A journey into prairie culture

Qiao Yuguang, Deputy Director-general of Department of Culture of Inner Mongolia agreed yearning for nature is the core value of prairie nature. He said being green and ecological is the glue that holds up the prairie culture. The Mongolian ethnic group appreciates nature and reveres other life forms in daily activities. He also told a story about a popular ballad for persuading livestock to breast-feed their cubs: when livestock don’t feed their cubs, the herdsmen would not take the cubs away or beat the mothers. They sing the ballad instead. Some people from the older gnerations could keep singing for a whole night.

Other artists and experts also offered their opinions on the preservation of the nature and tradition of the prairie culture.

Jin Daiqiang, a renowned designer in Hong Kong, said despite the touching scene and folk art, the activity desired development for they saw too many “new” things such as shows of high technology in the Exhibition of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Tradition is what we want to see most. If the exhibition had displayed some old things of historical importance or something used by herdsmen, it could reveal the prairie culture more profoundly. “Instead of dwelling on the surface, we need to improve the profundity when preserving culture heritage,” he argued. As for the concept of the “cultural industry”, he believed industrialization is different from entertainment and marketing doesn’t mean vulgarization. Beauty comes from culture itself and can be produced into competitive goods. This is true of industrialization, differing from commercialized repetition.

Fei Mingyi, Chairwoman of Hong Kong Chorus, also had some suggestions: “This activity offers us a great experience to enjoy Mongolian music. Its natural characteristic should be preserved when creating. Otherwise, we pollute treasures, causing its deterioration. Gaiety dazzles and preservation is what we need to do. At least keep it away from commercialization. ”

Chen Yonghua, Chairman of Composers and Authors Society of Hong Kong Ltd, said: “Mongolian urtin duu folk song can be heard without microphone. It is not learned but acquired for the Mongolian people. Stage performance plays an important role, however, it is the natural sound itself penetrated into our heart. ”

“Ethnic art exhibition needs to throw off the yoke of performance and display its nature,” Cai An’an, Chairman of Macao Movie Association, said at the symposium. “We witnessed many shows of folk custom. Among them, a Mongolian wedding was asked by my companion whether it was true or not. The exhibition should be authentic, not being divorced from real life for being garish.”

Cooperation and Exchange, the Key Way to Develop Prairie Culture

Participants of this activity also expressed their views on how to develop the prairie culture. Sparks began to fly when metropolis met grassland.

“For lack of understanding, some people believe that Hong Kong and Macao are cultural desert while Inner Mongolia has a desert culture,” said Zhang Jiong, Vice Honorary President of Chinese Writer Association. He argued Hong Kong and Macao, who are in the forward position to receive western culture, have made a significant influence on the modern Chinese culture and transformation of contemporary culture. Whereas the Mongolian people and their culture contributed a lot to the Chinese culture, including two Chinese epics and the Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368) zaju plays. “Although Hong Kong is an international metropolis, its culture belongs to China,” said Zeng Decheng, Chief of Hong Kong Home Affairs Bureau.