Seeking a Soulmate - Hsinchu Nanguan Artifact Exhibition (尋覓知音-新竹南管文物展) / Jin Chang He Mazu & Shuixian Artifact Museum (金長和媽祖水仙文物館)

Seeking a Soulmate - Hsinchu Nanguan Artifact Exhibition
Unchanged Native Accents
From the late Qing Dynasty to the early Japanese colonial period, descendants of Quanzhou immigrants accounted for over 80% of the residents in Zhuqian City (竹塹城). Even today, the Quanzhou accent with Tongan characteristics can still be heard in the streets of Hsinchu City.
With the reclamation by immigrants and the multiplication of ethnic groups, the traditional music originally belonging to Quanzhou and Xiamen — "Nanguan (南管)" — was also sung inside and outside Zhuqian City. If "Beiguan (北管)," which uses Huguang "Mandarin" and has a sonorous and passionate momentum, is like a father encouraging the people of Zhuqian to fight hard; then "Nanguan," which preserves the Quanzhou "native accent" and has soft and graceful melodies, is like a mother comforting travelers away from home to relieve stress and express their feelings. Both these melodies were once the theme songs of Zhuqian City.
In addition to the existing "Shin-Le-Hsuan Splendor (新樂軒風華)" Beiguan Artifact Exhibition Hall, this museum has specially set up a "Hsinchu Nanguan Artifact (新竹南管文物)" special exhibition area. The title "Soulmate (知音)" was extracted from the calligraphy of the Hsinchu predecessor Lin Zhan-mei (林占梅, courtesy name Xue-cun), who loved ancient music. This leads visitors to seek the Quanzhou sounds and Nanguan melodies of Zhuqian.