Xinjiang is home to a remarkable range of musical traditions: Uyghur muqam, Kazakh dombra music, Kyrgyz epic singing, and Tajik and Mongolian forms. The region's musical identity is carried by instruments including the rawap, dutar, satar and dap frame drum, and by a dance vocabulary of wrist turns, shoulder movements and rapid spins.
The muqam
The Twelve Muqam of the Uyghur tradition is a cycle of long song suites brought together in the sixteenth century from older regional traditions. Each muqam is a sequence of instrumental pieces, songs and dances lasting hours. The full cycle takes many hours to perform, and it is recognized internationally as a major musical heritage. Excerpts are what you will hear in a performance, but the structure and the modal system are the real interest.
What a show looks like
Urumqi has theatres and large restaurants staging nightly song and dance programs of about two hours. Expect a succession of dances from different ethnic groups, costume changes, acrobatics, and instrumental solos on the rawap and the dutar. Dinner is usually served beforehand or during the performance, with Xinjiang dishes including lamb skewers and pilaf. Ticket tiers correspond to how close you sit and whether dinner is included.
Practical notes
Shows normally start around 19:00 or 20:00 and should be booked a day or two ahead in the high season. Photography without flash is normally allowed. For a less staged experience, the parks of Urumqi and the teahouses of Kashgar have informal music and dance most evenings, and the music there is often just as good.
