Wu Ge

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Wu Ge

Applicant: Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province

Item No.: 22

Project No.: i-22

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: Folk Literature

Region: Jiangsu Province

Type: Extension Project

Applicant: Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province

Protection unit: Wuge xiju Research Association, Xishan District, Wuxi City

About Wu Ge:

Applicant: Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province

The folk songs and ballads of Wu area are generally called "Wu songs", which is an important part of Wu culture. Wu Song, originated in the southeast of Jiangsu Province, is a folk literature and art with strong national and regional characteristics. It has a history of more than 3200 years. Wu songs include "Songs" and "Ballads". In terms of content, they include not only love songs, but also labor songs and current political songs. According to musical forms, Wu songs include six kinds of music: Ming Xiao and Wu Sheng.

Tian Shan song is also one of the folk songs in the south of the Yangtze River. It is mainly concentrated in Liantang, Zhaoxiang, Jinze and Shangta in Qingpu, Shanghai, Wujiang and Wuxian in Jiangsu, Jiashan and Jiaxing in Zhejiang.

Shanghaitian folk song is sung by farmers when they work rice and weeding rice. It is in the form of one person leading the singing and others taking turns to sing. It is also called "yaomai folk song", "luoyangge" and "Datou mountain folk song". Shanghaitian folk songs are characterized by high pitch, free melody, and a large number of tunes and multi voice parts. The lyrics mainly come from the real life of the local people, and mostly show the people's labor, life, thought, love, etc. they are important materials for observing the social life, customs and folk customs of Shanghai and the surrounding rice growing areas.

Wuxi dongmeili area and its surrounding areas are also one of the main spreading places of Wu songs. Since the Ming, Qing and the Republic of China, wu song singing has been the most prosperous in Dongting, Chaqiao and anzhen of Wuxi County. After the reform and opening up, Wu Song workers and lovers in Xishan District collected, sorted out and published a large number of short and medium Wu songs and more than ten long narrative Wu songs. Among them are Xiao Qingqing, Xue LIULANG, Chen walan and Jin Buhuan, especially the long narrative song Shen Qige, which has aroused strong repercussions at home and abroad.

Wu Song vividly records the life history of the lower class people in the south of the Yangtze River, which is a very valuable folk cultural heritage. Nowadays, with the rapid development of productive forces and the change of production relations, the number of singers, the carrier of Wu Song's inheritance, has decreased sharply, so it is urgent to protect Wu Song.