Yidanzhabu, 55, plays the sihu, a traditional Mongolian musical instrument that has accompanied him since childhood.

"Little swan geese from the south

They don't take off again until arriving at the Yangtze River

And it is for the Mongolian people's land

That the rebellious Gadameilin fought for!"

This is the first part of "Gadameilin," an Inner Mongolian folk song familiar to many people. It is about the Mongolian hero Gadameilin (1892-1931), who led his people in an uprising against the aristocrats who were selling Mongolian land to warlords.

Gadameilin died in a battle when there were only about 20 soldiers left in his troop, yet his story lives on and the song has spread all over China.

However, the "Gadameilin" that is most often heard is the bel canto version of the song with a piano accompaniment. It is worlds apart from Yidanzhabu singing the song while playing his own sihu, a four-stringed bowed spike fiddle.

Mongolian language, characteristic ornaments, and a light or even cheerful tone are needed in singing a melancholy melody. All of these elements seem to not only tell a hero's story, but take the listener to the Horqin grassland, which is the home of both Gadameilin and Yidanzhabu.

A kindred nephew of Gadameilin, Yidanzhabu, 55, is a farmer and carpenter.

Last month he had a concert at the China Conservatory in Beijing.

Just like on the other occasions he has been invited to perform, like weddings or birthday parties, Yidanzhabu began his performance with a holboo - a unique Mongolian musical form characterized by spontaneous connected verse.

"The golden sihu has started

Let me sing a holboo from my heart

I'm Yidanzhabu from Horqin

Who is honoured to perform for you...

A Mongolian farmer from the land of Gadameilin

An old carpenter who works with axes and planes

If I'm welcomed by you today

It's just because I have folk music in my heart..."

"This part is to explain why I am here," said Yidanzhabu after the performance. "The lyrics of holboo always depend on the occasion. You can't sing the same thing at weddings and birthday parties."

Yidan-zhabu was born in 1948 into a poor farmer's family. His mother died when he was only two years old. Without his mother looking after him, little Yidanzhabu could only be calmed by his father's songs. The folk music of the Horqin grassland has since been in his soul.

When Yidanzhabu was six, at his request, his father made a sihu for him, and his life started to become linked with the instrument.

Grassland singer

Yidanzhabu was in school for only two years. Then he had to drop out to help support his family. During his childhood, Yidanzhabu had no other interests but playing the sihu. He played in the field when he shepherded during the day, and practised by himself in a shed at night.

"Usually three circumstances are needed for the success of a Mongolian folk musician: edification of the family, learning from experienced masters and practising during social folk activities," said Zhamusu, a professor from the Music Department of the Central University of Nationalities. "The three have all been fulfilled by Yidanzhabu."

Yidanzhabu also studied the traditional Mongolian art of telling tales with an old performer named Jin Yuanbao. Whenever Jin performed in his village or nearby villages, Yidanzhabu would follow him. By the age of 10, Yidanzhabu had learned many of the tales.

Yidanzhabu's sihu master was Tubuwuliji, a well-known local sihu player. Tubuwuliji taught him many sihu solo works of both Mongolian and Han origin, which greatly enriched his repertoire.

Yidanzhabu's father was often invited to perform at ceremonies or festival activities and he often took Yidanzhabu with him, allowing Yidanzhabu to become an experienced performer at an early age.

Yidanzhabu's talents mainly consist of telling tales, Horqin folk songs and instrumental works.

In Mongolian tales, or ulger, the performer usually sings epics or legends about heroes with fixed tunes. The complete story about Gadameilin would last about 10 hours. Yidanzhabu says he knows all of the words.

At the concert at the China Conservatory, he told tales such as "Marching Tune" and "Battling Tune." The performance of tales involves not only singing and acting, but also some other dramatic elements. Yidanzhabu depicts the characters vividly through his expression and tones.

There were two kinds of sihu that Yidanzhabu used at his concert - the high-pitch sihu (Kluchir) and the low-pitch sihu (Khuur).

As a carpenter, Yidanzhabu made all of his own instruments. The low-pitch sihu is often used to accompany folk songs and the telling of tales, while the high-pitch sihu is more for instrumental works.

When he performs songs and tells tales, his deep, husky voice and the timbre of the low-pitch sihu almost seem to be identical.

Besides the horse-head fiddle morinkhuur (matouqin), the high-pitch sihu is the main solo instrument of the Mongolian ethnic group.

In eastern Inner Mongolia, some ancient tunes of the Han people have been "Mongo-lianized." They were the fruits of musical exchanges between the Mongolian and Han people, and they form part of the core repertoire of the high-pitch sihu. Yidanzhabu played three such works at the performance: "Ba Yin," "Wannian Huan" and "Yuanyang Kou."

The remainder of Yidanzhabu's solo works come from Mongolian folk songs.

Reborn from tragedy

Yidanzhabu exhibits great techniques in his playing. Sometimes he moves the body of the sihu to make a note flat. His left hand not only presses but also plucks the strings, producing rich sounds on the single instrument.

However, it is hard to believe that this left hand is handicapped.

March 19, 1999, is the most tragic day in Yidanzhabu's life. When he was carpentering, due to his apprentice's mistake, the first knuckle of his left forefinger was cut by an electric saw. He lost the first part of that finger forever.

After about half a year, the wound healed. All the time Yidanzhabu could not wait to play his beloved sihu.

However, although his mind was willing, his finger could not perform as it once had. Yidanzhabu broke down and the blow was so heavy that he was depressed for two years.

However, Yidanzhabu decided he could not go on without his companion of half a century.

He began practice again and swore to rebuild the musical sense of his forefinger. After assiduous hours of work and the development of a new fingering method, Yidanzhabu was finally able to perform again.

Yidanzhabu has 25 carpenter apprentices, but only two musical students - one of whom died of encephaloma five years ago.

His son also studied the sihu with him, but neither his student nor son has mastered the hundreds of songs and the ability to tell tales like Yidanzhabu.

"Life is very difficult in the countryside," said Yidanzhabu. "People there spend all their time making a living."

Luckily, Yidanzhabu has been invited to teach at the Inner Mongolia Normal University in Hohhot, where he will have plenty of students.

At the university, Yidanzhabu will be working with three departments: the Department of Music, Department of History and Department of Mongolian Language and Literature.

The latter two will study the orally-transmitted tradition in Yidanzhabu's songs and tales from the perspectives of history and literature, while the former will transcribe and record his music.

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