Rinčin

Rinčin (1932-?) was born in Baɣarin West Banner. Rinčin learned to read from his father Sodnomǰamso, who was a herdsman. When Rinčin was 11 years old, his uncle Čoyiraγ Lama came to his home, after travelling widely in Amdo and Xinjiang. Čoyiraγ Lama used to sing the epic of Geser and the epic of J̌angγar without musical accompaniment. It is from him that Rinčin learned the episode in the J̌angγar epic entitled Orčilang-un Sayiqan Mingɣan auɣa küčütü Kürmün qan-i amidu-bar bariǰu iregsen bölög “The Chapter of how Orčilang-un Sayiqan Mingɣan (or Mingyan) Took Alive and Brought Back the Powerful Kürmün Khan”, performing it to the accompaniment of the fiddle (quɣur). Rinčin’s performance is in verse with some prose parts. Rinčin’s version also draws on other parts of the J̌angγar epic and introduces events of magic taken from a variety of other sources. He also makes use of motifs of the “tales of the fiddle” (quɣur-un üliger). Tangsuɣ / Tangseng lama-yin üliger “The Story of the Tang Monk” was also recorded from Rinčin.