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Taiwan Pingtung County. Hengchun Primary School (2007 CyberFair Project ID 4796)
Taiwan,
Pingtung County
Official Status:
Final Project: Ready for Judging
Teacher:
Category: 8. Local Music and Art Forms
We estimate 11 student(s) from 11 to 12 will work on this entry.
Description of Our Community: Broadly speaking, we may istinguish "songs" as being either "natural" or consciously composed. The former class of songs, also known as "folk songs," are characterized in that, for the most part, no one knows their original creators, and they are transmitted from person to person, the lyrics changing with the people who sing them and the times as they are passed on. For this reason, some people say that the creators of folk songs are the people as a whole, reflecting the sentiments particular to a people and constituting an expression of their group identity. The latter class of popular songs comprises those authored by individuals, whose creations may be motivated by commercial, artistic and/or eternal values. Pop songs and artistic songs are of this latter class.
Prior to the large-scale influx of ethnic Han Chinese people into Taiwan, Taiwan was originally constituted of Aboriginal societies. In times past, whether it was the various Pingpu tribes in Western Taiwan, or other tribes in the central mountain regions or in eastern Taiwan, song and dance were inseparable parts of daily life. Singing and dancing were found in all aspects of life, from individual households to group rituals, and songs were vehicles not merely for entertainment or expression of individual emotion, but had religious and social functions.
Besides Taiwan's Aboriginal peoples, the ethnic Han majority, who have immigrated to Taiwan in wave upon wave from the 17th century onward, have not only brought with them the lifestyles of their homelands but their song and dance traditions as well. Whether originating in Fukien Province or Kwuantung Province, after undergoing the baptismal process of Taiwan nativization, they too became folk songs reflecting local culture. The massive compendium of Hengchun folk songs not only served not only as the spiritual fount of the early Han immigrants to Taiwan but stands as testimony to Taiwan's historical development. Hengchun Tone includes: Old memories, Ox Tail, 5-Hole Tunes, Pingpu Tone, 4-season Spring Songs and Fengang Songs . Hengchun Tone can be dated back to an early age when Hengchun ancestors emigrated from Guangzhou and Fujian during hard times. They sang songs mixing with Pingpu toned aboriginal songs with 2-strings instruments as a way to express their loneliness and the spirit of their country life. The Hengchun folk song called "Szu Hsiang Chi," familiar to anyone who grew up there, was played on the flute. It is about the blending of different ethnic groups in Pingtung, including Taiwanese, Hakka and aboriginal groups. Because of the isolation imposed by the surrounding mountains, ethnic groups in Pingtung developed distinct cultures and sang unique folk songs.
Project Description: Hengchun Tone includes: Old memories, Ox Tail, 5-Hole Tunes, Pingpu Tone, 4-season Spring Songs and Fengang Songs. Hengchun Tone can be dated back to an early age when Hengchun ancestors emigrated from Guangzhou and Fujian during hard times. They sang songs mixing with Pingpu toned aboriginal songs with 4-strings instruments as a way to express their loneliness and the spirit of their country life. The mixed-tone music also suggests the extraordinary history of Hengchun ancient city.When it was built in 1875, one year after Mutan Villege Event, for the sake of defense, it had been evaluated meticulously to make the best use of the natural environment as possible.