Theme
Song, Silver and Thread
Some of what follows was never written down, because the peoples who made it had no script. It went into cloth, into metal and into unaccompanied part-singing instead, and all three are still in use.
Three practices, three peoples, one thing in common: the knowledge is held in people rather than in documents, and it transfers by sitting next to someone.
Dong part-singing has no notation and no conductor. Miao ornament records lineage in silver and in stitch. Tujia brocade is tensioned against the weaver’s own body and worked from memory.
None of it scales, all of it is for sale in small quantities, and every one of these days is spent in someone’s working room.
4 days
- A tall timber drum tower with stacked eaves against an open sky
Learn Dong Polyphonic Song in Guizhou
Guizhou · One day, roughly 09:00 to 20:00
A private day in a Dong valley — unaccompanied part-singing taught in the drum tower where it belongs, and the timber building that holds it together.
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Miao Embroidery Masterclass in Guizhou
Guizhou · One day, roughly 09:30 to 18:00
A private day of needlework with a Miao embroiderer — the stitches, the symbols they carry, and a piece of your own started properly.
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Miao Silversmith Workshop in Guizhou
Guizhou · One day, roughly 09:30 to 18:00
A private day at a working forge — drawing, hammering and chasing silver with a Miao smith whose family have done it for generations.
- A woven brocade panel in deep reds and indigo on a wooden frame
Tujia Brocade and a Hunan Table in Zhangjiajie
Zhangjiajie · One day, roughly 09:00 to 19:00
A private day with Tujia hosts below the sandstone towers — brocade weaving on a back-strap loom, hillside cooking, and the songs that go with both.
Questions
Are these performances arranged for visitors?
No. You are a guest in working houses and halls. Singing happens because we ask, and the weavers and smiths are people who sell their work.
How should I behave as a guest?
Normally, and your host briefs you on anything specific before you arrive. Ask before photographing people. Accept what is offered at the table.
Is it appropriate to buy things?
Yes, and it is welcomed — this is how the practices stay economically alive. We will tell you what is a fair price and then leave you to it. Older family pieces are frequently not for sale, and that answer is final.
How much time do these need?
Guizhou in particular is a four-day province minimum. The valleys are far apart and the days are unhurried by design.