"Dragon Boat Diao" is a folk song of the Tujia people in Lichuan.

The world's outstanding folk song "Dragon Boat Tune" was compiled and adapted from the Lichuan lantern song "Zhonggua Tune". Lichuan Lantern Song is a folk singing form performed by the Tujia people in Lichuan during the New Year and festivals, using colorful dragon boats as props. It was developed in the early Qing Dynasty and has a history of more than 300 years.

At the end of the Qing Dynasty, lantern songs became increasingly popular in Lichuan. There were various types of lanterns, such as "eight out of the front", "eight out of the back" and "miscellaneous lanterns". "Zhonggua Diao" is sung in Baiyang, Moudao and Wangying areas of Lichuan City in southwest Hubei Province. Lichuan is known as the hometown of "Long Chuan Diao".

In 1958, "Dragon Boat Tune" (also known as "Dragon Boat Tune") was included in the performances of the Hubei Mass Art Tour Guidance Troupe. Nationwide and even the world, it is rated as one of the most popular songs in the world.

For decades, various forms such as solo singing, duet singing, chorus, lead chorus, song and dance, and dance have been widely used on the stage of national and many provincial and municipal literary and art groups. Lichuan City is even more famous for its " "Dragon Boat Diao" is a proud hometown. Both amateur and professional theater groups have enthusiastically adapted and recreated it in various literary and artistic forms.

Song Appreciation:

"Zhonggua Tiao" is mainly spread in the Baiyangba area of ????Lichuan City. The main song has ten verses, starting from "Only when melon seeds enter the garden in the first month" to "Save the melon seeds until October." Melons with many seeds have always been regarded as a symbol of fertility and happiness. In the Tujia area, melon is a lingo of fertility worship, reflecting the romantic nature of the Tujia people.

The singing method of "Zhonggua Tiao" is that one man and one woman lead the singing, and everyone else contributes. During the performance, a colorful dragon boat is made of bamboo strips and colored paper. "Mo Mei" stands in the middle of the boat. There is a male clown called "Shigong" at the stern, and several female dancers on both sides. Every time they go to a place, the ground is marked as a stage, and the girl sings in the lead. After singing a song, she steps on the drums and supports the boat to dance. The boatman paddles back and forth with funny actions, which makes the audience laugh.

From a stylistic point of view, "Dragon Boat Diao" basically retains the chorus of "Zhonggua Diao", and the lyrics of the main song are compressed from ten paragraphs to two paragraphs (there is also a three-paragraph version), and the elaboration is removed. The time-honored reproductive image of "planting melons" has been weakened, making the theme of love more prominent, which instead reflects the scene-based characteristics of Tujia folk songs.