The book "Partner" is edited by Mr. Gao Yuchun, a famous music theorist and writer, and Jiang Kun, chairman of the Qu Association, serves as an adviser and personally writes the preface. The book details the artistic experiences and achievements of 23 pairs of famous cross-talk artists. The content is detailed and vivid, with strong information and interest.
Mr. Gao Yuqun was a well-known creator of "Today's Headlines" and published many theories and anecdotes and historical facts in cross-talk and music art. I had the privilege of getting to know Mr. Gao, and I benefited a lot from private messages and WeChat exchanges. Mr. Gao passed away on October 24 last year, and the anniversary of his death is approaching, and he has successively reprinted Mr. Gao's last masterpiece, which can also be regarded as a deep remembrance of Mr. Gao.
(Mr. Gao Yuqun, Editor-in-Chief of this book)
Articles about cross-talk partners in the book are written by the actors themselves or by industry experts familiar with the actors. This article introducing the two masters Chang Baoting and Bai Quanfu was written by Mr. Gao Zhan.
(Continued from the previous issue)
Chang Baoting finally realized how wise his father's choice was.
In fact, any pair of cross-talk partners need to go through a run-in process, and "Changbai" is no exception, and the cooperation between the two has quickly become very tacit, almost to the point of becoming one. For these two people, this cooperation can be described as a win-win situation. Chang Baoting is very lucky compared to most artists of his age, because he has never touched the ground since he started talking to each other. You know, even the predecessors with high artistic level, such as Ma Delu, Zhou Deshan, Jipingsan, etc., will often perform on the ground, otherwise they will not be able to guarantee their lives. Bai Quanfu had walked through many places before, entered the garden, and also touched the ground. After the cooperation between the two, for Chang Baoting, Bai Quanfu's praise is very suitable for him, even if it is the baggage of "small teeth", after Bai Quanfu's "pad brick" can also vibrate; For Bai Quanfu, not only does he no longer have to pick up the ground, but he can often perform in the middle and high-end gardens. It only took the duo more than half a year to establish a foothold in the cross-talk industry.
The two people just joined forces for a while, and it was common to eat a late-night snack after the performance. The first time they ate supper together was at a small restaurant, they ate roast cakes, exploded stomachs, and drank mutton soup. At checkout, the two people almost got into a fight because they were rushing to pay for the meal. The final "winner" is Chang Baoting, his reason is that compared with the economic conditions of the two people, his life is much better, the Qiming Tea House founded by his father is in a very good state, the eldest brother Chang Baokun and the second brother Chang Baolin are all wrists, and the income is also very good. But I didn't expect that this would become the norm in the future, as long as the brothers and sons ate together, nine times out of ten it was Chang Baoting's checkout. In his later years, Bai Quanfu once said to people: "From that time I ate a bursting belly, after eating, I would pay off the bill." I, every New Year's Holiday, buy something to see the old man, it is a personal feeling. ”
In 1951, "Chang Bai" joined the Tianjin Red Wind Music Art Society. Soon, the two entered the Tianjin Qu Art Troupe and became the backbone members of the troupe. It was at this stage that "Changbai" entered their "golden age". Among them, a major symbol is the emergence of high-quality new works in an endless stream, they have created and performed more than 20 new passages such as "Listening to the Radio", "Step by Step", "Homecoming", "Waterwheel Problem", "Drawing Chickens" and so on. In particular, Listen to the Radio, in which they attempted to bring props and band accompaniment to the cross-talk stage, a bold and rewarding attempt that opened the way for the diversity of cross-talk performances in the future.
In the history of "Changbai" cooperation, there are two brief separations that have to be said that should be mentioned. Once in 1950, Sun Yukui and Hou Baolin invited them to join the Beijing Crosstalk Improvement Group. The invited artists are all famous artists, such as Gao Deming, Wang Fengshan, Luo Rongshou and so on. Unfortunately, At that time, Bai Quanfu was unable to go due to physical discomfort. The cross-talk improvement group was established, with Sun Yukui as the first group leader and Hou Baolin and Chang Baoting as the deputy team leaders. The Beijing Xiangsheng Improvement Group has made outstanding contributions to the transformation of traditional xiangsheng and the development of new xiangsheng. About a year later, the team completed its mission and "Changbai" gathered again.
Another time was during the "Cultural Revolution", when the two "Chang Bai" solemnly talked. The reason for this conversation was that Zhu Xueying, a music writer known as the "Holy Hand of Drum Music", invited Chang Baoting to visit the Tianjin Meat Union Factory, and after returning, the two created the cross-talk "Digging Treasure", and then Wang Peiyuan and an Allegro book actor performed this work. At that time, the relevant leaders of the radio station listened to this program and felt that if Chang Baoting praised Wang Peiyuan, it would be better, so the leader of the qu art troupe arranged for Chang Baoting to cooperate with Wang Peiyuan. In this way, Bai Quanfu, an old partner who had cooperated for more than twenty years, was left out in the cold, and Chang Baoting thought that it was very inappropriate to do so, so he talked to Bai Quanfu about it. Bai Quanfu is a reasonable person, and he understands that this is a good opportunity to turn over. At that time, the radio station had not broadcast cross-talk for a long time, and if it could broadcast this "Digging Treasure", the significance would be very great. As a result, Wang Peiyuan and Chang Baoting's "Digging Treasure" was very popular as soon as it was broadcast on the radio, and the "Ode to Friendship" said by Ma Ji and Tang Jiezhong became popular all over the country, and finally did not let crosstalk break its roots.
(Chang Baoting Wang Peiyuan master and apprentice on the same stage)
After decades of cooperation, Chang Baoting has always regarded Bai Quanfu as his brother, and every time the two of them go to perform in other places, he takes the initiative to take care of his brother. Once the author went to Baoding with "Chang Bai" to perform, entered the hotel, went to their room, and saw Chang Baoting taking slippers for Bai Quanfu, and then went to boil water. I have heard many stories of "Changbai" before, and I know that the two people have deep feelings, but this time I saw it with my own eyes, which still made the author very moved.
Chang Baoting has the habit of taking notes, which records his understanding of the art of cross-talk, the analysis of specific passages, the summary of performance practice, the experience of cross-talk creation, etc., and there is also a type of content, that is, the evaluation of Bai Quanfu. From the notes, it can be seen that in Chang Baoting's eyes, Bai Quanfu's praise art and character are almost perfect. He wrote: "My father told me several times not to break up with Bai Quanfu in my life, which was an extremely wise decision. I have also partnered with others, far less comfortable than with Bai Quanfu..." These are his heartfelt words. Although the two usually joke a few words, the communication and even quarrel between each other are the glue that makes the relationship between the two more and more solid. "ChangBai" began to partner in 1945, and until Bai Quanfu's death in 1993, they cooperated for nearly forty-eight years, setting a record for the longest time of cross-talk at that time, which is really valuable.
(Chang Bao Ting Bai Quanfu co-performed cross-talk)
As a member of the Xiangsheng family, Chang Baoting inherited the mantle of his father Chang Lian'an and his brother Chang Baokun, enlightened the new wind of "Chang's" cross-talk, advanced with the times, innovated and performed new, and became the "Chang's" cross-talk picker, who naturally also had a credit for Bai Quanfu. The two of them cooperate tacitly, praise each other, perform skillfully, elegant and exquisite, noisy but not noisy, warm and hot, crisp and smooth, and the success of the "Chang's" cross-talk is indispensable. When Xiangsheng became the first batch of national intangible cultural heritage representative projects, Chang Baoting became a representative inheritor, and the role of Bai Quanfu in obtaining this honor cannot be ignored. "Changbai" has become synonymous with cross-talk partners, and has written a glorious stroke in the annals of cross-talk history.
(End)