A Comparative Study Of The "Eastern And Western Route" Styles Of Singing Er Ren Tai Tunes

There is a form of folk performance art with distinctive local characteristics prevalent in the adjacent areas of Shanxi and Shaanxi Provinces and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region which are inhabited by both Han and Mongolian people.Called er ren tai(literally,“two people onstage”),it is mostly performed by two performers acting as a clown and a female lead respectively and originated from the singing and dancing performed as entertainment during festivals.It has been actively propagated and passed down through generations in these areas for about a hundred years.In the course of the development and transmission of er ren tai,because of cultural differences(e.g.: language,music,dance,folk custom,conventions,etc.)of the regions where this art form has spread,it has gradually developed and formed different music styles.Among them,the most representative styles are characterized by the east and west geographical routes with which er ren tai has spread and become a trend.The geographical boundary between them is the vertical geographic coordinate from Hohhot to Datong,so that the form of er ren tai on the east side of this boundary became known as the “eastern route er ren tai” and the one on the west side of this boundary,“western route er ren tai”.By means of systematic analysis and research on the sung tunes of both “eastern and western route” er ren tai,this paper examines an aria each from two representative plays,Out of the West Pass and Money Game,in order to clarify the similarities and differences between them in terms of musical concept,structure,as well as specific aspects of the sung tunes and to find out the strategies for development that have sustained these two different er ren tai singing styles.In addition,this paper offers corresponding suggestions for and hope to contribute to the development,transmission and protection of er ren tai.