The Living Inheritance and Innovation Model of Hainan Ethnic Traditional Music in the Context of Cultural and Tourism Integration: A Case Study of the "March 3rd" Festival

Abstract

This study investigates the living inheritance and innovation dynamics of Hainan ethnic traditional music within the framework of cultural and tourism integration, using the 'March 3rd' Festival as an ethnographic anchor. Drawing on multi-sited fieldwork across Li and Miao communities in Baoting, Wuzhishan, and Qiongzhong counties, the research documents how ritual music practices---such as the Li 'Mubiao' chanted epic, Miao 'Lusheng' ensemble performance, and interethnic song duels---are reconfigured through festival programming, digital mediation, and co-curated tourism experiences. Methodologically, the study combines participatory observation, semi-structured interviews with 47 practitioners (including inheritors, festival organizers, and youth performers), and longitudinal documentation of 12 festival editions from 2018 to 2023. Findings reveal a tripartite model: preservation occurs not through static replication but via adaptive scaffolding---where elders scaffold transmission through embodied rehearsal rather than notation; innovation emerges through functional repurposing---such as transforming ceremonial drum rhythms into interactive sound installations for visitor engagement; and integration succeeds only when tourism infrastructure defers to ritual temporality---e.g., scheduling performances around lunar calendar rites rather than commercial peak hours. The model challenges dichotomies between authenticity and commodification, demonstrating that continuity is enacted through strategic flexibility: musical forms retain structural integrity while shifting semantic framing---from ancestral invocation to intercultural dialogue. This reframes cultural sustainability not as conservation of form but as maintenance of relational capacity---the ability of music to mediate evolving social contracts among communities, institutions, and visitors.