Huayin villagers perform traditional Naxi songs and dances at the Co-Art Festival in Shuhe Old Town in Yunnan province's Lijiang. Photos by Hu Yuanjun / For China Daily

Elders in Naxi villages struggle to keep their music and culture alive, but a recent event helped this mission. Chen Nan reports in Lijiang, Yunnan province.

As darkness falls and the temperature drops, He Jixiang sings and dances in a big clearing, with 11 villagers, most of whom are older than 60. In the small village called Huayin in Tai'an township in Yulong Naxi autonomous county, 30 km southwest of Lijiang city in Yunnan province, winter is freezing and electricity is scarce.

He, 82, is from the Naxi ethnic group, and recalls playing as a child in the farmland, where rapeseed flowers bloom during July and August.

His father was a dongba, meaning "wise man" in the Dongba culture and religion created by the Naxi about 1,000 years ago. A dongba is the most respected and sacred leader in the village, who also carries on the traditional language, songs and dances.

Whenever there were big occasions, like weddings, funerals and prayers to the gods, his father led the villagers to practice ceremonies - singing in ancient Naxi dialect and dancing around campfire.

He just went to school for a year and joined his father at ceremonies, where he became fascinated by the long, dramatic and high-pitched melodies.

Since his father passed away, He has become one of the few remaining among the Naxi who can stage those ancient ceremonies and chant the complete songs.

He says women are not allowed to learn the ceremonial songs, so he has been looking for young men in the village to study them. However, he says, the young generation is not so interested, and he worries because those songs and dances are dying.

What made the old man happy recently was the performances he gave during the Co-Art Festival, which brought a variety of events, including dramas, modern dances and art exhibitions from Oct 31-Nov 4 to Shuhe Old Town, only 7 km from Lijiang's old town, another place protected as a UNESCO World Heritage site.