"I'm performing at the Zhaozhuang Magic Theater?" Chu Jinde on the other end of the phone was anxious.

Right now is the cultural and natural heritage day event period this year, the local epidemic has eased, performances have been moderately released, and various intangible cultural heritage exhibitions and literary and art going to the countryside have begun. Yes." Chu Jinde said.

Chu Jinde is the provincial inheritor of Handian Suona, an intangible cultural heritage protection project in Henan Province. The Handian Suona in Xiaoqi Township, Baofeng County arose in the early years of Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty, and its inheritance continues to this day. Wang Wei, Secretary of the Party Branch of Handian Village, told reporters that at present, there are more than 20 suona performance groups and more than 200 suona artists in Handian Village. Handian Village has built a folk suona garden, and is looking for new development opportunities for suona performances in the integration of culture and tourism.

Folk horns that have passed through a hundred years

During the interview, Chu Jinde told reporters about the origin of Handian Suona:

During the reign of Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, Guo Dan, a squire in Handian Village, was very fond of opera, and formed two opera troupes, with suona as the accompaniment of opera. In the early days of the Republic of China, suona artists Chen Chuntang and Liu Lin often went to Handian Village to form a friendship and learn skills. Later, Liu Lin was attracted by the strong cultural atmosphere and simple folk customs of Handian, and settled in Handian, where suona took root and blossomed.

In the 1960s, Chu Jinde and the villagers Du Shishi, Du Jianming, Du Wenwen, Su Changjiang and others learned from Liu Lin, learned suona skills, and performed with the Handian Opera Troupe. In 1967, the first suona troupe was established in the village, and they began to "produce good children" in the surrounding villages (the locals call it "good children" when they go out to perform). Since then, people who like to blow, pull, play, and sing have emerged in an endless stream, which have been passed down from generation to generation. Almost everyone in Handian Village can sing a few words.

The 1980s and 1990s were the golden age of Handian Suona. In Baofeng County, the first thing that comes to mind during weddings, funerals, store openings, festivals and other events is to go to Handian. The surrounding Ruzhou, Jiaxian, and Lushan also invite the Handian suona music class to add to the fun. At most, there are thirty or forty suona groups in Handian Village going out to perform.

When Chu Jinde was 14 years old, he continued to practice suona while systematically studying music with his second brother who worked in the Henan Opera Troupe, and later taught music at Xiaoqi High School. When there are performance invitations on holidays, he will take the team out to perform. Now 68 years old, he mainly focuses on the intangible cultural heritage study hall in the village on weekdays, carrying out regular training activities, and undertakes the activities of "intangible cultural heritage entering the campus", and sometimes still goes out to perform.

Chu Jinde told reporters that his special skills are "super" suona (that is, connecting the suonas together, which is more than 1 meter long), playing with his nose, and playing two suonas at the same time. , the high and low frequencies are not easy to control, you need to practice repeatedly in small sections, the suona is loud and noisy during practice, no matter how cold the winter is or how hot the summer is, you have to find a wild forest far away to practice, the fingers are swollen and disappear, Then it became flexible; the throat was sore, let it rest for a while before blowing again."

Chu Jinde's eldest son is 32 years old this year. In addition to playing the suona, he can also play the sheng, flute and electronic organ, and often performs outside. Chu Jinde also hoped that his grandson would also learn suona and pass it on from generation to generation.

Suona artist's persistence

Du Shuchao is the backbone representative of Handian suona playing in the Mesozoic era. All five sisters in her family can play and blow. In recent years, due to the halving of the local wedding and wedding expenses, Du Shuchao's suona class business has declined, so he had to open a small restaurant to protect the family's income. But she still holds on to suona art feelings.

Du Shuchao’s house also kept the tin box she used when she was performing with her parents when she was a child. “At that time, I went out and put the equipment in this box, then put the box on the tricycle, pulled it and left.” Du Shuchao introduced that in the 1980s , Handian suona artists have economic savvy, and the playing of sheng and suona in the performance team has gradually become fixed to people. "At that time, it was mainly for red and white matters. A 'good boy' was 5 yuan. By the 1990s, it had risen to 150 yuan to 300 yuan, and the income was very considerable."

Due to the high income, more and more people began to come to Handian to learn arts. For a time, the suona sound of Handian Village continued. "The most frequent occurrence of 'good children' is more than 20 times a month, and there are thirteen or four times less. The earliest households with ten thousand yuan in the village are those who play suona."

Now, the income of "good children" is about 200 yuan a day on average. Generally, a team of 3-5 people is guaranteed to have at least one suona, one blowing sheng, and one playing cymbal. Du Shuchao said that in order to attract young people, elements of popular music are now added to the performance, not only playing suona, but also opera, song and dance performances, etc., and will also increase performance items according to the requirements of customers, such as those who ask to play saxophone. .

Although the current market is not as good as before, Du Shuchao's performance is still going on. When the cultural activities are further released in the future, her stage car equipped with performance equipment such as mixing consoles, speakers, microphones, and microphone stands can be opened at any time. go out.

Cultural and tourism integration seeks new opportunities

The Folk Suona Garden in Handian Village is located at the entrance of the village. It is a small two-story building with an exhibition hall on the west side of the first floor. There is a stage in the front and eight Eight Immortals Tables in the back. Sound insulation boards are installed on the walls to avoid the excessively high-pitched suona sound from disturbing the people; It is a folk supermarket with daily necessities and folk handicrafts such as home cloth.

On the west side of the second floor is the Suona History Museum, which includes a display of traditional suona objects, a graphic introduction to the suona champions of all dynasties, and a display of old photos of suona artists visiting teachers and learning arts. Display of all intangible cultural heritage items.

Zhou Xiaopeng, the mayor of Xiaoqi Township, told reporters that the Suona Garden was built with an investment of 2 million yuan in 2019. "It's lively here every day, and people practice every day." In the past, villagers liked to gather in a small forest in the village to practice, but it was cold in winter and hot in summer. , It was windy and rainy, and I couldn't practice. Now I have changed it here, and the environment is more comfortable.

In order to find new development opportunities for suona performances, Zhou Xiaopeng said that Xiaoqi Township is promoting the integrated development of agriculture, culture and tourism. In 2019, Henan Kanglong Company invested 160 million yuan in Xiaoqi Township to build the theme of ecological circular agriculture and youth science education, integrating science education, ecological farming, organic planting, intensive processing, agricultural tourism, leisure picking, and cultural experience. It is a leisure and sightseeing park that integrates functions such as idyllic vacation, sports and health preservation, etc. It has been identified as "Henan Province Popular Science Education Base".

"Research tourism is now a hotspot. We plan to use Handian Village as a point on this route to bring people to Handian. Handian Village has a long history, and the old oil mills and old vinegar workshops that have been on the old street for several generations are still in operation. , the suona culture in the village has a deep accumulation, and we plan to launch a suona performance for each group of tourists to help suona artists increase their income." Zhou Xiaopeng said.