Chen Jinchang (left), 83-year old, and Huang Deyao, 85-year old. [Photo by Liao Wei]

Materials and notes on the Zhongshan Folk Song Reform. [Photo by Liao Wei]

In October 1979, a grand Salty Water Song concert was held above the river in Tanzhou Town. [Photo provided by Zhongshan Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center]

The famous singers Liang Rongsheng (middle) and He Fuyou were practicing antiphonal singing, with Huang Deyao's accordion accompaniment.[Photo taken in 1959, provided by Zhongshan Intangible Cultural Heritage Protection Center]

Huang Deyao, 85, and Chen Jinchang, 83, are "old treasures" in the Zhongshan folk song circle. Over the years, they have devoted themselves to the exploration, sorting and reform of Zhongshan folk songs, and found out the road to rejuvenation for Zhongshan folk songs in the contemporary era. A few days ago, the old partners told their unforgettable stories about the Salty Water Song Reform in Zhongshan.

Salty Water Song was born in Danjia areas (mainly in Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian and Hainan, where fishermen's families live). It is the most influential and extensive folk music in Zhongshan. In the 1950s and 1960s in Zhongshan, Salty Water Song experienced a leap-forward development .

Huang Deyao treasured an old photo taken in 1959. In the photo, he was accompanying the renowned Salty Water Song singers Liang Rongsheng and He Fuyou with an accordion.

"I first got involved in folk songs in 1954," said Huang Deyao. He originally studied painting, and unintentionally started to follow the path to music after getting to know some folk singers at a training class in the cultural center. His debut song "Running a Commune Together" was published in 1959 by the Zhongshan Federation of Literary and Art Circles in the "Selections of Zhongshan Poems" edited specially for celebrating the 10th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

In the same year, the Zhongshan County Art Troupe was established. It included many well-known folk singers such as He Fuyou, Liang Rongsheng and Liang Sanmei for Salty Water Song, Yang Fubo for Crane Song, and etc. As the troupe went on tour, Salty Water Song started to appear on the professional stages.

Zhongshan folk songs were as popular in the 1950s and 1960s as pop songs in modern times in the locality, said Huang Deyao. Salty Water Songs were often published in the literary publications of the cultural center. These songs were mainly used as propaganda tools to encourage labor production at that time.

In October 1979, a grand Salty Water Song concert was held above the river in Tanzhou Town. Experts and representatives from the cultural circles came to enjoy the show, sitting on specially-made boats, from across Guangdong Province.

Today, Salty Water Song was included in the first National Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2006. The Zhongshan Folk Songs and Ballads Competition has also become a cultural brand of the city for many years.

In the book "Zhongshan Salty Water Song", Chen Jinchang wrote down his worries about the intangible cultural heritage project, saying "the inheritance is getting increasingly fragile, the activity space is narrowing, and the inheritors are on the decrease". He thought, presently, the inheritance of Salty Water Song mainly depends on school activities, with little involvement of the masses.

"However, I am not worried about Salty Water Song will die out. There will always be enthusiasts who keep traditional culture alive with their innovative ideas and methods," said Huang, adding that he is waiting for more surprises.