''Kuaibanshu'' () is a form of oral storytelling performance that is popular in northern

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. It is a type of ''

shuochang ''Quyi'' ("melodious art") and ''shuochang yishu'' ("speaking and singing art") are umbrella terms for over 300 regional genres of traditional Chinese oral performing arts. ''Quyi'' is distinguished from ''xiqu'' (Chinese opera) by its emphasis o ...

'', somewhat similar to

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vè or

rapping Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

Background

Kuaiban literally means ''fast boards''. It is also known as ''kuai shu'', literally meaning ''fast books''. In

Beijing dialect The Beijing dialect (), also known as Pekingese and Beijingese, is the prestige dialect of Mandarin spoken in the urban area of Beijing, China. It is the phonological basis of Standard Chinese, the official language in the People's Republic of ...

, the art form is known as ''kuaibanr''. The name refers to

bamboo clapper Bamboo clappers are a traditional Chinese percussion instrument and a traditional Burmese instrument. Reflecting its name, it is made with boards of bamboo. Bamboo clappers are used in Chinese ''kuaiban'' storytelling performances. See also * ...

s, a set of small bamboo boards or bones, which the performer rattles to produce an accompanying beat (similar to

). The free rhyming style is called "flower point". The line should have seven words. This rule, however, is not strictly followed if the rhythmic beat and rhyme coincide to allow more words or fewer words.

History

While bones have been used as musical instruments in China for thousands of years, kuaiban in its modern form was pioneered by

Li Runjie Li, li, or LI may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Landscape Institute, a British professional body for landscape architects * Leadership Institute, a non-profit organization located in Arlington, Virginia, US, that teaches "political te ...

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popul ...

in the 1940s.

Performance

During weekend evenings, groups of middle-aged and elderly people perform kuaiban on the south side of the hill in

Jingshan Park Jingshan Park is an imperial park covering immediately north of the Forbidden City in the Imperial City area of Beijing, China. The focal point is the artificial hill Jingshan (), literally "Prospect Hill". Formerly a private imperial garden at ...

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

. "Kuaiban" is a performance that highly emphasize on “repetition”. In each performance, the rhythm is the same. Bamboo - the material that “kuaiban” made of – has special sacred meaning. In Chinese tradition culture, bamboo symbolizes the elasticity, longevity, happiness and spiritual truth of life. Throughout the ages, bamboo has been praised by many poets and painters. It is not only green in all seasons, but also has a tall and straight line. It is not only a symbol of high wind and bright, a straightforward character, but also a reputation of a gentleman. Bamboo is charming, slender, and long-lasting, symbolizing youth forever. In China, bamboo is a sign of truth and dedication. Bamboo is used as a writing instrument in all parts of the East. For Buddhist and Taoist writers and artists, the straight lines and hollow structure of bamboo have extremely profound symbolic meanings. Bamboo is really something special to Chinese culture.

References

Citations

Bergeton, Uffe. “Philosophy on Bamboo: Text and the Production of Meaning in Early China by Dirk Meyer.” Philosophy East and West, vol. 65, no. 1, 2015, pp. 352–354., doi:10.1353/pew.2015.0023. Yuming, Yang, et al. “Bamboo Diversity and Traditional Uses in Yunnan, China.” Mountain Research and Development, vol. 24, no. 2, 2004, pp. 157–165., doi:10.1659/0276-4741(2004)024 157:bdatui.0.co;2.

Sources

Hudong.com
(in Chinese)

(in Chinese)
Kuai-ban.com
(Chinese) Chinese storytelling Chinese culture Mandarin words and phrases {{Chinese opera