Across China: Troupe on horseback brings passion to Xinjiang prairie

It was still early in the morning, but Purbu found it hard to get back to sleep in his yurt at the thought of Ulan Muqir's arrival today. The herdsman had invited the traveling troupe to perform at a celebration later that day.

The troupe used to arrive on horseback. Now they have vehicles. The troupe has toured the prairie to perform for the nomadic herdsmen in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region for 50 years.

Ulan Muqir (Red Bud Troupe) is the Mongolian name for traveling troupes, who travel from one grazing site to another to perform for those who live in some of China's most remote areas.

As a part of the government's drive to boost folk art development, a Ulan Muqir was established in 1965 in the Wenquan County of Bortala Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, which borders Kazakhstan in the northwest.

"Once invited, Ulan Muqir will never let down their audience," said Bayinbat, 36, head of the troupe, who brought 20 performers to Purbu's event that day.

The troupe has 27 members today, most from rural areas.

Horseback travel was once favored because it reduced the travel time between settlements on the prairies and mountains

Siqin, 31, remembers what it was like when she joined the troupe 11 years ago. "Sometimes we had to walk for tens of kilometers carrying all our luggage -- there was often no road surface at all," she recalled.

Thanks to transportation improvements, "today we can rent a bus or a truck. It's much better," she said.

But things are not that easy as it seems. On the way to Purbu's home, they were caught in a sudden downpour and had to travel by bus on the muddy track for two hours to finish the 50-kilometer-long trip.

"As is often the case, it might suddenly start to rain when we sing," Bayinbat said, "Our hands get frozen in winter."

Their perseverance moves the audience as much as they were moved by the hospitable herdsmen, who call Ulan Muqir artists "our children."

When the troupe neared their destination, they were surprised to find a herdsman sent by Purbu waiting for them near a flooded road. The man had been waiting there since early in the morning.

Led by the guide, the troupe arrived at the party site at noon. They barely had any time to enjoy the delicious lamb, rice and milk tea the herdsmen had prepared for them. After bolting their lunch, the performers, surrounded by the audience, began to sing folk songs, dance and play instruments.

There are 92 villages and grazing sites in the county, according to Bayinbat. It takes the troupe about a year to tour all of them. The Ulan Muqir have composed over 1,000 songs and dances in the past five decades. Endi