Pic story: folk artists of Muqam in Xinjiang

Sulayman Abdu (3rd L) rehearses with other folk artists at his residence in Muqam Village, Lukqun Town, Shanshan County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Jan. 11, 2023. With all grape vines buried properly for their protection against cold in winter, people of Lukqun Town in Shanshan have concluded their farm work of the year and started to enjoy a leisure time. However, Sulayman Abdu, a resident of Muqam Village in Lukqun, still has his hands full with performance appointments from his neighbors. Sulayman Abdu, 61, has been studying and practicing Muqam since he was 16, and now has become an inheritor of this popular folk art. Muqam, a traditional art of the Uygur ethnic group in Xinjiang, combines songs, dances, folk and classical music. According to Sulayman Abdu, it has been an age-long custom for local people to watch Muqam performance on occasions of celebration and gathering. (Xinhua/Zhao Ge)