| Buyi Bayin is a kind of traditional music of the Buyi ethnic group,one based on collective instrumental music performance;it is mainly spread in the Buyi area of Guizhou’s Nanpan River basin.As the spiritual lead of the ensemble,group leaders play an important role in disseminating the musical tradition and cultural inheritance of Buyi Bayin.They not only undertake the formation and development of the band,but also shoulder the task of carrying forward and creating Buyi Bayin.The core thesis of this study is that,with their place at the main dynamic center of the ensemble,the nature of each individual leader’s life experiences – their interpersonal mixing and social interactions – brings them a unique perspective on the music and its related local social-cultural concepts,a distinct consciousness regarding communication on the ethnic level,deep networks of relationships,and other characteristics.Consequently,leaders develop personalized musical practices and form different music styles through their roles in the bands’ collective operations.Based on these key ideas,this study focuses on five typical Bayin bands from Xingyi city,and Anlong and Ceheng counties in the Nanpan River basin.Through examination of the traditional musical features of local Buyi Bayin in these settings,each leader’s individual musical experiences and cognition(i.e.music-related concepts,musical creation,musical performance,etc.),as well as their social environments,will be analyzed.The study will then evaluate how leaders inherit and create in Buyi Bayin,with the embodied cognition(i.e.bodily performance habits,sociocultural shaping of body language,etc.)of these artists a key focus for discussion when it comes to the specifics of the musical contexts under consideration.The analysis of how these body movements affect the processes of inheritance in Buyi Bayin represents a unique window into the cultural characteristics of Buyi people,as manifest in this tradition.More specifically,the study shows that the Buyi Bayin music tradition in the Nanpan River basin simultaneously shows the characteristics of both unity and diversity.The shared culture of Buyi people is at the heart of an important sense in which unity shapes the tradition,particularly as it is strengthened through frequent ritual interaction between artists and the public.At the same time,as different leaders have different perceptions and understandings of the traditional elements of Buyi Bayin,and because they live in their own individual social environments,the local practice of Buyi Bayin has become diverse.The leaders featured in this study organize the social lives of their bands,and they integrate unique musical experiences and musical epistemologies,all of which are formed by their particular life histories,into actual musical activities.They teach the band members their traditional Buyi Bayin skills while spreading and developing traditional Buyi Bayin culture in local society through their own social networks.Indeed,with changing social environments,these leaders are also in a process of constant reform in their musical knowledge – all in response to shifts in demand for their music.These reforms can take the shape of either bold musical innovations or a protective concealment of musical skill – both clear strategies for coping with a variety of social developments and changes.The interaction between the leaders and society can create new traditional elements in Buyi Bayin and meld new musical features into local history.A foundation of this study is the notion that,as a traditional music culture,Buyi Bayin is built on a harmonious coexistence of the individual and the collective,of human history and society.For current active practitioners of Buyi Bayin,the passing on and dissemination of this traditional music is a process of mutual construction involving individuals,history and society,one in which local music culture is founded on the leadership of individuals and develops through collective inheritance. |
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