Jan 彊

Maybe the biggest surprise during Loreli's Chengdu trip happened on our first night. We attended the very popular open mic night at Machu Picchu Bar and were delighted when the first musician we heard was an amazing throat singer from Xinjiang. Jan 彊wowed us and the crowd with his proficiency in playing an electrified Kazakhstani string instrument, the dombra. Check out some of his set and an interview with him by Loreli's Amy Daml and Angela Li. Bilingual transcript is below. You can read more about Jan's 彊 music on this blog and read more interviews with him here.

Posted September 23, 2016

Bilingual Interview Transcript (translation and transcription by Angela Li):

A: Can you introduce yourself?

H: I’m Jan from Xinjiang.

A:可以自我介绍一下吗？

H: 我是彊，来自新疆。

A: What do you do in Chengdu?

H: Living here.

A: 你在成都做什么？

H: 生活在这儿。

A: What’s this instrument you play?

H: Dombra. It’s a Kazakhstani string instrument.

A: 你用的这个乐器是什么呢？

H: 冬不拉。是一个哈萨克的弹拨乐器。

A: It looks a bit similar to the Erhu.

H: It’s very different.

A: 看起来有点儿像二胡。

H: 很不一样。

A: Did you modify it to be electro-acoustic yourself?

H: There are people in Kazakhstan who make amplifiers for this instrument.

A: 你是自己把它做成可以插电的乐器的吗？

H: 在哈萨克有专门为它做扩音器的。

A: What about the singing? How did you learn it?

H: Self-taught. Altaic language is part of the lifestyle in the south of Xinjiang, so I guess I’ve had a certain sentiment inside me since I was little; I didn’t need to treat it as something that needed to be learned. Most of it is you. It’s like if you see someone from Lanzhou making ramen… you wouldn’t think it’s strange. This isn’t completely true either. A lot of the young people there don’t know anything about this kind of music, because our environment only brings us mainstream stuff. A lot of kids don’t know anything about this indigenous stuff despite being there.

A: 你的唱法是怎么学的呢？

H: 自学的。在新疆北部是阿尔泰语系的生态，所以可能从小内心就有这个情怀，不用特别当回事儿的去学。更多的是你自己。就像你看到兰州人做拉面并不奇怪一样。

但也不一定。很多年轻人现在对这个没概念了。因为我们的环境带给我们的都是一些流行的东西。根源的东西年轻人即使在那儿也完全不知道。

A: The music in Xinjiang is influenced by countries like Pakistan and Kazakhstan. When I was there in October, the music that was playing on the radio sounded Pakistani or Indian influenced. Does that come out in your music as well?

H: It’s that way for historical reasons. Some ethnic groups have been influenced by Middle Eastern culture, so they can’t really make music that’s very traditionally Xinjiang. I think Altaic and living in grasslands are more authentically Xinjiang. The Dombra, for example, is very different from Middle Eastern string instruments; it has its own system. Throat singing comes from the shepherd culture in northern Asia. It’s not from the outside. It’s very indigenous. Xinjiang has a lot of different ethnic groups with varying styles and cultures. I think the most authentic, what I’m most drawn to is music that preserves the grassland culture.

A: 新疆音乐带有一些来自巴基斯坦和哈萨克的影响。我十月份在那儿的时候，在收音机上听到的音乐有巴基斯坦或印度音乐的感觉。你的音乐有被这些元素影响吗？

H: 它是一个历史的原因。有一些民族常年受到中东文化的一些影响，就不会做出特别新疆根源的东西。我个人认为更根源的东西是尔泰语系，草原文化。像冬不拉跟中东的那些弹拨乐器是很不一样的，它是单的一个系统。呼麦呢是源自于北亚的农牧民族生活的。这个东西不是外来的，是很本土化的东西。新疆是一个多民族，多元的地方，有不同风格的东西。我认为可能更加根源的，也是我自己偏向相对保留草原文化比较完整的音乐。

A: Why do you want to bring this music to Chengdu?

H: It’s 1+1=2, like if you go to Inner Mongolia you have to eat barbecued lamb. We’re receiving a lot of mainstream stuff nowadays. Xinjiang was not as mainstream before. Chengdu has an international feel; it’s not shy. A lot of things can coexist here. I didn’t come here with the intent of bringing my music. My life comes first. I don’t think Xinjiang suits what I’m doing and my life now. There are historical elements behind this that made the art scene there now quite barren. I’m saying I don’t think it’s an ethnic thing, it’s very personal, something that rests in the heart. My life comes first, along with the music. I don’t want it to become too mainstream, but at least in Chengdu, even the most esoteric thing is guaranteed to be known by someone. As long as the conversation can go on, that’s enough.

A: 你为什么想把这个音乐带到成都？

H: 我一开始觉得像是1+1=2，就像你到内蒙的话一定要吃烤全羊。 我们现在接收到很多大众化的东西。新疆最早也是很小众的地方。成都具备着一个国际化的感觉。他并不蔽塞，所以在这里很多东西可以共存。我没有刻意把音乐带过来，首先是生活。因为我觉新疆不太适合我现在在做的事情和我的生活。有一些元素是历史性的元素，导致现在的文艺状态比较匮乏。所以说我认为他不是一个民族性的东西，是更个人的，装在心里的东西。我首先还是考虑到生活，就顺便在做着音乐。我也不希望它变成一个很大众的东西，但至少在成都，再罕见的东西都会有人知道。大家都有一个交流，就够了。

A: What’s the response from people in Chengdu?

H: (Chengdu is) very accepting and multifaceted, and filled with different groups of people. Three years ago I played at Machu Picchu for the first time to a full house. No one knew me then. They were very quiet throughout the whole performance. You can see that this group of people, or anyone who enjoys music has a certain quality about them. They’re open to all sorts of things. There are groups of music lovers in some places, but their enjoyment of music might be limited to certain genres or forms. That gig left a really good impression on me. It made me think I could communicate with the audience freely. Music is just notes and rhythm. There are no barriers when we converse in music. Everyone’s accepting and open. Anything’s possible. This is my first impression of the audience in Chengdu.

A: 在成都的人对这个怎么回应呢？

H: 包容，多元，各种群体他都有。三年前在Machu Picchu的老店表演，坐的非常满。当时没有人认识我。整个演出，从头到尾安安静静的。由此可见这个群体，

喜欢音乐的人的一种素质或者特质吧。他们愿意接受各种各样的东西。可能有一些地方也有喜欢音乐的群体，但局限于喜欢某种音乐或形式。那次给我留下了非常好的一个印象。觉得沟通没有障碍。音乐嘛，无非就是音符和节奏。用它来对话，沟通没有障碍。大家愿意接受，是敞开的。这样一切都有可能。这是我对成都的听众的第一印象。