Ma Sanfeng

Also known as Born Ma Ruihe · Stage name Ma Sanfengzi

Ma Sanfeng, born Ma Ruihe in Gaoyang, Hebei, was active from the Daoguang to the Tongzhi reigns; his exact dates are unknown. He is generally regarded as the founder of Xihe dagu. Local Gaoyang accounts say he learned wooden-clapper drum singing from Tian Dongwen and earned the stage name Ma Sanfengzi, "Mad Third Ma", for his fiery delivery. He replaced the medium sanxian with the large sanxian and the wooden clappers with iron plates, expanded the single metre into first, second and third beat patterns, and drew on opera and folk tunes, setting the vocal and accompaniment system of Xihe dagu. Lian Kuoru's Jianghu congtan names him as a noted singer of the Xihe style; his pupils included Zhu Hualin.