Introduction to Xintianyou

"Xintianyou", also known as "Shuntianyou" and "Xiaoqu", is popular in the northern half of Shaanxi and some areas bordering Ningxia, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia and Shaanxi. In the past, due to inconvenient transportation, production, economy and trade here relied entirely on donkeys and mules for transportation. The local people who engaged in such labor were called "foot households", "porters" and "footers". "Jito" walked in the lonely mountains and ravines for a long time, and he naturally entertained himself by singing. The main thing they sang was "Xintianyou". As a folk song variety with strong style and individuality, the basic characteristics of "Xintianyou" are short and concise structure, open and unrestrained melody, passionate and deep emotions, and strong lyricism. Its lyrics and music only have two sentences, the upper and lower lines. The first sentence of the libretto raises the mood, and the second sentence highlights the theme. For example, "The first horse to pick a horse is not generally high, but the best among people is you, my brother." Representative repertoire includes "Porter Tune", "Orchid Flowers", "Driving Animal Spirits", "Guerillas Coming Down from Hengshan", "It's Easy to Meet but Hard to Talk", etc.