ABSTRACT
Before 1949, the Music Associations were one of many types of folk performing arts groups (huahui) which would play for the calendrical fairs for the gods held by major temples such as the Bian Que Ci temple in Maozhou (Renqiu), the Houtu miao temple in Yixian, or the Niangniang miao temple on Miaofeng shan. Such pilgrimages were called shang miao (going to the temple). Of all the performing groups, the Music Associations were respected as the shenghui (outstanding association); other associations which met them on the road had to give way to them. Temple fairs in Hebei became rare after the 1940s, but there have been small signs of revival in some places since around 1985.
