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Music that Trumps Punk  by Mo Rui Qiu
T heir voices resonate richly. The slow, steady rhythm draws you
into the circle and makes you wish you knew how to join
the song. If you close your eyes, you would probably think you were in a local Débǎo (德保) park. Even in the year 2008, it’s still common to hear elderly folk in the parks and on the sidewalks singing these traditional Zhuang “mountain songs” (山歌). But when you open your eyes, instead you see young men, aged 18, sporting the hippest clothes and hairstyles. From their attire, you would guess they were purely punk fans. While they do enjoy Western punk music, they are even more enthused about making music in their own language.

They were born in their father’s hometown of Tián Dōng (田东), where people speak a dialect of the Northern Zhuang language. They lived there until the 5th year of elementary school, when they moved to their mother’s hometown of Débǎo (德保) where people speak a dialect of Southern Zhuang. These two young men are twins, named Huáng Dōng (黄东) and Huáng Dé (黄德). When you compare their names with their parents’ hometowns, do you notice something similar?

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Huáng Dōng, Yán Shēng, Huáng Dé: the next generation of Zhuang musicians.

Before Dōng and Dé left home to attend a special school that trains young people in the arts, they were good friends with Yán Shēng (言升). Yán Shēng grew up in the Debao county town and speaks Debao Zhuang as his mother tongue. When the three of them decided to form the Tū Wéi Band (突围乐队), he stepped up to be the leader. Now, they are using some principles from the traditional Zhuang music, together with lyrics in the local language, to create Zhuang pop songs. They composed the music for one song on the Zhuang pop music album that is soon to be released, while Liào Hàn Bō (廖汉波) wrote the lyrics. Liào Hàn Bō is also the one who influenced them to learn to sing the mountain songs in the first place. These young vocalists have gained quite a fan club among the other students at school. Their peers think it’s cool to hear them singing upbeat music in their own language. Some of the younger students have even asked to learn from them. Even many of the Han (汉) students are also curious about what they’re doing.

Yán Shēng has been inclined towards music since a very young age. His father played the Chinese “two-stringed bowed instrument” (二胡) in the local Cultural Arts Troupe (文工团). His father had started to teach Yán Shēng to play, but the time was sadly shortened when he passed away. At that time, Yán Shēng was only five years old. Since his mother also passed away in 2006, Yán Shēng has been living with his grandmother. Now, at 20 years old, he is studying music as his major. Gifts from members of the Zhuang Online community have helped him cover tuition and living expenses.

Dōng and Dé have also experienced incredible support in their pursuit of music. Though their parents have limited finances, they have sacrificed for their sons’ music. Their parents had been saving for new flooring, but instead they took that money, plus pawned off their mother’s ring and necklace in order to buy them a guitar that cost around 8000 yuan ($1160 USD). Then they borrowed 2000 yuan ($290 USD) towards helping them buy them a bass that cost around 6000 yuan ($870 USD). Their father sees them as professional musicians so he told them, “A farmer without his plough cannot plough his fields,” so a musician without his instrument cannot play.

Together, these three young men have high hopes for using contemporary music to help people value their own language and culture. They believe that it’s possible to preserve parts of the traditional style, and yet attract the next generation to carry it on. As much as they enjoy their guitar and the bass, they also boasted that the traditional Zhuang instruments could beat a Western guitar any day! When young guys, aged 18 and 20, are excited about the unique flavor of their local instruments and music, there certainly is hope for these things to continue on.