The Shangjia dagu – or the Shang family drum – is a traditional percussion instrument with a history stretching back more than 300 years.
It originated in and remains strikingly popular in Shangjia town, in the Wenchang Lake Provincial Tourism Resort, located in Zibo city in East China's Shandong province.
Shangjia town has long been home to the sound of drums for people, no matter how old or young. The townsfolk are big fans of the Shang family drum and over half of them can play the instrument.
The drum has become an indispensable cultural activity for residents in Shangjia town and as the Spring Festival approaches, the lively and enthusiastic drumbeat can be heard everywhere.
The main versions of the Shang family drum are the biangu, zhangba and the xinghuatian and the sound they produce modulates when the different parts of the drumhead are beaten with different strength, said Jiang Xiaoli, one of the artform's cultural inheritors.
The craft was placed on the list of provincial intangible cultural heritage of Shandong province in 2013. To encourage young people to get a deeper grasp of the intangible cultural heritage, the masters of the Shang family drum have been staging demonstrations on campuses in recent years.
An exponent demonstrates a Shang family drum at Mengshan Primary School, in the Wenchang Lake Provincial Tourism Resort in Zibo. [Photo/WeChat account: zibowenhualvyou]
