Introduction to Xihe Drum
Xihe Drum is a form of drum music in northern China and one of the traditional folk songs. Popular in Hebei, spread in neighboring Henan, Shandong, Beijing, Tianjin, Inner Mongolia, Northeast China and other places. In the process of spreading, there were names such as Drum Book, Plum Blossom Melody, Xihe Melody, Hejian Drum and Heizai Drum, which were named Xihe Drum in Tianjin in the 1920s.
Second, the basic model?
Xihe drum is a banqiang, and one key is the most basic key in Xihe drum singing. The basic tune of Xihe Drum is different from that of Jingyun Drum.
The overall singing of Jingyun Drum is a single mode-Gong mode, which is in the same strain as the basic singing (flat cavity), and the mode relationship is relatively simple.
The mode relationship of Xihe drum is complicated, and the mode of the whole aria is a kind of paragraph mode with alternating sign and palace, that is, the middle and lower positions alternate, and each position is often followed by several phrases.
In Xihe Drum Circle, artists used to classify the ending as "Ba position" for the convenience of three-string accompaniment. Ping 3 is the upper handle, Ping 5 is the middle handle, and Ping 1 is the lower handle. The middle handle position and the lower handle position are actually fine-tuning and palace modes because of the stability of the mode. But that position of the upper handle is not enough to determine the angle mode.
Performance form and blackboard writing singing of Xihe drum
First, the form of expression
Xihe drum belongs to drum music. The way of expression is simple. The actor knocked loudly on the door with two steel plates in his left hand. The right hand uses the key of the drum to flatten the drum, and the drum plate cooperates with the blow, which is the singing festival, and another musician plays the three-string accompaniment to sing. Talk, sing, rap and tell stories. One person rap, called "stand-up crosstalk"; Two people perform together, which is called "opposite play".
Accompaniment instruments, mainly three strings at first. Later, some performing teams added Hu Si, dulcimer and pipa to enhance the musical effect.
Second, the plate singing method
Xihe drum singing belongs to plate cavity, and the main plates are head plate, second plate and third plate.
At first glance, the head board is three boards, 4/4 beats; The second board is one-on-one, 2/4 beat; The third plate is a plate without eyes, 1/4 beats. These three plates are the basic rhythms of Xihe drum singing slowly, moderately and quickly.
On the basis of the three plates, a number of voices have been formed. In the long-term singing practice, these vocals have formed relatively fixed tunes and formats, and established their names, thus forming the unique vocals of Xihe Drum. It is said that there are more than 30 kinds of this special singing.
Later, we saw the following vocals: starting from the board, tight five sentences, slow four sentences, three streams and one horse, flying up a tree, shooting stars and catching the moon, double height, fishing for the moon in the sea, anti-cavity, anti-cavity, middle handle cavity, lower handle cavity, walking cavity and so on. Artists call these vocals "Qupai". It is the organic connection between these plates and these "Qupai" that forms the unique style and characteristics of Xihe drum singing music.