"Waist drum" is a form of folk dance widely spread throughout northern Shaanxi, especially in Ansei County in Yan'an area, Yulin area, Hengshan, Mili, Yulin and other places are most prevalent, is one of the Shaanxi folk dance has a greater impact on one of the dances. Shaanxi waist drum has a broad mass base and a long history of development. In some of the main circulating areas, there are drum teams in almost every village and drummers in every family. And it has been passed down from generation to generation and has lasted for a long time. Because of its long circulation, wide range, the number of participants, so the basic form of the dance and rhythm, although roughly the same, but in different areas, the formation of their own different performance styles and customs. The Ansai Waist Drum is one of the representative ones.
Ansei waist drums have a long history, this is the ancient military to increase morale and pass information used, here is used to express the victory of the cheers and the joy of the harvest. Quite dense drumming sound, strong pace, changing formations, strong shouts, as much as possible to show the man's masculine beauty, in the international community is extremely prestigious.
Ansai Waist Drums are a collective performance form, the drummer (called "satchel drums" or "kick drums") is less than dozens of people, more than a hundred people. The team includes pulling flowers female corner, umbrella head, savage mother-in-law, savage Han and other roles, and "running donkey', "water boat", such as a variety of small field program composed of a vast folk dance team. In the performance emphasizes the overall effect, requires the action of the neat unity and formation changes in normality, mainly through the drummers bold and rugged dance posture and powerful drumming skills, fully demonstrated living in the Loess Plateau men's masculine beauty
Ansei waist drums have a complete performance program and activities and customs. In the past, it was performed in festivals and temple fairs, and the annual Spring Festival to the Lantern Festival is the centralized activity time. Before the start of the event, the president of the temple (elected by the village) to organize sacrificial activities, known as "visit the temple": dance team under the umbrella of the head of the leadership, beat up the drums and gongs, blowing the oboe, and sometimes carry a whole pig whole sheep and other offerings to the temple to burn incense to the gods, and pray to the gods blessed with good weather and prosperity of the country and people's peace. And in the temple square kicking and punching for a while, intended to entertain the gods. "Visit the temple" end, the first eight or nine after the first month, the drum team will begin the door to the New Year activities, commonly known as "along the door. There is a local proverb: "Drums and gongs and suona straight sound miles, under the butt stick pry miles!" The masses could not sit still. At this time, the waist drum team according to the village in order to walk around the house, in the main house in the courtyard, kiln performance for a while, the umbrella head according to the situation of each family, touching the scene to sing a few sections of auspicious rice-planting songs, in order to express the intention of the New Year's greetings. The main family believes that the waist drum team into the yard into the house beating, jumping and singing, can eliminate disasters and disasters, peace in all seasons. This may be the ancient "townspeople Nuo" customary legacy. Sometimes two teams of waist drums on the way to meet, generally by the umbrella head of each other singing rice-planting songs, *** congratulations on the New Year, let the road and line, but sometimes there will be a mutual failure to give way to the situation, at this moment we have to compete in the art of competition, and compete for a high and low. The two teams of gongs and drums, suona sound, waist drum sound, like spring thunder rolling. Drummers enjoy hitting, jumping, such as crazy like crazy, playing to the climax, the drums rest, by both sides of the umbrella head out of the song, which is also an aspect of the competition skills. Until there is a team of the first corner of the mess, the action is not unanimous, drums, formation are unified not a piece or the song on the answer, even if it is lost, and then took the initiative to make way for the winner to go first.
"Along the door" after the end of the neighboring villages between the waist drum team have to pay homage to each other, visit each other, the exchange of performances, which is the same as the Shaanbei rice-planting, known as "take color door". The first month of the fifteenth, the village drum team gathered in the square, began to compete with each other than each other activities. Drummers from all walks of life show their skills and compare each other's strengths and weaknesses, becoming the culmination of the year's waist drumming performances. This is not only active rural Spring Festival recreational activities, but also through each other to observe and learn from each other, promote the popularization and improvement of the waist drum. That night will also be held "turn the lamp" (also known as "turn nine songs"), almost everyone is competing for the tour, the whole family with the turn. At that time, drums and music, flashing lights, waist drum team in front of the guide, followed by the crowd, presenting a lively and extraordinary scene.
The activities of the drum team often continue until the 17th or 18th day of the first month of the lunar calendar, and end only after sacrificing to the God of the Land. After that, the townspeople went to prepare for the spring plowing.
The performance of the drums can be broadly categorized into "road drums" and "field drums".
"Road drums" is the waist drum team in the marching dance while walking a form of performance, the front by two umbrella head leader, followed by the satchel drums and flowers composed of the dance team B - umbrella head followed by a satchel drums, said the "head of the road drums," he is bound to be a skilled drummer. He must be a skillful drummer, and he commands the whole team's movements and rhythms. The back of the team, is dressed up as a barbarian woman, barbarian clowns, some dressed up as the Monkey King, Pigsy and other characters in the Tang Monk scriptures, twisting at will, teasing and making fun to add to the joyful atmosphere of the festival. "Road drums" due to the performance in the march, the general action is simple, small amplitude, mostly do "cross step", "walk step", "horse step wrapped around the waist The movements are mostly "Cross Steps", "Walking Steps" and "Horse Steps around the Waist". Commonly used formations are "single street", "double street", "single dragon tail", "double dragon tail" and so on.
"Field drums" refers to the performance of the waist drum team arrived at the performance site, open the field after the performance form. At the beginning, the head of the umbrella waved the umbrella, and then the drums and music sounded, and the dancers danced with the head of the umbrella. This section is called "stepping on the field", performing at a slow pace, the purpose is to open the field, pull open the team and stabilize the audience's mood. The second part of the song and dance, the performance of the tempo gradually faster, the action amplitude is larger, the formation changes a lot. Commonly used formations are "Divine Building", "Ancient Temple", "Hanging Gold Medal in Front of God", "Fortune and Wealth", "Monk's Tour of the Gate" and so on. To the introduction of the "sun arc" pattern, umbrella head stood to the center of the field to lead the singing of rice-planting songs, singing depending on the occasion and the object, "visit the temple", there are temple offerings, the general performance of the audience to the New Year's greetings, there are also celebrating the harvest and wishing good luck and other content. Umbrella head singing, the dancers in the field at the edge of the slow circle, and repeat the last sentence of each section of the catch-singing, commonly known as "catch the sound". After singing, the umbrella head exits the venue, and the satchel drums and flower pulling enter the show, coming out of a variety of complex and changing formations. At this moment is not limited by time, the dancers to show their skills, passionate emotions, ups and downs, so that the performance reached a climax.
In recent years, in order to emphasize the skills of the satchel drums, Ansai Waist Drums performs the "field drums" by the satchel drums in the field alone. Drummers in the head of the drums under the command of the drummer, the spirit of exhilaration, drums wild dance, at this time only to see the drumsticks waving, colorful silk flying, drums, such as thunder, shocking the earth, the sound force is compelling, extremely infectious.
After the end of this section, and then interspersed with other forms of small field programs, such as "donkey", "water boat", "stilts", " two ghosts fighting", "big head monk" and so on. The number of programs depends on the talents and conditions of each village. After the end of the small show, a big show of waist drums follows. At this moment, the gongs and drums are beaten quickly, the suona is blown tightly, the drumming is more intense, and the mood is more cheerful, so that the whole show ends in a strong atmosphere and high emotions.
Ansei waist drums are based on different styles and rhythms of the original cultural and martial arts, "cultural waist drums" relaxed and happy, lively, small range of action, similar to the style of the rice-planting songs; "martial waist drums" are cheerful and fierce, rough and unrestrained, and there are large kicks and punches, Jumping and rotating movements, especially the drummer's aerial leaping skills, giving people a martial and exciting feeling. At present, the waist drums of Wen and Wu are gradually combined to form a new style, and the two places of Xihekou Township and Zhenwudong in Ansei are the most characteristic. They vividly reflect the naive and simple temperament and character traits of the local people. Especially in the performance, and organic blend of folk martial arts and rice-planting dance movements, relaxation and tension, alive and not chaotic, in and out of order, majestic, strong. The crowd praised as "style generous code hard".