ABSTRACT

In November 2005, the Twelve Muqam, now placed alongside all of the other muqam traditions practised by the Uyghurs, entered into a new phase of canonisation and a new sphere of discourse when ‘The Art of Uyghur Muqam in Xinjiang’ appeared among a number of worldwide traditions selected in UNESCO’s Third Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. In this period we see the introduction of a whole new vocabulary concerning the preservation of cultural heritage: one developed through UNESCO’s own consultative process, and mediated by the existing discourse on national traditions within the PRC.