Bronze drum culture in China drum culture

Bronze drum-as the name implies, the whole body is cast in bronze, which is shaped like a round pier, hollow and bottomless, and the waist of the drum is bent inward. There are four ears on the side of the drum, which can be hung up. According to textual research, bronze drums evolved from copper kettles, originated in the 8th-7th century BC (Spring and Autumn Period), and were initiated by "ordinary people" in central and western Yunnan. The oldest bronze drum in the world was unearthed in Wanjia County, Yunnan Province, and the area west of Dianchi Lake is the real birthplace of the original bronze drum. From 3rd century BC to 1 century BC, the bronze drum was developed into a stable Shisaishan style by Yunnan people, and its manufacturing technology was further developed by Luoyue people. When knocking on the bronze drum, the drum holds a double hammer, the right hand knocks on the drum center, the left hand knocks on the drum edge, and both hands knock together. Another man holds a wooden bucket behind the drum and shakes it from time to time to make the sound of the drum more beautiful. This tapping method is a great creation of local people.

In ancient times, bronze drums had many uses. They are not only musical instruments, sacrificial vessels and ritual vessels, but also symbols of power and wealth. After the Qing Dynasty, they were still used for activities such as praying for gods, offering sacrifices, treating diseases, funeral and entertainment, and drums were used to convey information. Most of the bronze drums collected or still in use are unearthed cultural relics or handed down antiquities, all of which are beautifully decorated and beautifully shaped works of art. For example, there is a sun pattern in the center of the drum surface, surrounded by frogs, toads and herons, and there are feather dance patterns, ethnic patterns or moire patterns on the drum body. The decorative pattern on the bronze drum gives people a mysterious feeling and attracts people to explore its connotation. The bronze drums unearthed today are different from those preserved by ethnic minorities in shape and decoration, which reflects the social life, customs and religious consciousness of the local people at that time and is helpful for us to explore the remains of medieval bronze drum culture. Such as frog ornaments: mostly three-dimensional, four evenly cast on the edge of the drum surface, reflecting the ancient farming people's attention to frogs and their totem worship. Zhuang people still have festivals to worship frogs, believing that frogs are the daughters of Raytheon, through which they can pray for Raytheon to bring people good weather and good agricultural harvest. Another example is the sun pattern: it is related to the sun worship of the ancients. There are many scenes of this type of bronze drums and bronze drums in the famous Huashan rock paintings in Ningming, Guangxi. On the picture, there are bronze drums by the river, and many characters cheer in the same direction in the same posture, as if beating gongs and drums and dancing to worship the river god. Another example is the world's largest bronze drum in Guangxi Museum: its diameter is 166 cm and its weight is 300 kg. The center of the drum surface is the sun pattern, and the auspicious patterns on the bronze drum are considered to be water cranes and egrets. The crane can measure the wind and rain, and the egret is good at fishing, in order to pin the fishermen's desire for a safe harvest at sea. Feather dance patterns and racing patterns are descriptions of song and dance entertainment and dragon boat racing at that time. These patterns are helpful to study the origin of ancient customs and dance culture. Zhuang villages in Donglan, Du 'an and Mashan areas of Hongshui River valley in Guangxi are famous for the custom of playing and jumping bronze drums on festivals. The bronze drum team consists of two sides: the male drum with high timbre (small drum surface) and the female drum with rich timbre (large drum surface). During the Spring Festival, the village bronze drum team often moved the bronze drums to the hills on the shore to compete with the teams on the other side. Drummers beat each other with loud drums until they were silent. The onlookers fanned the drummer with straw hats. At night, people hold torches and flow through here, which is more lively and spectacular.

Zhuang bronze drum dance is mainly based on the unique music of bronze drums and the change of drums, with the drummer's performance of beating the skin and drums, so as to increase the inspiring atmosphere and adapt to the aesthetic psychology of the masses. Nowadays, the performance is usually to hang the bronze drum under the big banyan tree in front of the village, and four young people knock with bamboo pieces. There is a big leather drum in the center of the venue, and the drummer holds the drumstick in both hands, or strikes back, or turns around and dances freely. Four young people played bronze drums with the dancers' performances, which were light and heavy, slow and urgent, and the timbre was harmonious and seamless, making the encouragement more perfect. In addition, in the performance, there are often two people to cooperate with the drummer. One person carries a bamboo tube on his shoulder and hits it with a bamboo stick. The other man took a hat to cool the drummer. The three people cooperated tacitly, interspersed with jumps and danced around, which was very chic and funny. Wooden Drum-Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau belongs to subtropical and tropical humid climate, with dense forests, diverse tree species and convenient materials for making drums. Therefore, all local ethnic groups choose high-quality original wooden drums, commonly known as "wooden drums" or "big drums" and "leather drums", and each ethnic group has its own language. The shapes of wooden drums can be divided into two categories. One is to make drums from whole logs, such as the wooden drums of the Wa nationality, which is called "Buluo" in Wa language. The other is to hollow out the whole log as a drum room, and wrap both ends or one end with cowhide and sheepskin to make a wooden drum. Double-sided wooden drums, which Miao people call "micro-bucket", are dug with nanmu; Dong people are called "workers" and dig with "plum" logs; The Jino people are called "Saitu" and dig red hair shafts; The Jingpo people's "gift for Xinjiang" is made of giant wood about 3 meters long; Yao's double-sided drums are called "monkey drums" because they are used as "monkey drums". One-sided drum is also called "big drum". The one-sided drum of Zhuang nationality is called "planting labor", and the drum room is made of fir wood and covered with cowhide. The wooden drums of different nationalities are different in shape, logs used, production methods, drumming points and timbre, thus forming a variety of charms of wooden drums.

Wa people have a long history, and their ancestors lived in the mountainous areas of Yunnan as early as the Western Han Dynasty. However, due to low productivity, until the early 1950s, many places were still engaged in extensive slash-and-burn agriculture, and people had a strong belief in ghosts and gods and animism, and some vulgar customs such as "headhunting and offering sacrifices to the valley" remained. They regard wooden drums as artifacts and have many functions. Therefore, making wooden drums and wooden drums is a major event in the village, and everyone in the village should participate. From selecting trees on the mountain, logging, dragging them down the mountain, playing drums at the head of the village and sending them to the wooden drum room, there are strict procedures and etiquette, all of which are carried out under the auspices of the "Moba" wizard. People sing and dance with wizards, which is the most primitive form of wooden encouragement.