Type and Feature

1. ‘Su Hsiang Ki'	2. ‘ Pingpu Tune'
3. ‘ Fengang Tune'	4. ‘The Ox's Tail'
6. 'Herding Cattle Tune'	7. 'Four Season Spring'

 

5. 5-hole Tune - music score

There were two saying about this tune.

1. It has the fifth sentence in addition to the traditional 7 words 4 sentences form. The fifth sentence could be differently or simply repeated the fourth sentence again. According to Mr. Liou Qi Xiang in Manchu, the elder people used to sing the fifth sentence with different words and sound, but after 1945, most people just repeated the fourth sentence again, maybe it was for the convenience to be compatible with other tunes.

2. In 1967, Mr. Chen Da told the interviewer that the ‘hole' meant the hole in moon guitar. The outer string of moon guitar is the tone La, and the inner string is Mi. If we held the fifth position of the outer string, we get the same tone as the inner string. This was used by Mr. Chen Da for tuning, and so was this song called. Mr. Chen Da sang it in a 4 sentences form and made a different ending. But only he sang it this way. Most other singers still sing it in the 5 sentences form.

Five Hole Tune' has a wide range in tone from high to low. People liked to use this tune to sing ‘February Coolie Song'. Some people called this tune as ‘Coolie Tune'. The flavor of this tune is very rich and touching, outmatches the other Hengchu folk songs like ‘Thinking Of', ‘Pingpu Tune', ‘Fengang Tune', but except ‘The Ox's Tail' perhaps.