Related Story: Famous Crosstalk Artist Dies From Heart Disease

Related Event: Chinese Crosstalk Master Ma Ji Passes Away

Locals hold a banner to mourn the death of China's highly acclaimed crosstalk performer Ma Ji. The funeral for Ma Ji was held on Sunday morning in Babaoshan Cemetery in Beijing. He died from heart disease at the age of 72 in a Beijing hospital on Wednesday morning. [Photo: Xinhua]

Ma Ji, a well-known Chinese crosstalk master, was cremated at the Babaoshan Cemetery in Beijing on Sunday.

Ma died of heart disease at the age of 72 in a hospital in Beijing last Wednesday.

Senior Party and government leaders including Liu Yunshan, head of the Publicity Department of Communist Party of China Central Committee, and State Councilor Chen Zhili, attended the farewell ceremony.

Thousands of people from all walks of life, including Ma's close friends, also be present to say a tearful goodbye to Ma.

After Ma's death, Chinese President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and other top Party and government leaders expressed their condolences to Ma's family in various forms.

Ma, born in 1934 in Beijing, began to learn Xiangsheng, crosstalk or comic dialogue, at the age of 17. In 1956, Ma was enrolled by the central broadcasting art ensemble as a professional Xiangsheng performer.

Ma is regarded as an artist who combines traditional with and modern crosstalk art forms. His works reflected every-day life in China. He was good at satirizing social problems and praising heroes. He created more than 100 crosstalk works and published a number of books on crosstalk.