Follow in the footsteps of Beitou's Naoke Xi music and step back in time to the golden era of this hot spring town

Text & MOOK Scenic Spots Travel Life Network | Chen Guanxin Photos & Chen Guanxin, Li Xinyi

As early autumn arrives and the weather turns cool, thoughts drift to the impending winter — the perfect time to visit Beitou’s designated historic hot spring inns to soak in the soul-warming sulfur springs, while imagining the golden days of Naoke Xi music troupes performing around Beitou, and also experiencing the old-time charm of “express delivery” services that once zipped through the streets and alleys, plus visiting the last lodging place of the kamikaze pilots — all to savor the long history of this century-old hot spring town.

The Itinerant Music Culture Born in Beitou — Naoke Xi

Having performed as a Naoke Xi musician for nearly 30 years, Zhou Jianlong, who has since left the music scene to study fortune-telling, said that during the Japanese colonial period, Japanese visitors to Beitou’s hot springs, driven by the Taiwanese saying “Singing eases the heart; no song, no youth,” brought Japan’s Naoke Xi culture to Taiwan, laying the foundation of Beitou’s own version. In those early days, one musician would typically perform solo, accompanying themselves with two- or three-stringed instruments or a guitar. Over time, the golden-era setup evolved to include two musicians and one female singer, with instruments shifting to Western-style ones such as electric keyboards, accordions, and saxophones.

During Taiwan’s rapid economic growth in the 1970s and 1980s, the number of hot spring hotels and inns in Beitou mushroomed, driving up demand for Naoke Xi performances. At its peak, there were over 300 Naoke Xi troupes performing in hotel rooms and lounges across Beitou alone.But by the end of the yearwhen year-end parties and company banquets were in full swing, even that wasn’t enough to meet the overwhelming demand.

Recalling the heyday of Beitou’s Naoke Xi scene, Zhou Jianlong said: “In the 1970s, when the economy was booming and everyone had money to spend, top-tier Naoke Xi troupes could earn an average of over NT$30,000 per person per month, and even the lowest earners made over NT$20,000. Back then, my classmates were only making NT$7,000 or NT$8,000 a month!”

Take a closer look at a Naoke Xi performance, and you’ll notice that neither the musicians nor the singers usually follow sheet music. They’re like walking jukeboxes, ready to perform any song a guest requests. How do they manage it? When asked, Huang Mingzong, a veteran Naoke Xi performer known as “Teacher Ah Lang,” smiled and said: “We memorize them all by heart. Guests are paying NT$1,200 an hour for your performance — you can’t spend 10 minutes looking for sheet music or lyrics!”

Teacher Ah Lang, who once thrived during Naoke Xi’s golden age and now dedicates himself to preservingandpassing on the Naoke Xi culture, explained that these traveling performers not only had to play and sing without sheet music or lyrics, but singers also needed to master popular songs in Japanese, Mandarin, Taiwanese, English, and Cantonese to cater to foreign guests. Their job wasn’t just to warm up the room when entering a lounge, but also to fill the gaps when guests were chatting or taking breaks, and even to help out if someone forgot the lyrics — humming along to get the rhythm back on track, ensuring every second of paid performance was worth it. This not only guaranteed they got their fair pay, but also helped them win favor with hotel managers, leading to more gigs in the future.

These days, Teacher Ah Lang and his wife “Wendy,” who sings with him, perform every Saturday and Sunday at Guandu Pier — a tradition that’s been going strong for about six or seven years. Come the holidays, the spot attracts many Naoke Xi fans, including ballroom and line dancers who sway to Wendy and Teacher Ah Lang’s tunes. Though their stage has shifted from hotel lounges to an open-air plaza,the duo’sperformance skills remain as strong as ever.