According to history, the Layang Mas dance was created when the Raja of Perlis sent tribute payment to the Siamese government by riding on an elephant, when the state of Perlis was under Siamese rule. At that time the elephant caretaker called Tok Jambul, with his friend Ecan, composed the song ‘Layang Mas’. Upon returning from Siam they created the ‘Layang Mas’ dance, one of the dances in the Terinai dance repertoire. This court dance that can only be performed by ladies only uses lots of gliding hand movements and with a number of turns, clear shoulder moves and hip movements. The dance also uses a long shawl tied on the waist with a belt, held by the thumbs and fore fingers, and often portrayed as a bird’s wings.

Dances in Fanpai are normally accompanied by the lusheng (a musical instrument with multiple bamboo pipes), mangtong (a single-bamboo free reed wind instrument) and wooden drums. Among various dances, the Wooden Drum Dance is the most popular among both performers and audiences.\nWooden Drum Dance shows are usually held in the village square. The dance opens with an intense, well-arranged and energetic drumbeat to which young men and women, wearing gorgeous Miao costumes, swing and sway. The dance features powerful, wild and primitive movements and an imposing style, reflecting the indomitable will and tenacious life force of the Miao people in this mountainous area. It is hard for people today to comprehend the fact that such a grand art form was created by Miao ancestors who were just ordinary farmers.\n\nNote : The text above is an excerpt from the article provided by the China Culture (http://en.chinaculture.org/)

A kind of traditional children game similar to swing, performed by girls. It is played more in the Navruz celebration.