Elephant Drum Dance: A popular Deang dance is the Elephant Foot Drum Dance. A man who beats the drum and plays the point of sword and cymbal takes the lead, followed by other men, women and children, who dance in a circle according to a certain footwork and hand gestures. In some cases, the men and women divide into two circles, with the men forming the outer circle and the women forming the inner circle. A man wearing a straw hat leads the drumming, and the other men follow, lifting the legs of their pants to reveal the patterns on their legs, and dancing around the field. In the inner circle formed by women, the young woman at the head of the line strikes the point of the gong and dances with the young man at the head of the drum, and the women who follow her dance side by side with the men.
Water drum dance: the water drum dance is unique to the De'ang people, its footwork, the form is basically the same as the elephant drum dance, the drum rope hanging around the neck, the water drum held in front of the chest, the right hand holding a hammer to hit the big head of the drum surface, the left hand with the palm of the drum beat a small head of the surface, the two hands cooperate with each other, hit the section of the Qin.
Buddhist drums, Buddha drums, meaning "Buddha" drums, the De'ang language called "Geng Leng Ya Paila", is the Buddha (monk) special custody, and approved by the Buddha to use the drums. With the Buddha drum as a musical accompaniment and dance, called "Buddha drum dance".
According to legend, in the early days of the introduction of Buddhism into the Deung area and produced its own Buddha, class room every big event, have to be Buddha village to village to inform the people, and then a big Buddha called Pasar Da crafted a sound drum (similar to the elephant foot drum). Whenever the class room to hold some kind of ceremony or activity, as long as the drum, the people hear the drum will be able to respond to the sound to come. This drum, people later called the Buddha drum. Usually placed in the class room, activities held only when lifted out, after the use of still put back to the original place.
Yingjiang County, now get Zhang Township, South Calculation Walled City, there is an ancient Buddhist temple, now the local Dai people living in the old people are called "class Zhuang Avalanche Dragon", meaning "Avalanche Dragon (De'ang) Buddhist Temple. Temple also retains a precious cowhide drum, drum body for a large round wood, hollowed out to skin, long 2.8 meters, waist thickness of about 4 meters, the drum surface of the large head diameter of 1.14 meters, tail surface diameter of 1 meter, the drum body wrapped in white, with black lacquer over; drums masked on both sides of the cowhide has been no longer exists, in recent years, local Dai people and then re-mounted on the cowhide, and used in the Buddhist rituals. According to a few eighty years old Dai mother said, the drum's internal original device to increase the volume, knocking the volume is particularly large, spread far. Knocking more than one can make the hen that is hatching not be able to hatch chicks. The Buddha drum dance is danced in the square of the Buddhist temple at the same time with the "Elephant Foot Drum Dance" during the Buddhist festivals or during the promotion of the Buddha or the welcoming of the elders from other temples. Is a male collective dance, dancers have to beat the Buddha drum, hit the cymbal, knocking point *** three people, in the circle of the elephant foot drum dance performance, but the drum beat, action and the elephant foot drum dance are not the same, the elephant foot drum dance atmosphere is warm and cheerful, the Buddha drum dance is more serious and solemn. Longchuan County called the Buddha drum dance for lifting the drum. To two men with a bamboo stick will be lifted up the drum, walking in front of the dance team, a man with two hands each holding a school to beat the dance.
The Buddha drum is mainly circulated in Dehong Prefecture and Zhenkang County, Lincang District, the De'ang ethnic settlement. The Buddha drum dance can only be performed during major religious festivals such as the promotion of the Buddha or the greeting of the Buddha in the outer class room (Maung Maung Temple), and the performers are limited to men.