Jingdong Dagu Drum Ballad
National ICH · Batch 1Origin
Jingdong dagu took shape around the mid-Qing in the region east of Beijing — Sanhe, Xianghe and Tianjin's Baodi — and is sung in the local accent. It entered the first batch of national ICH in 2006, declared by Tianjin's Baodi district.
The art form
One performer stands, sings and beats a drum while others accompany on the sanxian and yangqin; the singing is plain and flowing, strongly narrative and steeped in rural life.
Cultural significance
With Baodi as a key home of its transmission, Jingdong dagu is a signature drum-ballad art of northern Tianjin.