The peculiar shape and the rounded color of the faucet sanxian are the unique stringed instruments of the Bai people. It is often used as a soloist or as an accompaniment to Bai folk songs and rap, and is deeply loved by the Bai people.

On October 19, Zhang Shengchun, from Jianchuan County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, was showing the production skills of the dragon head sanxian to the audience at the booth of the 7th Chengdu International Intangible Cultural Heritage Festival "Competition of Traditional Chinese National Musical Instruments".

Zhang Shengchun

Zhang Shengchun has been making Longtou Sanxian since he was 20 years old. "My ancestors all made musical instruments. This skill has been handed down from my ancestors to me, and it is already the fifth generation." The structure is composed of: faucet, tuning rod, chord, string, string drum and bridge bead and other components.

"The circumference of the string drum is the length of the string rod, and the sound of the string is produced by playing the string and vibrating the string drum, so it is the key to have a certain technique for covering the drum surface." The drum surface displayed by Zhang Shengchun was made of snake skin and sheep skin respectively Refined, this is also the common drum surface of the faucet sanxian. "The drum surface made of snakeskin and sheepskin can ensure that it will not soften in rainy days, and will not harden in dry weather, and the sound quality will remain unchanged throughout the year." Around the box below the drum surface, is Zhang Shengchun's traditional hand-carved pictures are "generally dominated by piano, chess, calligraphy and painting, spring, summer, autumn and winter, pine, bamboo, plum and orchid."

The head of the piano is a blue dragon head hand-carved by Zhang Shengchun. "We are the hometown of woodcarving, and the head of the dragon represents good luck. Legend has it that the strings are made of dragon tendons, and now most of them are made of nylon threads. The wood is green bark, autumn wood, and mahogany in Yunnan. Red toon and other common woods." After speaking, Zhang Shengchun played a small local tune for the reporter, "The dragon head sanxian is an indispensable accompaniment instrument for singing Bai tune, and it can also accompany other music. As long as there are Bai people, there is a dragon head sanxian. The presence."

Zhang Shengchun plays the dragon head sanxian

Zhang Shengchun proudly said, "In the past, the leading sanxian was only circulated in the areas where the Bai people live together, but now the leading sanxian I made has been spread all over the country, province and prefecture. For example: Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Beijing and other places, it has also been used by students of the Central University for Nationalities in Beijing. Yang Chengzhang collected and used it, and it has also spread to the United States, Vietnam, Laoguo, Pakistan and other countries. The 'Yangjinhua' Wang Lisha from the United States can speak the Bai language and sing the Bai song. She also uses the faucet made by me all the time. Sanxian playing and singing."

The faucet sanxian has been hand-made since the past dynasties, and the technology has been continuously improved. Today, the faucet sanxian produced is more precise, delicate and beautiful. "There are more and more people who like to play the faucet sanxian. The faucet sanxian I make is in short supply, and I have also trained a group of apprentices, which have been mass-produced. There are many schools and singing groups who have come to order in batches. The majority of users love it." Zhang Shengchun believes that through this intangible cultural heritage festival, the leading sanxian he made will be known and liked by more people.