Ewenki folk songs (Ewenki Narrative Folk Songs)

Name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Ewenki folk songs (Ewenki Narrative Folk Songs)

Applicant: Ewenki Autonomous Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Project No.: 605

Project No.: Ⅱ - 106

Time of publication: 2008 (second batch)

Category: Traditional Music

Region: Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Type: new item

Applicant: Ewenki Autonomous Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Protection unit: Ewenki Autonomous Banner Cultural Center

Introduction to Ewenki folk songs (Ewenki Narrative Folk Songs)

Applicant: Ewenki Autonomous Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

Ewenki folk songs are bold and unconstrained, full of grassland and forest atmosphere. It is like a song or a poem. It has both advantages and disadvantages. The short ones are mostly lyric songs, while the longer ones are called story songs. Ewenki folk songs often touch the scene, improvise lyrics, many songs use the same tune in different occasions to fill in different words to express the feelings of the time.

Ewenki traditional folk song "the song of DOE", also known as "the song of roe deer" and "the song of yellow sheep", is a typical original ecological long narrative folk song. Ewenki Autonomous Banner is located in the northern part of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, most of which are vast grasslands. The long narrative folk song "the song of the DOE", which is popular in this area, came into being in the distant hunting era, reflecting the Ewenki people's consciousness of loving nature and life.

The song of the DOE tells a touching story through a question and answer dialogue between mother and son in a personified way. In ancient hunting times, a hunter shot a doe, and she ran with injuries. When the hunter chased up, he saw the dying DOE comforting and instructing the fawn. The tearful conversation between the DOE and the fawn made the hunter feel deeply guilty and regret his behavior. The song reveals the significance of maintaining ecological balance and cherishing life from another angle with human emotion. There are 20 lyrics in total. The music has a distinctive original style, showing the characteristics of the Ewenki nomadic folk songs, which are soothing, beautiful and simple. The melody is very touching. This emotional narrative folk song has been popular among Ewenki people for a long time.

As a product of hunting civilization, the song of DOE shows a strong sense of introspection, which fully reflects the Ewenki people's understanding and respect for nature and life. It embodies the ancient hunting nation's concept of integrity, good conduct and survival wisdom, which can provide valuable information for the study of ancient civilization and folk music. At present, the destruction of the original cultural ecology, the oblivion of the mother tongue and the successive death of the old generation of folk singers make Ewenki Narrative Folk Songs difficult to survive, obstructed in inheritance, and in danger of decline, which is in urgent need of protection.