midicnMusic History 中文

Tu Music

Tu music joins huaer song, Anzhao circle dance and banquet songs in the Yellow River highlands.

DiziSuona

Time and place

The Tu live in Huzhu, Minhe, Datong and Tongren in Qinghai, with communities in Tianzhu, Gansu. Huzhu is the Tu autonomous county, and the Yellow River highlands and eastern Qilian Mountains form the core. The Tu language belongs to the Mongolic branch of Altaic, related to but distinct from Mongolian, with Huzhu, Minhe and Tongren dialects, no traditional script and Chinese used for writing. The sixth-day-of-the-sixth-month huaer gathering, Spring Festival shehuo, weddings and Anzhao dance are the main occasions.

What happened

Tu music centres on huaer and dance. Huaer is sung in Chinese, antiphonally at gatherings and in fields, with tune types such as the Tu ling and Honghua ling. Anzhao is circle song and dance performed in courtyards at festivals and weddings, steps locked to the song. Banquet songs are sung at wedding meals with blessing and humour. From the late twentieth century Tu huaer and Anzhao entered stage programmes, while the Huzhu gathering continues. Published research on the relation between Tu tunes and those of neighbouring Hui, Salar and Tibetan singers is limited, so this entry describes common occasions.

Musical features

Huaer opens high, alternates falsetto and chest voice, falls at phrase ends, and is mostly pentatonic with fine ornament. Anzhao phrases are short and repetitive, answered by a chorus, with the footfall matching the strong beat. Banquet songs are steady and even-phrased. Instruments include dizi, erhu, suona and mouth harp; the suona is played when the groom's party arrives. The Tu have no large instrumental ensemble; song and dance carry the tradition.

What to listen for

Hear the high huaer opening and the falling end, then the repetition and answering of Anzhao. Essen-000830 is explicitly Tu, with phrase endings and refrains; essen-008750 is a Salar song and essen-000885 a Yugur song, regional references from the Yellow River and Hexi corridor. Chinafolk-002404 is a New Year drinking song where banquet blessing is audible, but it is not a Tu recording.

Common misunderstandings

The Tu are often taken as a branch of the Mongols. The language is Mongolic, but origins, speech and music differ, and Tu huaer is sung in Chinese. Nor is every Tu song a huaer; Anzhao, banquet songs and wedding songs have separate occasions. Tu music is still sung at huaer gatherings, weddings and shehuo, not only in tourism shows.

Listen in the library

Yangguang zhaoliang tuzurenC10:14C1 阳光照临土族人，标题明确土族，听句尾与衬词DetailsSalazu renmin bashenfanC10:15C1 撒拉族人民把身翻，邻近撒拉族民歌，作河湟参照；非土族DetailsYuguzu renmin xiyangyangC10:14C1 裕固族人民喜洋洋，河西走廊民歌，作地域参照；非土族Details正月饮酒歌C30:39C3 正月饮酒歌，宴席歌体裁，听敬酒与祝福；C3 民歌，C1 无土族宴席曲录音Details

All tracks from midicn-lib — inline badge is the license tier (C1 commercial / C2 non-commercial / C3 study only).

Sources

  • 《中国音乐词典》编辑部编，中国音乐词典（人民音乐出版社）— 土族音乐与安昭条目核对，未引用
  • The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2nd ed., entry "China" — framework checked, not quoted

Used for fact-checking only; all prose is original.