Music on the Silk Road| Voices of Yunnan wow the world

Music knows no boundaries. One after another, musicians of Yunnan tell provincial stories with the power of music.

Xiaoshuijing choir

Xiaoshuijing choir (Photo provided to Yunnan Net)

“Moon rises shining bright, so bright. My dear beloved is still in the mountain...” This is the lyric of the Yunnan folk song A Running Brook. Singers of the Xiaoshuijing choir, dressed in Miao customs, sang it in New York's Lincoln Center's Fisher Hall in 2018. In the melody, the audience saw the colorful Yunnan and the plain life of ancient villages.

It was the first time that the choir embarked on a worldwide tour since its establishment in 2002, sharing Yunnan melodies with the world. Zhang Xiaoming, the choir's director, explained that people here sing as naturally as they talk, and they are born performers, even they are also farmers.

Poya Songbook choir

  

Poya Songbook (Photo provided to Yunnan Net)

The Poya Songbook choir performed its melodious love songs in Spain, Malta, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and more. In 2016, they achieved the gold medal in the unaccompanied folk category at the 9th World Choir Games in Sochi of Russia. "Poya" in the Zhuang language means "a place with abundant mountain flowers", and the touching love stories have now spread to the world.

  Lincang song/dance troupe

Lincang song/dance troupe performs in Kuwait. (Photo provided to Yunnan Net)

In the Capital Governorate of Kuwait, performers from the Lincang song/dance troupe in southwest Yunnan delivered a splendid performance for international audiences on Sept. 19, 2023. Love Song in the Bamboo House, Happy Lahu Folks, and more traditional songs and dances of Yi, Dai, Wa, and Lahu told the sincerity, kindness, warmth, and hospitality of Lincang people.

Source: Yunnan Net; trans-editing by Wang Yunya