Nanyin (南音) was inscribed in 2009 on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. It is a traditional musical performance genre of the Minnan community in Southern China, and an important cultural heritage for many Chinese Singaporeans whose ancestors were Southern Chinese immigrants to Nanyang (South Seas) and the lands of Southeast Asia.
This academic collaboration involved a total of 47 students from the School of Music, and a group of Nanyin musicians from Siong Leng Musical Association. The programme consisted of weekly workshop and sectional practice sessions, which was integrated with NAFA course modules ‘Music in Context’ and ‘Professional Studies (Ensemble)’. To illustrate a traditional Nanyin repertory of zhi (指), qu (曲), and pu (谱), a group of selected students had the opportunity to present the Nanyin pieces that they learned during the workshop, namely, Pears in the Wind (风打梨), Into the Garden (直入花园), and Qi Shou Ban (起手板). In addition, the Nanyin musicians gave a performance of the classic piece, Trotting Horses (走马), which was a source of inspiration for four new works produced by student composers.
