奔腾不息的老腔文化
 
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    Double Spring village,located in Huayin city of Shaanxi Province, is a small village at the foot of the Huashan mountain, intersection of Yellow River, Wei River and Luohe River in the vicinity of the village. Generations in the village bequeath a Laoqiang shadow puppet team, which is not uncommon in Guanzhong area, but theatrical troupe in Double Spring village has one unique singing style called Laoqiang Opera. This unique voice characteristic are one person singing, the other people accompanied of the "slope" and bench beating.

 
 

   

 
 

    It is said that as early as the Western Han Dynasty, this place is the location of military granaries, water transport was direct through the capital Changan. Leading sailor in order to unify everyone's actions, while calling waterman slogan, while using wood to block percussion shipboard, it is now known as so-called “Droll Slope”. The narrowed definition of it is singing when a boat sailing against, broadly definition is everyone roar tune,therefore, it is where “Laoqiang” resulted from. Subsequently, the Laoqiang becomes the shadow puppet play accompaniment, hiding behind the scenes, which has gradually been forgotten.

 
 

         

 
 

    According to the “Hua County Records” contains: Laoqiang puppet is also known as clapper tone that in the first year to tenth year of QianLong, Qing Dynasty (1736-1745),which has been prevalent in the Chinese State (now the Hua county).Generally believed that Laoqiang is in late Ming and early Qing Dynasty, based on local folk storytelling art to develope into a shadow puppet opera derived from ballad singing species. In the Ming and Qing times, Huayin there are more than 10 classes, active in neighbouring Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan areas.

 
 

    Currently Laoqiang spread is limited to Double Spring village of Huayin city in Shaanxi Province, which is a family of the village households family drama (pass to the same last name family only, not outsiders). Zhang Ximin, Zhang Xinmin, Zhang Junmin and Zhang Shimin are  sons of Huayin Laoqiang orthodox heir Zhang Quansheng.

 
 

     

 
 

    Zhang Ximin now holds hundreds of the Laoqiang scripts handed from QianLong period. These scripts are almost spreading in Northern Song, Jin, Yuan Dynasties in folklore of the Western Zhou Dynasty, the State of Israel, Three Parts of States, Tang and Song stories. Open the book, you can see the brush writting vertically record paragraphs. The plays mostly handed down since the Qing dynasty, as time passed, paper has begun to be crisp and yellow, but musicians have already etched in mind, usually little use of them, only important moments would be taken out to show.

 
         
     

Shaanxi province Huayin City Meng Yuanzhen junior middle school      all right reserved

Contact address: Shaanxi province Huayin City Meng Yuanzhen Feng Village    postal code: 714200