1194176 邹蓝 
不过在中国沿海，岁月荏苒而音乐传统在消退。沿海地区居民主要是汉人。与此成鲜明对照的是，中国西部音乐传统在少数民族族群中依然保持着，而且他们周围的汉族也保持着，比方说山西和陕西，以往是防范游牧部落南下的前哨地带。陕西和山西的民歌，有的很相似，有的干脆是相同的，各自都声称自己的是原创。“五哥放羊”这首歌就是这么一个例子。
是否是少数民族族群的鲜明文化特征影响了四周汉人的风俗和音乐？陕北和晋北肯定是如此状况，而滇西北的弥渡，也是如此。
However the music tradition faded with the history unfolded in Coastal China, which is mainly inhabited by the majority Hans. But in sharp contrast, in West China the tradition remains with the ethnic minorities and also with the Hans in immediate neighborhood with the ethnic minorities like in Shanxi and Shaanxi which were frontier with the invading nomadic tribes in the past. The folksongs in both of them are similar or even the same though each side claims that it is their own folksongs, as in the case of the popular“Wuge Goes Shepherding(五哥放羊)”(MP3)。Or is it that the ethnic minorities’ distinctive cultural features influenced the neighboring Hans in customs and music? That is true for the case in northern Shaanxi and Shanxi, and also in Midu County, West Yunnan.
Wuge Goese Shepherding（五哥放羊，80年代密纹黑唱片的封面设计）, stylized cover design for 80s LP record.
我不是音乐评论家，这里只是一些随感笔记。我的故事和笔记，从这里说起。
值得一提的第一盘磁带是“山西民歌”，我带去了英国，还带去了中央乐团的“海韵”，其中有前面提到的“阳关三叠”这首古曲。这是我很欣赏的唐代诗人王维的作品。1985年我去英国西米德兰作为期一年的访问学者时，我想着带点中国音乐去。生活在海外而没有熟悉欣赏的中国音乐，可能会非常烦闷。我不操心古典音乐或其他类型的音乐，因为英国以及其他欧美国家如此音乐多得很。我也没有想到，伯明翰公共图书馆音乐部对付费注册会员免费出借音乐作品。于是我以一笔小钱注册后，在伯明翰居留期间尝试听了许多种类和类型的不同音乐，其中包括全球各地的民间音乐。
Mine is not serious music criticism, but only casual notes. So goes my stories and notes.
My first cassette worthy of mention is the Folksongs of Shanxi, which I brought to UK together with another cassette of Central Orchestra Choir’s “海韵（Rhythm of the Sea）”which contained a song from Yangguan Sandie mentioned before by Tang Poet Wang Wei I like very much. When I went to West Midlands for academic visit for a year in October 1985, I thought to have some Chinese music with me or it could be very boring without the comfort of the favorite Chinese music overseas. I did not worry about classical or other music because there were plentiful of them in UK and other European and American cities. And I never imagined that the Public Libraries of Birmingham’s music section also lent out music products upon paid registration. So I later registered with a small fee and enjoyed and also tried to taste so many kinds of music including native music in many parts of the world, during my stay in Birmingham.