On the evening of February 21, the opening ceremony of the first Jishou Tourism Development Conference as well as the 9th Drum Culture Festival kicked off by the Wanrong River in Qianzhou Ancient Town. Many domestic and foreign drum teams participated in the festival.
The Shanxi Jiangzhou Drum Music performance team was the first to appear on the stage. Accompanied by Xiangxi Dragon Dance, Lion Dance and Martial Arts, their performances made people feel excited. The “Auspicious Sky Drum” presented by the Beijing national orchestra Jiumu Drum Band integrated Dunhuang cultural elements such as “Thousand-Hand Kwan-yin”, showing the charm of Chinese percussion music and the cultural tolerance of the Chinese nation.
The acrobatics “Yao Drum Dance” performed by the Yao girls integrated acrobatics and dance, and displayed highly difficult skills as well as the fruitful achievements of the innovation and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage.
Shanxi Weifeng Gongs and Drums Team beat drums powerfully, which sounded like tens of thousands of horses galloping. The Shanxi Jiangzhou Drum Music performance “Mu Guiying Takes Command” showed the heroism of women with intensive drumbeats.
The long drum dance “Joy” performed by the Korean drum team from Dunhua City of Jilin Province is based on the scenes of daily life and labor of the Korean ethnic group. The beautiful dancing postures combined strength and softness perfectly.
The finale performances of the African Jinbei Drum Team, the Brazilian Samba Drum Team and the Middle East Drum Team pushed the opening ceremony to a new high. In addition to traditional drum music performances, this festival also added some programs showing the achievements of Jishou’s tourism industry development.
This year, Jishou will successively launch a variety of activities like the Xiangxi Golden Tea Cultural Tourism Festival as well as the first “Xiangxi Golden Tea Cup” Cycling Race, the marathon race, Hunan (Summer) Rural Cultural Tourism Festival and a national work meeting to boost rural revitalization through cultural tourism, in an effort to help develop Xiangxi into a famous tourist destination at home and abroad.
