Tongliang Dragon Dance In Tongliang, Chongqing, "Dragon Dance" and "Dragon Dance" have been famous for a long time. "The Tongliang Dragon Dance has also been included in the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage representative list by the State Council. If you visit the dragon lantern artists and dragon dancers in Tongliang, you will be able to experience the majesty, delicacy and beauty of the "Tongliang Dragon Dance".
The Dragon Dance has been passed down from generation to generation
Among the many dragon dancers in Tongliang, there are three who are known as the "Three Great Masters of the Tongliang Dragon Dance": Jiang Yulin, Zhou Jun'an, and Fu Quantai. Jiang, Zhou two people have passed away, only 72-year-old Fu old man is still in the innovation of his tie skills. See Fu is in his small workshop, familiar with his neighbors said, Fu is the best color painting, is known far and near the "Chongqing City, one of the ten folk artists". The old man witnessed the development of Tongliang dragon lanterns, talking about the history of dragon lanterns, Fu said with pleasure: "Tongliang dragon lanterns started in the Ming Dynasty, flourished in the Qing Dynasty. According to legend, in the county 1400 years ago, the famous ancient temple Lushang Temple and a little later Polun Temple, there are a variety of dragon decorations and patterns, people are to play the dragon for fun ...... "" Tongliang is the land of rice, the earliest dragons are straw dragons, due to play and dance with fireworks, easy to burn the human body, and later adapted to make the dragon lanterns. The first dragon was the straw dragon, which was easy to burn because of the fireworks during the play and dance, and then the stiff-necked dragon was made. It stands with its head high, lighted in the section, reflecting each other, very spectacular. Due to the long and hard neck of this dragon, it is inconvenient to play and dance, still not ideal." According to the old man said, around 1924, Chengguan famous master Li Jiezhi, Liu Lianshan in the dragon on the basis of each building and then add a circle of ribs, the dragon body made round and strong, each building can stretch at will, rotate freely, which appeared a new kind of flesh and bone, sinuous writhing dragons, the folk is called the "dragon" or "writhing dragon" or "dragon". "creeping dragon". In this way, after generations of skilled craftsmen such as Fu Lao's elaborate production and improvement, the original more than 20 people to play and dance the cloth spine of the big colorful dragons downsized to 5 or 3 people to play and dance a new type of small colorful dragons. According to the different industries, seasons and purposes, there are also bench dragons for simple and practical use, Huang Jing dragons for seeking rain in the dry season, and filial piety dragons for mourning. Tongliang dragon as the theme of crafts, up to more than a hundred kinds of products, not only for play and dance, but also for decoration, exported to more than 20 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities across the country and the United States, France, Italy and other more than 10 countries.
Dragon dance masters dance out of Asia
Farewell to the masters of the Zaolong, we met the famous Tongliang dragon dance master Zhang Yongjiang and Zhang Shunsheng. As soon as we met master Yongjiang, he took a "flying dragon in the sky" pose, said boldly: "We Tongliang people which town which village which person will not dance two times! Everyone can dance!" Yongjiang master said, "The key to the dragon dance is to have a dragon in mind, usually my dragon head, his dragon pearl ......" said the two danced up, slow dance with a sense of grace and generosity, fast dance when the excitement of the exuberance, really moving. They said: "Tongliang fire dragon is unique charm, playing iron water, spraying sparks, people dancing in the fire, the dragon flies in the fire, the scene is warm and colorful." Master Zhang Yongjiang recalled that when I was small, I looked forward to the 13th to 15th of the first month, which was the climax of the dragon dance, the most lively. On the street, the big dragon, fire dragon, leaping and flying, fish lamps, lion lamps, to and from the shuttle, the dragon fights and tigers, fire trees, a peaceful scene. At this time, distant business travelers, foreign friends and relatives, have gathered in the city, the city lights, inns full of ......
Tongliang Dragon Dance is not only rooted in tradition, but also blended with modern elements. Percussionist Wu Xianhu said we don't simply use gongs and drums to match, but also utilize electronic harmonic effects, combine traditional playing with modern instrumental music, and write new music to create the mood of the sea's rough, magical and unpredictable waves, giving the audience a sense of immersion. "We have danced the 'Chinese Dragon' to New Zealand, Malaysia, Thailand and Japan, and have also been invited to the United States, Britain, France, Switzerland, Belgium, India and other countries and regions." Master Shunsheng proudly said, "We have also taken many foreigners to apprentice!"
Tongliang Dragon Dance carries cultural ghosts
Tongliang Culture Bureau Secretary Cao Dingfu said, we organize the editing, traveled to all the villages and towns, whether it is orally or audio-visual recordings, will be on the verge of being lost in the folk of Tongliang Dragon Dance continue to collect into a book for posterity to leave the evidence. Tongliang people, with their obsessive pursuit of the dragon, played a brand-new face of the dragon township. Soon, the first book "Tongliang Folk Dragon Dance Integration", which systematically records the culture of Tongliang dragon dance, will be available. The book has completed the collection of information.
Tongliang County is expected to invest more than 3 million yuan in the next five years to rescue and protect the culture of Tongliang dragon dance. It is mainly used for collecting, organizing and publishing relevant information of dragon culture, innovation of Tongliang Dragon Dance program, establishment of Dragon Dance ecological protection district, training of Dragon Dance backbone team, improvement and innovation of dragon lamp crafts, enrichment and updating of Tongliang Dragon Museum display. Chongqing Tongliang dragon dance with cultural characteristics and unique artistic infectious force, was identified as the 2008 Olympic Games opening ceremony performance of the finale. For the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games in the cultural performances to show the unique flavor of the Bayu culture.
It is understood that the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games before the opening ceremony of the cultural and artistic performances, including folk songs, folk dance, folk sports, blowing music and other art forms. Since the beginning of last year after accepting the program recommendations, the Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony organizing committee of the 134 programs to carry out a serious understanding and review. Through many comparisons and screening, *** there are 20 programs finally confirmed as the official show of the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games, including the Chongqing Tongliang Dragon Dance, which has strong regional cultural characteristics and auspicious and festive artistic infectious force.
Tongliang County Culture, Broadcasting and New Bureau of the person in charge of the Olympic organizing committee requirements, the Tongliang dragon this performance content "unheard of, unheard of. According to this request, we appeared in the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games on the Tongliang Dragon, incorporating a large number of competitive dragon performances, and traditional performances are very different, the Olympic Dragon Dance "moves" than the previous dry and tightly coherent, the new creation of the "Olympic Dragon Dance 12 strokes! "in the order of" dragon out of the sea - horizontal strokes thousands of troops - dragon playing in the water - the blue waves --The dragon walks in the Taiji--Jiao Long plays in the water--Golden wave overturns--Turning over the river. --Lotus out of the sea --The two rings reflect the light --The golden dragon gathers its head --Golden splendor ".
At the same time, we have specially improved the music and costumes of Tongliang Dragon Dance. This time to participate in the performance of the long dragon *** 4, each about 60 meters long, the production of the dragon body, in order to reflect the Beijing Olympic Games 'Green Olympics' concept, the production of dragon furniture cloth is made of new environmentally friendly materials imported from the United States, and more pliable, "dragon scales" of the The color is more vivid, stronger sense of color, in the sunlight or light, the reflection of the luster is more dazzling. "The dancing dragon's posture is flowing and dynamic, which can meet the needs of various difficult actions. Music innovation will be Sichuan opera, symphony, harmony and other musical elements to be integrated, with "East meets West, through the ancient and modern, heaven and man" effect. The costumes are specially designed by the designated costume designer of the Olympic Games and produced by the designated manufacturer of the Olympic Games. Style and color are innovative, fusion of Sichuan opera costumes, traditional lapel, samurai armor, dragon dance cloud algae, Western animation elements. In addition, this Dragon Dance performance movement also has new breakthroughs and new highlights. Total ****5 minutes of performance time actors to complete the standing leg stirrups shoulder, lotus bloom and force round dragon dance, etc. "12 innovative and difficult action, the need for strength and speed of the performance of the action of the difficulty of the unprecedented.
Olympic Dragon Dance show organizing committee chief director Zhou Keji introduced, with the previous Tongliang Dragon Dance show is different, this time more than 100 actors and actresses are young people, the maximum age of 45 years old, the minimum age of 17 years old, they are made up of school teachers of audio, physical education and beauty, amateur athletes, and staff of the party and government agencies. Experts explained that the traditional Tongliang Dragon Dance is simple and difficult to perform, which can be accomplished by elderly people with rich performing experience, but the difficulty and taste of this performance are different from the past, which has high requirements for strength and cultural cultivation. The participating teams use off-the-job training, practicing 6 to 7 hours a day and dancing the dragon body about 1,000 times. The entire performing team has entered the final sprint. "Rehearsal is very hard, the number of times a day the dragon dance more than 1,000 times, in the process of rehearsal injuries and illnesses are common, band-aids are used dozens of boxes. From April 2 to now, in the Tongliang County Stadium Dragon Dance Training Base, more than 100 dragon dance players insist on hard training every day, even if they encountered hot weather has not reduced their enthusiasm. Because, in the hearts of these dragon dance players have a **** the same beliefs: in the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony to successfully complete the performance tasks, showing the Bayu culture posture. In order to prepare for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games before the performance, so that the style of Tongliang Dragon and the Bayu culture of the posture of the Olympic Games to get a perfect show, Tongliang Dragon Dance Team for each technical action are very strict requirements, the members of the training is also quite hard. Tongliang Dragon Dance team member Zeng Lingguo told reporters: "We start at 7:00 every morning, run three laps on the 400-meter track in the sports field, and then carry out the fast dragon dance practice, to keep swinging the arms left and right more than 2,000 times, once in the morning and once in the afternoon." The daily high-intensity training has rubbed blood blisters on the hands of many Tongliang Dragon Dance team members. Training down, they bought a dozen dozen band-aid, blood blisters tightly wrapped up. Player Wang Gang strained thigh muscles, swollen high, but he did not take a minute off, sprayed with Yunnan Baiyao, and then put into the training; player Wang Ji left ankle fracture, playing the cast to insist on training. Long Yi, a female dragon dancer with white skin, has turned into a "black peony" after four months of training in the hot sun. She told the author with a smile that although she has become a black oil man, it is worth it to dance the dragon well for the country and her hometown Chongqing."
Five minutes and eight applause
The Chongqing Tongliang Dragon Dance team members were excited after their first performance in front of tens of thousands of spectators at the Bird's Nest Stadium. According to the Chongqing Tongliang Dragon Dance Team Chief Coach Zhou Keji introduced yesterday is Chongqing Tongliang Dragon Dance for the first time in accordance with the opening ceremony of the official process of the show, the audience very much like the program, 8 times for the program applauded warmly. According to the arrangement, Chongqing Tongliang Dragon Dance has three rehearsals before the official performance of the opening ceremony. After the first two rehearsals, August 5, the team will be in the "Bird's Nest" in accordance with the official opening ceremony performance process for the preview, which will also be their last rehearsal opportunity. Yesterday, the team suddenly received a rehearsal notice to participate in. "At risk", Chongqing Tongliang Dragon Dance Team did not let the director disappointed, they conquered the audience with a wonderful performance. The entire performance process 5 minutes, they a **** gained the audience 8 times applause, which the last collective modeling action, the audience is reported to be up to more than 1 minute of warm applause. Olympic opening ceremony director Zhang Yimou watched the Tongliang Dragon Dance performance, praised the Tongliang Dragon Dance will be the Olympic opening ceremony of the cultural performances in the "most courageous, the most distinctive" program. At the end of the 1970s, Tongliang County, the masses of cultural activities began to return to the body. 1980 New Year's Day, Tongliang County, the cultural department of the organization of folk artists to tie a big dragon in the county open play dance. Since then, after more than 20 years of hibernation, the annual Tongliang Dragon Lantern Festival has been able to reappear.
In 1982, in the national folk arts and culture collection activities, by the guidance of the Chongqing Municipal Cultural Department, Tongliang County comprehensively organized its own dragon lantern art.
By the end of 1983, Tongliang dragon lanterns took part in the Chongqing Municipal Square Literary and Artistic Concert, which was well received.
On the New Year's Day of 1984, the Tongliang Cultural Bureau organized a team of hundreds of people to bring the main varieties of Tongliang Dragon Lanterns to the main city streets of Chongqing, which attracted wide attention from the news media.
In April 1984, Chongqing Acrobatic Troupe with two Tongliang creeping dragons went to Western Europe to perform in France, Britain, Switzerland, than other countries, by the local community unanimously praised.
October 1, 1984, in the People's Republic of China *** and the country's 35th anniversary of the grand celebration, the Shougang workers danced nine tongliang big writhing dragons to participate in the Tiananmen Square parade, the world for the attention.
September 1988, held in Beijing, the National Dragon Dance Competition, Tongliang Worm Dragon Dance won the first gold medal.
In 1992, won the second Shenyang International Yangge Festival most commendable.
In 1994, the Fuzhou "Zohai Cup" National Dragon Dance Invitational Tournament first place.
In the same year, Tongliang Dragon Dance was designated by the National Sports Commission as the standard prop for the competition; Tongliang Dragon Dance routine was designated by the National Sports Commission as the standard routine for the competition.
In May 1995, it won the first place in the First National Dragon Dance Competition organized by the National Sports Commission.
In July of the same year, it won the gold medal in the Guangdong "Hanging Green Cup" International Dragon and Lion Dance Invitational Competition.
In 1996, Tongliang Dragon Dance Delegation went to the United States for cultural exchange.
In 1997, Tongliang Dragon Dance Troupe won three awards in the First Dragon Dance Festival in Beijing, including the best performance, the best organization and the best choreographer.
In 1998, Tongliang Dragon Lantern went to Singapore to hold a lantern festival.
In 1999, Tongliang Dragon Lantern went to Malaysia to hold a lantern festival.
In September of the same year, Tongliang Dragon Dance Team won the champion of Dragon Dance Invitational Competition in Xijiang.
In the same month, Tongliang Dragon Dance Team won the title of "China National Dragon Dance Team" in Jinan National Dragon Dance Championship.
In October of the same year, a 450-member Tongliang Dragon Lantern Delegation composed of "Nine Dragons Square", "Dragon and Phoenix Peony Presenting Auspiciousness", and "Two Dragons Playing with Pearls" participated in the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the People's Republic of China in Beijing. *** and the country's 50th anniversary celebrations, once again a sensation at home and abroad.
In September 2000, Tongliang Dragon Dance Team won the gold medal of the standard routine and the overall group championship at the Fourth National Agricultural Games.
Late in October of the same year, Chongqing - the first China Tongliang Dragon Lantern Art Festival was held in Tongliang County. At that time, "the soul of the dragon" large-scale song and dance evening, "the wind of the dragon" Chinese dragon dance invitational tournament, "the dragon of this" Chinese dragon culture and the Chinese dragon dance art academic symposium, The "Rhythm of the Dragon" 2000 Dragon Culture and Art Exhibition, the 2000 Chinese Tongliang Dragon Lantern Festival and other projects were launched, which significantly raised China's dragon lantern culture and dragon culture to a new level.
In June 2001, the Tongliang Dragon Lantern Delegation once again went to the United States for cultural exchanges.
In the same year, Tongliang Dragon Lantern went to the United Arab Emirates to hold a lantern festival.
In May 2002, the Tongliang Dragon Dance Team won the gold medal in the standard routine and the overall group championship in the second national sports meeting.
In January and July 2002, Tongliang Dragon Dance Team went to Hong Kong and Macau to participate in cultural exchange activities.
In January 2003, Tongliang Dragon Lantern went to Thailand to hold a lantern festival and dragon dance performance.
Tongliang Dragon Dance won the 35th anniversary of the National Day Ceremony, the first place in the Baxi Cup, the gold medal in Beijing Tourism Year, the first place in the Hanging Green Cup, the gold medal in the Second National Sports Congress, the gold medal in the Agricultural Games, the gold medal in the Longgang Cup, and many other awards.