Buyei Leyou Flute

"Leyou" is a Buyei word meaning "to call to a lover" or "to invite a friend," and names a wooden double-reed vertical flute unique to the Buyei. According to the Brief History of the Buyei, the instrument was already current among the Buyei of Pu'an prefecture (today's Qianxinan) in the Qianlong reign of the Qing dynasty, and it has been handed down for generations around Xingyi and Zhenfeng along the Pan rivers.

The leyou has a wooden body fitted with a double reed of cocoon or thin brass, blown vertically to produce a long, plaintive tone; it is played at gatherings and celebrations and in the langshao courtship between young people, its melodies—a distinct "leyou tune"—serving as the love-talk of Buyei youth.

Among the most representative Buyei instruments, the leyou carries the people's oral music, courtship custom and crafting tradition, of great value for the study of southwest minority organology and folk life; it is listed among the traditional-music items on the national ICH register.