’t completely throw away the technical aspect of
Article: Dongjing Music in Xizhou (given to me by Xiao Tang, Linden Center
Accountant)
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music, because I knew that I needed some of the analytic information to
understand and appreciate the music.
In a large ensemble, there are two chanters/singers, then percussion, a section
of brass and woodwinds behind them, and then the stringed instruments. The
chanters are typically the leaders of the ensemble. I would compare this to a
symphony orchestra, where instruments are split into distinguished sections. As I
continued to analyze the ensembles and instruments, I was able to make even
more close connections between western music and Dongjing music. In smaller
ensembles (often a quartet), there is one Sanxian player, one Ruan, one Erhu,
and a percussionist. These are all very common Dongjing instruments and are
comparable with western instruments. For example, the Erhu is a two stringed
instrument that is played using a bow; it reminds me of a violin. The Sanxian is
picked and played horizontally, and is relatively larger and plays lower pitches
than the other instruments. This reminds me of the bass guitar because it plays a
supporting line rather than the melody of a song. Lastly, the Ruan is a stringed
instrument played with a pick. The pitch is played by pressing fingers down on
different frets; this is similar to a guitar. 2
Dongjing music uses the pentatonic scale, reinforcing the fact that it has been
around for a long time (the pentatonic scale is one of the oldest scales in music).
Almost all songs are written in the time signature of 4/4. A very common
technique that all instruments use is the trill, which is played by picking or bowing
the note very quickly. Vibrato is also often used in Dongjing music.
How did my interest for all of this start exactly? It was on the day that we (the
microcampus group) went on our group hike up to the tea plantation that I met a
village governor named Xiao Wu who had a vision of reviving Dongjing music in
his village. I heard this and decided to talk to him more about Dongjing music and
his opinions on it. As the conversation went on, I was eventually invited to a
Dongjing festival in Dali the next day which sparked my fascination for the
subject.
On the day of the concert, I spoke to a few members of the ensemble about
Dongjing music. Not knowing anything about it prior to the concert, I was able to
ask a lot of questions and discover many great new ideas. The first person I
talked to was an Erhu player, and when I asked him to play some music for me,
he responded: “Play music? By myself? Dongjing music is only Dongjing music
when people come together and play. You cannot express the values of Dongjing
with only one musician.” He then went on to tell me about the religious morals
that it preaches, and why those are important. After having conversations with
several others, I was interested in learning more about Dongjing music and
thought of shifting my project focus over to the importance of Dongjing revival.
After listening to Dongjing music played at “The Lily Pad” and by Mr. Zhao’s
ensemble.
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I started looking for more experts on Dongjing music and found a man named Mr.
Zhao, who had good relations with staff from the Linden Center. As we talked on
the phone one night, Mr. Zhao offered to come over to the place we were staying
to perform for us. That night, he and 3 other members of the ensemble played
some music for us and helped me better understand the history of Dongjing
music. He mentioned that the reason Dongjing music nearly became extinct was
because of the Cultural Revolution. At the time, all Dongjing music had been
banned from China, and so people stopped listening to it. Eventually, during the
reforms, Dongjing music was allowed to be played again. A few men decided to
have a huge celebration for the revival of Dongjing music, and it was that
celebration that sparked the comeback of Dongjing music. However, since that
day, Dongjing music has started to fade away again, and elders are hoping for a
revival of this. 3
As I stated previously, Dongjing music has been around for nearly 800 years.
This proves that the Dongjing instruments came much before many of the
modern western instruments, and had strong influence over them. It is important
to at least acknowledge the fact that Dongjing music was a great contribution to
world music. Losing Dongjing music takes the traditional instruments with it, as
well as the entire Dongjing culture.
Throughout the music chants, religious scriptures and lessons are preached.
These are important life lessons that are unique to their culture and their past,
and should not be taken away from them, because that is what makes their
culture different from any other. This isn’t a matter of preaching a specific
religion, but an acknowledgement of the importance of a culture’s convictions.
Reflection
My Microcampus journey was one that I will never forget. Every day was
something to look forward to and more to inquire about, and with each answer,
more questions come; and it leads to an unending journey of learning.
Microcampus isn’t about isolating yourself from your peers, but rather an
experience where students get to learn and figure things out on their own. Not
only did I acquire independence from this opportunity, but also discovered the
beauty of nature and true Chinese culture. Before this month, I had always
viewed nature as boring and rural China as a lower quality area (and perhaps it
is), but Microcampus has awakened me to see that nature is part of who we are
and what makes the world so amazing. The interaction with locals have also led
me to conclude that the people of China are often very hospitable and friendly,
contradicting the frequent negative stereotypes. When any of us started talking to
a Xizhou citizen, they would most likely respond with wholly friendliness and
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Mr. Zhao, Musician
would sometimes even invite us into their houses. This is something for all of us
to learn from and respect. Lastly, mainly through my inquiry project, I was able to
make deeper connections and take my critical thinking to a whole new level.
Rather than making it a musically enhanced project, I decided to instead think
about the philosophical ideas and areas of my topic.
Before I came to Microcampus, I knew almost nothing about music within the Bai
Minority. Based on the topic descriptor, I assumed that there was an actual genre
of music called Bai Music, but when I arrived, I realized that there wasn’t. On the
first week, I felt a little lost on where to start and what direction to look towards,
and therefore decided to continue to pursue my project of giving an overview of
everything I know about Bai Music.
No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t find any articles or books about Dongjing
music. After looking through multiple online search engines, asking staff from the
Linden Center about books about Dongjing Music, and then even scanning the
entire library once again, I was still unable to pick up a book. This was definitely
the most difficult part of my inquiry project. Since I couldn’t find information from
outside sources, my solution was to get musicians and citizens’ opinions on
Dongjing music in order to gather information to justify my conclusion on the
importance of tradition.
One day, a village mayor named “Xiao Wu” started talking about Dongjing music,
a traditional folk genre, and eventually invited me over to a Dongjing concert. I
was both surprised and thrilled, and was eager to attend the concert.
At the concert, I got to talk to a few of the instrumentalists about why they think
Dongjing music is so important. After talking to them, I realized that this was the
topic that interested me the most because of the philosophical aspect of it. It also
gave me a more focused topic to elaborate on in my final product rather than an
broad generalization.
This project did not primarily enhance my musical knowledge, but helped me
become a better critical thinker. It was only this year that I found my interest in
philosophical and moral topics, and this project only increased that interest. I am
now not only a factual thinker, but an “inquirer”.
If I could start this project all over, I would make sure to research a lot more
before I even get here, because by the time I get to Xizhou, I should be done with
all background information and be ready to research and explore within the
village. This time I stalled my research on background information prior to the
trip, so I wasted nearly a week trying to catch up on the research. If I (or
someone else) could go further with this project, I would suggest to not only write
or advocate for the preservation of Dongjing music, but actually take action and
make a difference.
Lastly, I would like to thank a few people for helping me out with this inquiry
project.
1) Xiao Tang (Linden Center Staff/Accountant), for giving me so many sources of
information to talk to.
2) Xiao Wu (village governor), for taking me to a Dongjing concert and helping
me understand the basic reasoning of Dongjing music.
3) Mr. Zhao/Ms. Duan (an elderly couple and musicians), for allowing me to even
further understand the truth behind Dongjing music.
Mr. T and my parents, for being supportive of my inquiry work at every stage.