Songkou Hakka Folk Songs

Songkou Hakka Folk Songs

Nominating Unit: Meixian County, City of Meizhou

Songkou Hakka Folk Songs of Mei County are mainly distributed in Song Kou Town and its surrounding countryside areas including Song Nan, Song Dong, Long Wen, Tao Yao and Song Yuan, currently known as the eastern zone along the lower reaches of Mei County.

As a typical representative of China’s well-known folk songs, Song Kou Hakka Folk Songs, are highly claimed in the legendary tale of Singing Empress Sister Liu San that “since ancient times, Folk Songs come from Song Kou where boats follow the sound of the songs”. Its lyrics display not only characteristics of ancient folk songs but also the charm of “Guo Feng” and “Wu Song” found in Ancient Classical Poetry.(https://www.daowen.com)

The Songs are rich in tone and beat; the latter, full of emotion, is compared to “stringing silk that is soft and smooth”. The aria, usually in the pattern of four lines and eight beats, called “four lines end on beats”, is quite unique. Yinhao Folk Songs, in particular, famous for their pleasant and lingering sound, have various tempos ranging from fast, medium to slow, and is thus suitable for narration. During the 1950s, new-born Meizhou Mountain Songs Opera came into being. The Opera inherits a lot of its features such as its music, aria and beat, etc from Folk Songs. Since Song Kou Hakka Folk Songs play a significant role in the history of Hakka Folk Songs, its cradle Mei County was crowned as the Homeland for Folk Art in China by the Ministry of Culture in 1996.

Recent years have witnessed the aging and passing away of the older generation Folk Song singers and the departure of youngsters leaving their homes for work in cities, leaving few to carry on the tradition. Hakka Folk Songs are losing their original glamour and unless immediate action is taken, the situation will not get worse beyond control.