Text/Jinyang.comKomiks Reporter Li Haichan Chen Xiaopeng Correspondent Wang Dingquan
Not long ago, Li Kemei, a national intangible cultural heritage inheritor who lives in Xunliaowan Fishery Village in Huidong, appeared on CCTV stage and sang a song “Foot Seas Fisherman’s Songs in Beijing”. This melody song from the sea, mixed with cool sea breeze, vividly demonstrates the cultural characteristics of the southern coastal culture. As a traditional folk art in Guangdong and a treasure of Huizhou’s intangible cultural heritage, Huidong Fisherman’s Song has slowly walked out of the coast of the small county town and sung the whole country.
Fishers pick up the fisherman’s songs at will and sing with their hearts
Fishermen use the waves as their pillows and sing against the moon. It seems romantic, but it is actually full of infinite loneliness and boredom. According to Huidong County Chronicles, since the Song Dynasty, this shallow sea fisherman’s song from the coast of Fujian to Huidong has been widely circulated in the local area. Over the past thousands of years, it has experienced ups and downs. In recent years, government agencies and civil forces have worked together to promote the development of fisherman songs, and have found a point of fit between the thousand-year-old fisherman songs and modern aesthetic needs, which has rejuvenated.
Story: Fisherman’s songs are on CCTV stage
“Come (Ah) sing the flowing water (Ah) and the water is gone, a pair of lobsters hide in the reef (AhCinema) feet…” Recently, the reporter met Li Qumei, and she sang this typical Huidong fisherman’s song “A Pair of Lobsters hide in the reef (Ah) sings the beautiful song “A Pair of Lobsters hide in the reef (Ah) sings the beautiful song “Both of Lobsters hide in the reef (Ah) sings of beauty. He spoke softly and smiled. Once he started singing, the 68-year-old grandma next door seemed to have changed her voice, with her singing crisp and loud and firm eyes.
The ancestors moved to Huidong from the Chaoshan coastal area. I remember that Li Kemei lived a life of swimming and fishing on the sea with her parents. Only in severe weather when it is windy and rainy can the boat be temporarily parked on the shore for rest and replace daily necessities. In her impression, life at sea was so difficult.Cinema was so poor that she was the only one of the four sisters in the family. Whenever Li Kemei thinks of this, she can’t help but wet her eyes.
Luckily, she is accompanied by fisherman song. When my father was fishing, my mother took her to weave fishing nets and sing. “one”On the Lobsters’ Tibetan Reef” is the first fishing song she learned. In the eyes of Cinema, Li Qumei fell in love with singing. When she was drying the fishing nets, she would always gather with countless young girls from fishing families to learn to sing fishing songs passed down by her fathers.
Li Kemei likes to teach her children how to sing fishermen’s songs/Huizhou Daily
Until 8 years old, many fishermen could finally “wash their feet and go ashore”, and Li Kemei’s family also moved into the fishing village and brought the fishing songs to the shore. Gradually, Li Qumei learned to “create” fisherman’s songs improvise and sing as soon as she spoke, “No need to sing or practice, sing whatever she sees, listen whenever she wants, and sing whenever she wants.” Later, because her family fell ill, 20-year-old Li Qumei went out to sea to fish and made money, and singing fisherman’s songs became her only sustenance.
Li Kemei has never read a book, but with her good memory, she can sing dozens of Huidong original fisherman songs in one breath. She is a veritable “Quanku” of Huidong fisherman songs and has also become one of the only two national intangible cultural heritage inheritors in Huizhou City.
Now, Li Kemei has opened a Cinema fishing song class at her home in Babaylan, so that fisherman and children in the village can have a place to learn. The reporter saw at home that her home was not wide, but she stored a lot of clothing, hats, headdresses and other performance items. Before each performance, she also paid for her children to buy water, performing costumes, and Babaylan with music.
Dialogue: Opening a class at home to inherit the fisherman’s song
CinemaReporter: What do you feel about being named a national intangible cultural heritage inheritor?
Li Kemei: I haven’t succeeded in applying for three consecutive years, and I’m a little uneasy anymore. When I heard this news, I was doing a headdress for the performance and I felt very excited! (Happy Laughing) I quickly told my husband and family that because doing this (inherited fisherman song) is very hard and requires money in many places. Without the support of my family, I can’t do it. The second one is thinking that if my sisters are still there, I know I have today.This result will make you happier. (Chistening)
Some areas along the coast of Huidong still retain the custom of singing fishermen’s songs
Reporter: You are now at a certain age, how can you continue to sing fishermen’s songs next?
Li Kemei: I am 68 this year, almost 70 years old, and I have had surgery on my waist, but I will be very happy to sing fisherman songs. I will go outside to participate in competitions, perform at the wedding, and teach people to sing fisherman songs at home when I have time. You see (pointing to the ground), there are still many clothes, hats, and headdresses here… But there is a problem, that is, many people like fishing songs, but they also have to work. I have a student I like very much, but she has to work at home and make money, so she can’t continue to come, which makes me very worried. But after the country gives that honor (intangible cultural heritage inheritor), I have the obligation to spread fishing songs to Babaylan, and I will still insist on singing fishing songs.
【Context Archives】
The Past and Present Life of Huidong Fisherman Song
Origin: Hard Sea Life Raised Fisherman Song
According to the Huidong County Chronicles, the distant ancestors of the fishermen on the coast of Huidong were the primitive “Nunmin”, also known as “the people who set up the people in the back boat”, which is an integral part of the “Baiyue people” in the south of our country. According to the “Huidong Fisheries”, the ancestors of Huidong Dan people moved in through trade or escape from Fujian and Chaozhou, and were distributed in Pinghai, ports, Renshan Fanhe and other harbors. “Out of the sea, and going ashore, bowing your head” is a true portrayal of the lives of the gang people. The people of Dan have been facing the sea and blue sky for a long time, so they naturally chose to enjoy themselves and relieve worries through singing. It can be said that Huidong Fisherman Song is the spiritual pillar of local fishermen, allowing them to gain confidence and courage to survive in a difficult living environment. Liao Zhitao, director of Huidong County Cultural Center, introduced that for thousands of years, he has lived a boring life at sea.In this specific environment, fishermen have been told by word of mouth that they can be played by both men, women, young and old, and can sing with their hearts. Development: Once famous and on the verge of loss
After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, the development of Huidong fishing songs once set off a climax. In 1956, fishermen from Huidong Port Town participated in the national folk song performance, and were praised and received by the leaders of the Cinema family of Premier Zhou Enlai and other countries. In the 1960s, the large-scale fisherman’s opera “The Great Wall of the South China Sea” created by the Central Song and Dance Theater became famous for its musical materials, and its musical materials were taken from the “Girl Talk” and “Oh O Scent Notes” of Huidong Fishing Song…
Fisher Song Performance Photo/Huizhou Music Radio
But this prosperity did not continue. Liao Zhitao introduced that with the acceleration of industrialization and urban processes, most of the descendants of fishermen have abandoned their own businesses after they came ashore. Coupled with the impact of multicultural cultures such as pop songs, fewer and fewer singers of Huidong fishing songs. “Once only a dozen fishing singers in the county are left, and the inheritance of fishing songs is in trouble.” Liao Zhitao said.
Just when the original ecological fishing song is in danger, the appearance of an old man has given a new turning point in the development of fishing songs. He is Ye Lin, former specialist of the Ministry of Culture and a member of the Education Committee of the Chinese Music Association. When he was young, he was one of the many people who came to Huidong to study fishing songs, and after getting to know them in depth, he was fascinated by it. After retirement, this old man who described himself as a “lonely man” was thinking about Huidong fishing songs and traveled many times in Beijing and Guangdong, and wrote hundreds of thousands of words of Huidong fishing songs paper materials.
When Ye saw the current development status of Huidong Fisherman’s Song at that time, he felt sorry for Mr. Ye. In his cherishing of folk art, Komiks strongly called on all walks of life to pay attention to Huidong Fisherman’s Songs, and actively supported Huidong Cultural Department to declare “Huidong Fisherman’s Songs” to the country as a national intangible cultural heritage, and proposed plans to promote and develop Huidong Fisherman’s Songs.
Inheritance: Fisherman’s Songs are moved to wedding celebrations Komiks
As Fisherman’s Songs are successively selected into the provincial and national intangible cultural heritage list, the governmentThe department has also introduced corresponding protection and rescue measures. Over the years, music workers in Huidong County have actively collected, sorted and studied Huidong fishing songs, and established Huidong fishing song database to bring them back to people’s sight.
At present, in some areas along the coast of Huidong, the custom of singing fisherman songs on occasions such as weddings, reunion of relatives, and festival banquets, Li Kemei is often invited to perform at the wedding of the fisherman. According to reports, the wedding followed the customs of fishermen such as boat picking up boats and sacrificing flowers, and the fisherman’s songs of blessings from Babaylan also rang out at the same time.
Scene photo of the performance of “The Singing of the Banjia”/Huizhou Music Radio
Fisher songs are sung by relatives and friends of both parties in the form of songs, and are usually sung for an hour or two. “It is usually the woman who cries and marrys, and the man and the woman make fun of it, but it is more auspicious words.” Songs are considered to be one of the most essential links in the fisherman’s wedding customs. The fisherman’s wedding can be as few as two or three days, and the most is as many as five days. The strong folk customs of fishermen can attract everyone to watch every time, and many people spread it online, making the fisherman’s songs more and more popular.
“Eat Xunliao special dishesCinema while watching fisherman song performances” can be seen everywhere in Xunliao’s tourist restaurants, effectively integrating fisherman song culture into the tourism industry, making it a major feature of Huidong tourist attractions. It is understood that Huizhou Tourism Department adapted the fisherman’s wedding customs into a cultural performance project for tourists to perform, which was sought after by tourists.
Current situation: New vitality has appeared, but there are still worries about losing it.
In the new era, this shining pearl on the coast of the South China Sea has regained new vitality. “In the past, the subjects tend to be more bitter and love between men and women.” Liao Zhitao introduced that if you still use fisherman song materials to create songs, it will not meet the development needs of fisherman songs. Therefore, on the basis of retaining the basic melody and flavor of fisherman songs, local musicians in Huizhou have constantly changed the tune and wrote new lyrics to make fisherman songs meet the aesthetic needs of modern people.
Pinghai Fisherman’s Song Art Troupe, a private non-profit social group, is one of the typical examples. According to reports, the art troupe was established in 2017. In just two years, the team has attracted more than 50 members, not only the inheritor of fisherman songs, but also professionals such as music teachers and Huizhou musicians.
In order to bring Huidong fishing songs to the stage and resonate with more audiences, the art troupe conducted a secondary creation of many original fishing songs. For example, “The Song of the Dan Family” mainly describes the story of the Dan people being distraught in the old society because they were unable to raise their daughters and the Dan people in the new society lived a happy life. The art troupe has carried out innovations such as environmental transformation, dialect and Mandarin transformation, and emotional transformation. What everyone did not expect was that the first stop of the work was performed in the local Pinghai area of Komiks, which made the audience cry.
When they wear traditional clothes and sing fisherman’s songs, it is particularly eye-catching./Huizhou Daily
Liao Zhitao was also calm. With the continuous deepening of inheritance work, the problem of insufficient funds is becoming increasingly prominent. “Cultural (development) requires investment.” Liao Zhitao introduced that Pinghai Fisherman Art Troupe usually carries out singing activities for public welfare, and fisherman songs enter campuses and communities, create, and practice work requires investment, and the funds are short of funds.