The Development of Yunnan “New Folk Songs”
Authors: Duan Zhipeng , Maneewattana Chutima , Ren Xiulei 
Published: November 2024

Background and Aim: This study investigates the evolution of the “New Folk Song” in Yunnan and analyzes how historical, cultural, and social changes have influenced their development. Yunnan folk songs are a cultural product with local characteristics and close to the development of the working people in Yunnan that is close to the people's daily life. The "New Folk Songs" of Yunnan is a musical form combining “nation” and “modern” innovation. In the process of development, it is constantly endowed with new definitions and connotations and presents the situation of diversified development. Due to the special historical and social environment of Yunnan, a large number of “New Folk Songs” with rich themes and excellent quality have emerged in Yunnan during the period of the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China, the Revolutionary War, the “Cultural Revolution”, and the era of peace and development in recent years. The results show that Yunnan's “New Folk Songs” evolved through the integration of modern and traditional elements, reflecting the unique social and cultural dynamics of Yunnan over the past hundred years. To study the development of “New Folk Songs” in Yunnan, this study is not only a record of musical life in different periods, but also the development trajectory of different musical works in Yunnan across the century, but also a study of the development history of music creation in Yunnan.
Materials and Methods: This Article aimed to study related literature to find out the development of Yunnan's “New Folk Songs”. The instrument for collecting data was documentary research. Relevant journals, academic papers, books, magazines, and online information related to the development of Yunnan's “New Folk Songs” are reviewed and organized. From the perspective of creation and music ontology, the style characteristics and creation characteristics of Yunnan "new folk songs" in different periods are analyzed, to explore the development of Yunnan “New Folk Songs” in Yunnan.
Results: Throughout the development of “New Folk Songs” in Yunnan, its creation characteristics are contemporary, national, and regional; music works have the style characteristics of Yunnan minority elements. This paper will analyze and study the above characteristics in depth. This study is beneficial to improve the reader's understanding of Yunnan's “New Folk Songs” and understanding, through the development of “New Folk Songs” in Yunnan, to explore the development prospect of “New Folk Songs”, Yunnan for music workers can provide certain reference and reference, also for the Yunnan “New Folk Songs” and singing practice, teaching practice provides reference way, also further promote Yunnan traditional folk song inheritance and the sustainable development of “New Folk Songs”. At the same time, through this study, it is hoped to help the exploration of Yunnan's “New Folk Songs” style, and also to promote the inheritance of the existing Yunnan traditional folk music culture and establish awareness of the exploration and protection of Yunnan local music materials.
Conclusion: The development of “New Folk Songs” in Yunnan is reflected in the creative characteristics and style characteristics changing with the changes of the times. The social environment, economic situation, and policy system of a country in an era will often affect the artistic creation of the creators with subjective or objective factors. Therefore, In this paper, the horizontal melody and vertical harmonic layout of music works in the budding period of Yunnan “New Folk Songs” (The Late Qing Dynasty and The Early Republic of China), The War Period (1931-1949), The 17th years of the Founding of the People's Republic of China (1949-1966), The Ten Years of the “Cultural Revolution” (1966-1976), and The Innovation and Development period (1978-2020), Relying on the musical activities in various historical periods, Analyzing the common and personalized creation characteristics of creators and the formation process of Yunnan local ethnic creation concept. Thus, the different purposes of creation, the different contents of the times, the different style characteristics, the different forms of expression, and then to understand the development of “New Folk Songs” in Yunnan.