Visitors to Suzhou often stop by the door of an old teahouse right next to Xuanmiao Temple, one of the city’s most famous tourist destinations. While most of them come in for a quick listen, no one leaves without being amazed by the unique performances of the local art form— pingtan, the storytelling and ballad singing in Suzhou dialect.
Pinfangzhai, or Savor the Fragrance Teahouse, has a history of 100 years. In recent years, it has been doing good business with performances of Suzhou Pingtan every evening, which attracts a lot of customers, especially tourists from different parts of the country as well as from around the world.

"I just passed by and heard it, so I came in. It’s very nice and I like it because of its strong local flavor."

"Although I can hardly understand the lyrics, I can feel its elegance and feel the ups and downs in the singing."

Pingtan originated in Suzhou and spread to the neighboring areas in the Yangtze River delta, including Shanghai. It became popular during the reign of Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty and over the following 200 years, it developed into dozens of different styles and schools, covering a wide range of topics, from fairytales to the four classic novels, from romances to folk legends. Usually, Suzhou pingtan is performed by one, two or three people, each accompanying himself on an instrument, either a sanxian, a three-stringed fiddle, or the pipa.
The aria we heard at the beginning of the program was performed by Wang Peijun, a famous pingtan performer from the Pingtan Troupe of Jiangsu Province based in the provincial capital of Nanjing, who was invited to Savor the Fragrance Teahouse in Suzhou nearly four years ago to perform every evening. Born to a family of pingtan artists, Wang Peijun began studying this folk art in childhood and has a strong emotional bond toward it.

"With a history of more than 200 years, Suzhou Pingtan boasts a profound cultural essence. Moreover, it is enjoyed by both intellectuals and ordinary audiences."
According to Wang Peijun, most customers at Savor the Fragrance Teahouse are tourists in Suzhou who may have heard about Pingtan before they arrived but knew little about it. Considering that pingtan is performed in Suzhou dialect, which is hard for people from other places to understand, before each performance he makes a brief introduction to help the audience know more about the piece he is performing. Every afternoon, he goes to perform in another teahouse for lovers and supporters of Suzhou Pingtan, presenting them with a two-hour non-stop performance.

"At the beginning of the 1980s, the impact of pop music drove many pingtan performers to change jobs. But now they have all returned and picked up the art once again."
Ju Lifang, an employee of the teahouse, has worked here for decades. She says since the teahouse started performances of pingtan four years ago, this traditional folk art has become the main attraction at their teahouse.

"Business is very good. Many customers came to our teahouse only to hear Suzhou Pingtan. If we don't have the performances, our teahouse would probably be shut down."

Artist Wang Peijun says in the old days when his father and grandfather performed pingtan, they lived a difficult life even though the folk art was much more popular then. While Suzhou pingtan can never recover its old glory, today’s pingtan artists receive more respect than in the past, and the old art is surviving and thriving again in modern society.

"Suzhou pingtan is like a name card for the city, introducing Suzhou to other parts of the country and the world. Now many schools and colleges in Suzhou invite pingtan performers to give classes or stage performances for the students, letting them know more about this art form."
Jia Dechen, a researcher from the China Institute of Arts Research, shows great concern for the development of folk arts like pingshu and pingtan. I asked him why he thinks pingtan is becoming more and more popular recently:

"I think the local government has paid great attention to its protection and development, as they have realized the cultural value of this traditional art form. Suzhou pingtan is regarded as the treasure of the city and is given the relevant financial support. Moreover, the audiences have been great supporters of pingtan."
Suzhou pingtan has successfully survived the impact of modernization. As classic pieces are still welcomed by audiences, pingtan artists are also creating some new programs catering to the tastes of modern people. Walking in step with many newly emerging art forms and styles of entertainment, this traditional Chinese folk art still boasts its own unique and irresistible charm.