World's Giant Python

World's Giant Python

World's Giant Python

When you have the rare opportunity to witness the Paiya Miao Ethnic Group’s Python Tube Array, located just 4 kilometers from Danzhai, you’ll experience an unparalleled sensation—as if traveling through a tunnel in time, returning to a primitive and untamed era, and feeling the baptism of blade and fire.

The ethnic minorities in Danzhai, particularly the Miao people, regard the python tube and lusheng as traditional musical instruments. Judging by the popularity, craftsmanship, unique playing techniques, and the grandeur of the performances, Danzhai can be hailed as the “Home of China’s Python Tubes and Lusheng.”

Legend has it that the lusheng was created during the Three Kingdoms period when Zhuge Liang led a southern campaign against the southwestern tribes. To appease the local ethnic minorities, he crafted a multi-reed aerophone from local water bamboo for people to play, which became a common entertainment tool among the ethnic groups in the southwest. By the early Song Dynasty, the ancestors of the Miao people in Danzhai, known as the “Gaya,” used local nan bamboo and water bamboo to create a heavy bass resonant instrument, naming it the “python tube,” which they played alongside the lusheng. Later, lusheng enthusiasts from other regions came to learn how to make and play the “python tube,” leading to the widespread performance form of “python tube and lusheng ensemble.”

The largest preserved python tube in Danzhai is 4.5 meters long, 25 centimeters in diameter, and weighs 40 kilograms. Dubbed the “World’s No. 1 Python Tube,” it has been submitted for consideration as a Guinness World Record.

Python tubes generally come in “pairs.” When cutting bamboo to make them, one must “choose an auspicious day.” Upon completion, an “inaugural sounding ceremony” is held: first, a ritual master offers prayers toward the rising sun, then sprinkles the tubes with rice wine. The most senior player in the village plays nine long notes to inaugurate the sound. Commonly played python tubes are usually between 50 and 150 centimeters in length, with a bamboo diameter of about 8 centimeters. When played, around ten tubes form a “set,” each producing varying bass tones, but together they create harmonious resonance, audible for miles. Their grand formation delivers an immensely powerful and stirring impact.

The python tube and lusheng are like twin brothers. Because the python tube has a single tone, it relies on the lusheng to showcase its unique accompaniment role. Meanwhile, the presence of the python tube makes the playing style of the lusheng more diverse. Throughout Danzhai County, every village, large or small, has python tubes and lusheng instruments. The men, women, old, and young in the villages are all skilled players of these instruments and dancers of the python tube and lusheng dance.

The Danzhai Python Tube and Lusheng Dance is a renowned folk art form in southeastern Guizhou. Its lusheng performance is distinctive—its dance style is simple, rugged, passionate, and unrestrained, winning widespread affection. The python tube and lusheng play together, their sounds at times soft and lingering, like mountain streams; at others, high-pitched and stirring, full of impact. The Danzhai Python Tube and Lusheng Dance originated in areas such as Maniao and Yangxian near Paidiao Town in Danzhai County. Later, after lusheng craftsmen from Paiya (Longquan Town) learned techniques from Yangxian and improved upon them, this primitive performance form gained greater artistic appeal.

As the Python Tube and Lusheng Dance spread, it gradually reached and integrated with surrounding counties and cities such as Kaili and Leishan. Once the Danzhai Python Tube and Lusheng Dance stepped onto the stage of performing arts, it participated in major shows both domestically and internationally, earning numerous awards and winning the hearts of audiences worldwide.

The Danzhai Python Tube and Lusheng Dance has performed at the cultural showcases of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd National Traditional Games of Ethnic Minorities in 1982, 1986, and 1990 respectively; took part in the opening ceremony of the 11th Asian Games and received commendation from the Ministry of Culture; in 1991, it performed at the International Gong and Drum Festival and China Folk Art Festival, winning the “Golden Cup” of both events; in 1994, it appeared on the CCTV Spring Festival Gala and subsequently toured 11 countries, receiving high praise everywhere; from 1999 to 2002, it won the championship in the Python Tube and Lusheng Dance category at the “China·Kaili International Lusheng Festival” for three consecutive years.