Songs and sayings: Antiphonal Singing

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These two songs were performed one after the other. The first, a song of welcome, was sung to welcome us to the area, and should be antiphonal, but we were unable to respond in kind! The second song is more typical. Such singing is often impromptu, after eating and drinking together. The format is that of a friendly competition, with each singer trying to leave the other lost for words. In this example, after agreeing that current living standards are much higher, singer B tries to portray (in jest) singer A, who is from a wealthier background, as a typical oppressive landlord. Singer A retorts by singing that he is nothing of the kind, and that the only reason other people farm his land is his increasing age!

6.1.1: A Song of Welcome
6.1.2: Duologue between a Landlord and a Peasant

Peng Jizhen, Dianfang Township, Longshan County
recorded on 18 July 2002

01	nga²-nie³ cu¹-nie³ bu¹cuo³ ang² ge³ ye⁴ you, nga² se² la⁴ku¹tu³ a³-bu¹ce³. As our guests you have come to our home, but we didn't even meet you at the roadside.
02	nga² me lei⁴ me se² da⁴ha³ me da⁴ha³ hhi² yo, nga² lei⁴ mo³ se² you reng²-duo³-lie³. Today we can spend time together; I only got to know you today.
03	nga² long³bei³ me lu² si³ ta²ci¹-lie³ you, me qi³mo¹ se² you you² li³ le? I am over sixty this year, how should I speak to you?
04	jing¹ li³-nie³ ji¹hui¹ be² hang²la³ tao² yo, nga² bu²si¹ me da⁴ha³ ba⁴-i-ta¹ yo. We won't have an opportunity to talk like this again, otherwise I wouldn't have come to see you now.
05	se² ku⁴ mo³ ku⁴ mo³ ang² ge³ ye⁴ you o, ku¹ca⁴ huan⁴-alie³ hhi²-lie³ ge³. You have had a hard journey coming here, you came over the mountains to get here.
06	hu³pa³ a²-lie³ me ge³du¹-cai³, gai² ku⁴-nie³-xi² nga²duo³ me³-lie¹ die². You had a hard river crossing to get here, I will never forget this.

Peng Jizhen & Gong Pingqing, Dianfang Township, Longshan County
recorded on 18 July 2002

01	A: nga² gai² si³jie³ yo da⁴ huan¹xian¹ tiao⁴ mo³ ba you, nga² wai²wai¹ ni² jian¹ qi³mo¹ la? nga² dao²di¹ me kei³du¹-cai³-bo³ gao¹-i, ni² lai⁴ nga² luo³ mo³ ni² la¹ ba⁴ ba⁴. A: Let's talk together now. What do you have to say, nephew? Where should I go? You are scolding me like this, think about it!
02	B: nga² me zeng¹di¹ you bi²zi¹ka³, nga² sa³li³ cang²guo¹ ya bi²zi¹sa³. qian³ kao² me dang¹-nie³ zeng²ce³ ca² a, lei⁴ da⁴ tai³ ga³ cang²guo¹-la¹. B: I'm really and truly Tujia. I use Tujia whenever when I speak or sing. Thanks to the Party's good policies, today we can sing together here.
03	A: nga² ni² be² me³-lie¹ hang² die²-la¹ you, nga² be² me³-lie¹ huan¹xi⁴ la. ang²ni¹ la² nie¹ hi⁴lie³ me you wu² ka⁴ ou, gai² da⁴ze³ ling¹tao² peng²duo¹-da². A: I know that you think the same way, I feel happy too. All day we look after the cattle as they graze, with no chance to meet with such leaders [visitors].
04	B: qian³ kao² dang¹-nie³ zeng²ce³ ca², ce¹zi¹ kai¹-lie³ ku¹ca⁴ ga³. hu²ni¹ me da⁴ha³ nie⁴ cai² ka¹, dang¹-nie³ qing³yi² ta⁴ si¹ma³. B: Thanks to the Party's good policies, vehicles can now get through to our mountains. We can live happily together, let's not forget the Party's many kindnesses.
05	A: ang²ni¹ bi²zi¹ka³ you me bi²zi¹sa³ you, me bi²zi¹sa³ be² ta⁴ si¹ma³. nga² jiu¹ jian¹ mu²la¹ nie⁴ka¹ ca² you, qian³ kao² me ling¹xiu², guo² die³ ca². A: We are Tujia, we speak Tujia, so don't you forget to speak Tujia! I'm saying how good our lives are now, thanks to our excellent leaders.
06	B: qian³ kao² dang¹-nie³ zeng²ce³ ca², hu²ni¹ da⁴ha³ nie⁴ cai² ka¹. ni² la⁴ hhi² ce³ du¹ gai¹jie³-liao³, hu²ni¹ dian²deng¹ lian² hua¹hua¹. B: Thanks to the Party's policies, we can all live happily together. There are now roads and piped water, there are electric lights in every household.
07	A: ang² da⁴ da³bie¹ ai¹ si³jie³ die² mo³ ba you, dian²huan³ cang³gang⁴ jiu¹ you hu⁴ca³. nga² cong³lai³ ce¹zi¹ duo³ yi³-bo³-da² you, lang³cei¹ song¹kuo¹ jiu¹ tie⁴tie³ za⁴. A: Let's think back to the former times, when we had to walk to market in Dianfang. I had never seen a car, and in the evening I had to carry a lamp when I came back.
08	B: yi¹wan¹ nga² be² you die²-bo³-la¹, cuo³xie² tai² me you ji³ku³ ha³. cang³gang⁴ jie²ri¹ du¹ ji³ku³ da² you, ji³ ga³ha² me you pao²zi¹ la³. B: I can remember not having any shoes to wear; we had to make straw sandals. When we went to market or worked in the fields, we had to wear straw sandals. We got blisters on the soles of our feet.
09	A: nga² mu²la¹ me ai¹ si³jie³ da⁴ze³-da² you, me ji³ ga³ me lian³hai³ da²-bo³-la¹. sa⁴-la¹-hu³ me ji³ ga³ me pi³hai³ da² you, me cong³lai³ sa⁴-da² me you a³-ta¹. A: Now things are different for me, on my feet are proper sandals. When it gets cold I wear leather shoes, but if it isn't cold I won't wear them.
10	B: eng¹di¹ me qian³ kao² zeng²ce³ ca² o, mu²la¹ hu²ni¹ me nie⁴ cai² ka¹. nga² hui³yi² nga² yi¹qian³ bi²cei¹-zu², a¹di¹ ku⁴ri³ si¹ma³-da². B: This is all thanks to good policies, nowadays life is good for everyone. I remember when I was small, how can I forget such bitter days.
11	A: nga² bi²cei¹-zu²-nie³ a³nie¹ a³ba¹ you, nga² be² me³-lie¹ die²-bo³-la¹. nga² ku³ me ca¹ca¹ku³ lao⁴ da², se³gu³li¹ duo³ yi²si¹ wo⁴ta³ la². A: I remember well my parents when I was small. My trousers were split-crotch trousers that babies wear, with my bottom sticking out.
12	B: ni² nga² be² nian³ji³ hang² ri³-da² you, yi¹wan¹ me ang² nie¹ hu³ bai⁴ li³-ta¹. nga² mu²la¹ me ni² dang¹-nie³ zeng²ce³ ca², ni² nga² be² biu² da⁴ nie⁴ cai² ka¹. B: You are not much older than I am, let's not talk anymore about those days. Now the Party's policies are good, I live happily in my daughter's home.
13	A: nga² ai¹ si³jie³ mu²la¹ da⁴ze³-da² you, me² ga³-ta¹ sa⁴-da² you a¹-da² ou. nga² ku³ si¹ba¹ yi²si¹ duo³ da²-ci³ xie², nga² si¹li¹ mang¹mang¹ a cang³si² ga². A: Things were different then, now we don't suffer drought or cold, nor are we hungry. We all have clothes to wear, and we eat rice regularly.
14	B: hei yi¹wan¹ nga² be² jiu¹ sui² ba¹ you, di²zu¹ duo³ mu²la¹ da⁴ze³-dao². a¹di¹ xie²ma¹ me me²zi¹ bao¹gu¹ ga² you, mu²la¹ qiong³-ma¹ duo³ bao¹gu¹ be² ga²-da². B: Ah! When I was about one, the landlords were very different from now. In the past, even the rich had to eat wheat and maize; nowadays even poor people don't need to eat maize.
15	A: ni² ya jiu¹ nga² ya³-lie³ nga² ga³ha² you, me ang² cu¹ me zeng¹di¹ di²zu¹-ka³. a³nie¹ a³ba¹ me zang⁴ you² zang⁴, yan¹si¹ la²-lie³ pe²ti¹ zao³. A: When you see me, you say that my life is better than yours and that I'm truly a landlord. My parents were both very thrifty, they locked the house [hiding the key] and went to work in their fields.
16	B: ang² da⁴ eng¹ge¹ li³-nie³-xi² be² si²hua¹, ang²ni¹ wan¹tian³ a¹di¹ di²zu¹-ka³. guo² da²-xi² be² ca¹huo⁴ you, ga²-xi² me ca² suo¹ nie¹ ping³huo³ la² mong² ha³. B: Everything I've told you is true, we used to be landlords. He didn't dress well, but he ate well and had a feast once every three days.
17	A: nga²-nie³ si²hua¹ ni² bo³ la² you, me qing³kuan² me li³-xi² hang² ze³-da². a¹di¹ bu¹cuo³ hhi²-lu³ me si³ lao⁴ bang² a, bu¹cuo³ hhi²-da² me si³ yi³-da². A: I'm speaking the truth to you, things weren't as good as you said. We only had meat when visitors came, if there were no guests we would not eat meat.
18	B: ang a¹di¹ li³-xi² zeng¹di¹hua¹, zang⁴-nie³-xi² me xie²ma¹ka³! ang² qiong³-ma¹ guo² guo² me you² hu³ri¹ ei, zeng¹di¹ si³ duo³ da⁴ yi³-da²! B: Ah! I'm telling the truth, you penny-pinching rich folk! All of us poor folk had to work; we wanted meat but never saw any!
19	A: ni² ga²-da², me nga² ga²-da² you, ga²-zu² me yi²si¹ ta²ku¹ ga³. cong³lai³ be² tuo²ni¹ you² gao¹-da², nga²duo³ luo²bu¹ ye¹ ba⁴-bo³-la¹. A: When you didn't eat meat, neither did I; when we ate, we did so from a common pot. In the past we didn't cook any other food, I saw it with my own eyes.
20	B: ai¹ me a¹di¹ nie⁴ me nga² me ka¹-bo³-da² yo, ying¹wei³ ai¹ si³jie³ nga² bi²cei¹-lang². zi²you¹ a³nie¹ a³ba¹ li³-xi² xi⁴ le, qi²kui¹ le ang²ni¹ le qiong³ma¹ka³. B: Those were terrible days, because I was still only small. All I could do was obey my parents, all of us poor folk got the worst of it.
21	A: di²zu¹-nie³ qing³ luo⁴ me ngeng² da⁴ze³-da² you, ai¹ta¹ me nga² qing³mo¹ di²zu¹-ka³? nga² se³ke¹ pe²ti¹ me ga⁴ [ke³] xie² yo, nga² ri¹-hi¹ce¹ me se² qing⁴. A: The descendants of landlords are indeed different, otherwise how could I be a landlord now? I have several fields of my own, they are too much for me to work myself so I ask others to help.
22	B: ni²-nie³ a¹di¹ li³-xi² zeng¹di¹hua¹ yo, nga² be² li³-xi² be² xi⁴-la¹. xie²ma¹ me, guo² ngeng² da⁴ qiong³ma¹ qing⁴, me suo¹yi¹ le guo² cu¹ nie⁴ka¹ ca². B: You are telling the truth; I've also heard people say that. Rich folk always hire poor folk to do their work, so that they can live comfortably themselves.
23	A: ai¹di¹ bang²hua¹ tai²-lie³, me hu³ qing⁴ la you, po³pa¹cei¹ lao⁴-alie³, lu² si³ ba². nga² me ai¹ si³jie³ si³ lai¹ sui² ei, nga² guo² me tie²ba¹ ri¹-duo³-da². A: I can't help it, I have to get others to work my land. I'm getting old now, I'm already sixty-eight. Back then when I was ten or so, I hadn't done any heavy work.
24	B: ni² a¹di¹ li³-xi² zeng¹di¹hua¹ o, la² nie¹ hi⁴lie³ ni² ci¹ci¹ ba⁴. suo¹yi¹ ni² qie³pa² me ri¹-ci¹hhe¹ ei, heng¹duo¹-nie³ dao²li¹-nie³ ni² ri¹-da². B: What you say is true, you spent all day studying. So you don't know how to farm, there are a great many things you don't know how to do.
25	A: nga² me ni² bo³ si²hua¹ la² yo, nga²-nie³ a³nie¹ me zeng¹di¹ xie¹qi¹ ca². guo² me qie³pa² tao¹tao¹ su², nga² be² guo² ta¹nie¹ dang¹guo³-la¹. A: I'm telling you the truth, my mother was very strong. She knew all about farming, and I learnt by following her.
26	B: ni² bi²kui¹-zu² me nie⁴ka¹ ca² o, ni² mu²la¹ be² wan¹nian³ nie⁴ be² ca². ni² re⁴ ca² le bi² le ca² o, la² mong² hi⁴lie³ re² si³ you² ni² duan²-da². B: You had a good time when you were small; life is also good for you now, when you are old. Your children and grandchildren are happy, you have meat and wine at every meal.
27	A: nga² be² me mu²la¹ you me lu² si³-liao³ ba² you, hua¹jia¹ ngao²-alie³ he²ri³ba³! nga² li³-lu³ me zeng¹di¹ nga² ming² ca² you, re⁴bi²-die¹ duo³ wo⁴ta³ gong¹hu¹ ha³. A: I'm already sixty-eight, I'm no longer a young man! It seems I have been very lucky, my grandchildren have all gone off to work.
28	B: mu²la¹ ai¹di¹ zeng²ce³ you² kai¹huan², ni² me zeng¹di¹ you² ming² ca²! ni² la² nie¹ hi⁴lie³ wu² la¹ ka⁴ yo, bie²di¹ xian³si² ni² guan¹-ta¹. B: Nowadays things are opening up everywhere, you really are lucky! You look after your cow every day, and don't need to do anything else.
29	A: ai¹me¹, mu²la¹ nga² be² me³ die²-la¹ you, gao¹-de¹xi³ me nga² ba⁴-ta¹ mang. qie⁴ gao¹-de¹ me qie¹xie³ gao¹, zi⁴ bo³ ye³ luo²-lie³, me wu² la¹ ka⁴ yo. A: Well, now I have to bear in mind, what my children and grandchildren can do, they won't let me do. I do what I can, cooking food for the pig, looking after the cow.
30	B: ang²ni¹ me nie¹ hu³ me jing¹ ta⁴ cang², a¹di¹ lao⁴ su¹ji¹ me ru³-bo³-la¹. ni² lian¹-di yi²jian¹ you² qing³mo¹ la¹ li³ me? ang²duo³ da⁴ xiu¹xi³ ba. B: The two of us have sung enough, that retired Party Secretary has been listening to us. What do you to have to say? Let's have a break now.
31	A: nga² jing¹zao¹ li³ me hang³ hua¹ you, ang² da⁴ me xiu¹-alie³ suai⁴ mo³ la². ni² be² nga² zi¹ge¹ me you² ong³-bo³ o, ni² guo² lu³ying¹ji¹ ni² nga² ta⁴ ba⁴-bo³! A: What we've said today is just off the top of our heads; we are going to have a rest now, don't take our words to heart. There you are sitting in front of us, don't point your cassette recorder at me any more!