he Art of Chinese Xinjiang Uyghur Muqam(2)

The music of Uyghur Muqam is characterized by variations andcontinuity of musical patterns, indicating close affinity with themusical culture of China's central plains. In Muqam ensembles, the leadinstruments, called satar or aijak, are made from local materials andvary in form (they may be bowed-stringed, plucked, or wind instruments).
The dancing skills involve unique steps, rhythms, and formations aswell as figures such as flower-picking-by-mouth, bowl-carrying-on-head,and imitation of animals in solo dances.
Risk of Disappearance
Today, community festivities, such as meshrep and bezme in whicheverybody participates in Muqam, are held much less frequently. Theresponsibility for passing on the tradition to new generations ofpractitioners has fallen almost exclusively on the shoulders of folkartists, and the interest of young people in Muqam is graduallydeclining. Today, several Muqam pieces are no longer performed, inparticular certain elements of the Twelve Muqam, which consists of morethan 300 pieces of a total length of over 20 hours.
Action Plan
After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, thelocal government of Xinjiang made every effort possible to preserve theTwelve Muqam. In 1956, Muqam master Turdi Ahun and musician WanTongshu, working with other assistants, took great pains to record mostof the vocal melodies and librettos of the Twelve Muqam on tape. Theyalso recorded the music by hand. Their efforts paved the way for therenaissance of this cultural tradition. In 1960, two volumes of TwelveMuqam sung by Turdi Ahun were published. The oral cultural heritage wasfinally secured in the form of its first publication.
Over the past two decades, local Xinjiang cultural institutions havesponsored seminars, supported research projects, and published a numberof books with the Twelve Muqam as the focal theme. In the last fouryears, 7,000 performers -- many of them Uygurs -- have participated inthe national key publication project. Their concerted efforts haveresulted in the release of CDs, VCDs, and DVDs of the Twelve Muqam ofUygur.
In addition, the Chinese Government has drawn a 10-year plan toprotect the traditional art. An investigation on Muqam in Xinjiang willbe carried out. Meanwhile, China is expected to give financial supportto the elder people who can sing Muqam, and the government will set up10 to 20 study centers to train professional researchers on Muqam.
Moreover, the government will encourage local artistic troupes inXinjiang to perform Muqam, and introduce Muqam into the nationalartistic education system. A research center, data bank, website,museum on Muqam will be established, and publicity work for commonpeople about Muqam will also be launched.