ECura Collaborator Mr. Guo Xiaowei Visits University College Cork for Academic Dialogue; Outcomes of China-Ireland Scholarly Exchange Receive Full-Text Coverage in Chinese Official Media
In July 2025, the ancient Yi epic “Meige” from Yao’an, Yunnan, China, traveled to University College Cork (UCC) in Ireland, where it made its debut in a systematic and professional format at the “CHIME Annual Academic Conference”, capturing broad attention within mainstream European academia.
A Digital Bridge: Three Years of Preparation Paves the Way for Cultural Outreach
The European journey of Meige builds upon the groundwork laid by UCC’s ECura project. Funded by the European Research Council (ERC), the project has long focused on applying digital technology to promote the preservation and dissemination of ethnic music in Southwest China. Dr. Lijuan Qian emphasized in her opening remarks at the exchange event: “The core goal of ECura is to shift minority cultures from a static model of ‘passive preservation’ to a dynamic ecology of ‘active dissemination’. Mr. Guo Xiaowei’s visit to Europe is a vivid example of how digital outcomes and living heritage can be deeply integrated”. As one of the key research subjects of the ECura project, this in-depth presentation of Meige represents not only an academic exchange but also a tangible practice of cross-civilizational dialogue on equal footing.
On-Site Presentation: A Multidimensional Showcase from Origin to Transmission
In his 120-minute presentation, Guo Xiaowei began with the “homeland of Meige”—Mayouping Village in Yao’an—and systematically elaborated on its cultural essence of “singing of ancient times” and its encyclopedic knowledge system covering cosmology, rituals, marriage, funerals, and daily production. On site, he performed a cappella renditions of Meige classics such as Farewell Tune and Mountain-Crossing Tune in the Yi language, allowing attending scholars to directly experience the vitality of this oral epic. Several European scholars remarked that Meige is not a static “cultural specimen” but a “living emotional gene”.
Grassroots Efforts: Two Decades of Dedication by Meige Workshop (梅葛工作坊) Draws Attention
Guo also highlighted the nearly twenty years of preservation efforts by the Yao’an grassroots organization “Meige Workshop.” Initiatives such as collecting endangered melodies, publishing a nationally recognized series of books, and promoting “Meige in Schools” have created a dynamic model of “grassroots-official” collaborative preservation, sparking in-depth discussions among European academics on pathways to protecting endangered cultures in a globalized context.
From “Going Out” to “Integrating In”: Substantive Cooperation Achieved
This exchange went beyond one-way cultural export, facilitating two-way academic collaboration. During the ECura project council annual meeting, both sides reached multiple agreements on “International Dissemination of Ethnic Minority Cultures in the Digital Age”. Plans include incorporating the Meige corpus into ethnomusicology teaching materials and establishing a “Southwest Chinese Ethnic Music” forum at the 2026 CHIME Annual Conference to further promote transnational research on Meige, Miao ancient songs, and other intangible cultural heritage.
This content was first published on the “梅葛工作坊” (Meige Workshop) WeChat official account on 28 November 2025 (https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/H0dkRVqPOk7w1WHkTeeYCw) and has been republished in full by the Chinese official media “云南网” (Yunnan Net) on 2 December 2025, reflecting the high level of attention this cultural exchange has garnered both domestically and internationally.
（Photo by ECura porject team)