Gaba Dance is an intangible cultural heritage of Gansu Province. It is a Tibetan folk dance circulating in some villages of Kaba, Ni'ao and Wangzang townships in Dibei County, Gannan Prefecture, Gansu Province. Here's a look at the origin of the Tibetan folk dance Ga Ba Dance!
The dance originated in the Indian country, spread by the ancient Tufan Hundred Days Border Generals to Dianbu, and then circulated in the village of Ni'ao. Performers are mainly men, female onlookers, cheering and cheering. The performances include solo, duo and group dances, as well as mime, comedy and juggling. The lyrics begin with three lines, with love songs, mythological stories, and praises of things or objects as the main content. The "Ga Ba" dance is performed in the form of honoring the god of the mountain, the rise of Ga Ba, stealing kisses, bears climbing trees, and the exercise of official guests on the march.
Gaoba dance first originated in India, the eighth century A.D. Tang Dynasty Tubo period spread to China's Tibetan Diabeou, the ancient tradition of "Gaoba" dance in Diabeou Kaba, Ni Ao, Wang Zang three townships in some of the villages still remain. This tradition was spread to Diabe by the ancient Tubo Hundred Days Border Generals, and later spread in Ni'ao Village. Therefore, in Ni'ao village still retains the ancient primitive style, and later through the diligent Diebu Tibetan people in the long-term labor life inheritance, innovation and development, its content is more colorful, more unique features and charm.
The "Ga Ba" dance is related to the primitive sacrificial activities of the ancient Qiang people. Its dance movements, percussion style also inherited the style of the Tubo religious dance. The performers are mainly men, and the women watch and cheer. The performance forms include solo dance, duo dance, group dance, mime, comedy, vaudeville and other forms. The lyrics begin with three lines, with love songs, mythological stories, and praises of things or objects as the main content. The "Ga Ba" dance is performed in the form of honoring the god of the mountain, the rise of Ga Ba, stealing kisses, bears climbing trees, and the exercise of official guests on the march.
The singing tunes and performance forms of the Ga Ba Dance are unique. The singing tunes are first sung by the specific tune "Gaam", and then can be sung by the wine song type tunes, such as: Ding Zhi, Ajia, Qiao Le Rui, Dong Sai, etc., and can be sung on weekdays can not be sung in the villages and at home in the village, love songs type of tunes, such as: Le, Bale, Lai, Poru and other tunes. They can also sing mountain songs and love songs that cannot be sung in villages and homes, such as: Le, Ba Le, Lay, Bo Ru, etc. In addition to the above tunes, there is a specific tune called "Mal", which is sung in the afternoon of the second day when the formation is practiced and the soldiers and officers go out to fight. In the "Gaam" song sung at the beginning of the Ga Ba dance, there is a verse:
Q: Where did the Ga Ba originate from?
A: The Gaoba originated in the country of India.
Q: Where did Gaoba land?
A: Gaoba landed in Lotus Beach.
Q: Where did Gaoba take root?
A: Gopa was rooted in the forest.
The lyrics express the origin and popularity of the Gaoba dance, and show that the Gaoba dance, like other folk songs and dances, has been passed down from the distant past.
The dance performance of Gaba Dance starts with the dance of the mountain god, which is similar to the dance of the roc spreading its wings, and is characterized by one-legged uprightness, limp feet, straddling jumps, and bouncing turns, etc. It is a men's duo dance with a complete dance structure and a harmonious and smooth combination of movements. The dance is performed with drums and cymbals as the accompaniment, without singing, and the performers dance to the rhythm of the drums and cymbals. The middle-aged and elderly men then perform in pairs or quartets, with bold and elegant dances. Young men dance in pairs, quartets or groups, with bold and generous dancing styles, showing the masculinity of the young people who strive for strength and victory. In addition to the beginning of the dance of the mountain god without singing, the rest of the double, four or more people dance have singing, the dancers sing and dance. In the Ga Ba Dance throughout the performance process, there are welcoming, bride and other performances, the bride are dressed as a woman by a man, the performance of more than the application of exaggerated language and humorous performances of the action to make people laugh, in which the husband and wife to cultivate, remove the seed, driving a plow to pull the set of performances such as the performance of the Tibetan people's primitive characteristics of the farming culture. In order to enliven the atmosphere, this time also interspersed with the performance of playing the dog and bear. In the middle of the hall, there is a thick wooden pillar, which is smooth and shiny, and it is difficult for people to climb up. At this time, the performance of the bear of a male youth, head wearing a bear scalp specimen made of masks, the body turned black wool coat, in the house in the pillar to imitate the bear climbing tree action. When he climbed to the top of the pillar, his feet hooked to the overhanging beam hanging upside down body activities, such as bears picking and eating wild fruits in the tree or the dust on the beams of the house to the ground at will. At this time, in the dust like smoke inside the house, people beat drums and roar, clapping and praising the extraordinary ability of the person. When the performers return to the ground, but also perform tumbling, jumping, drinking water and other actions, the crowd applauded and shouted, the whole scene overflowing with a lively and festive scene.
Jumping Ga Ba dance is mainly male-oriented, where the age of 15 years old to 60 years of age below the men have to participate. By the afternoon of the second day, the men dressed in a new, head mask or face smear color, one by one holding weapons, there are waist knife, spears and wooden sticks, etc., and gongs and drums and other performance equipment. After that, all the performers are concentrated in a wide field in the village to listen to the order, and then the soldiers are divided into two ways, each way there is a person with both hands in front of the red flag to lead the way, and then an elder with one hand to raise the whip, a hand holding a long wooden stick, with the drums and cymbals beat the rhythmic sound, leading the crowd to the village to drive away evils and quell the devil, pray for good fortune. On the road, in the courtyard, they shouted in a high pitch, the content of most of the defense of the cottage, drive away the evil, how to march and fight, how to grow the army, how to destroy the disaster and so on. There is a section of the lyrics are sung like this:
In the snow-covered mountain tops
lying beast king lion,
Xiongshi such as countless warriors,
Warriors like Lunda like fluttering.
In the dense forest,
there are beasts with beautiful patterns,
tigers like countless warriors,
and warriors like rondas floating.
When the march goes where it goes,
the divine soldiers fill the blue sky and high sky,
like clouds and rain covering the blue sky,
like a green dragon rumbling and booming.
The lions and tigers in the front,
the green dragons and phoenixes in the back.
The warriors were dressed in armor,
behind their backs were earthen flintlock spears,
in their left hands were golden swords,
in their right hands were silver spear spears,
at their waists were long-handled swords,
and their bodies were as light as the birds of the air.
..... ......
And the crowd at the end of each sentence singing and shouting to bring "Mahahaha" tone liner, and with the strong liner rhythm, will hold the end of the stick, hard to the ground or the corner of the house to beat, every singing and shouting a paragraph of the word, the sound of the gun, waving stick swinging stick, all the way to the flow of forward from one end of the village to the other end, from one yard to another yard, from the village to the other end, from the village to the other end, from the village to the other end, from the village to the other end, from the village to the other end. From one end of the village to the other, from one yard to another. This spectacular scene, just like the shadow of the ancient military war, embodied a sense of majesty dare not violate.
When the Ga Ba team walked all over the village after all the people, and then all concentrated to the village in the vacant land or wheat field, by the two neighboring teams assembled their respective teams, unified into a way to the village line to a distance after the gun to get rid of evil spirits and suppress the devil, and then men and women mixed into a way into a procession of singing triumphantly and return to the end of the activities of the Ga Ba all the way to the end of the Ga Ba.