Dai Xiangen, who has retired, has been even busier recently. He goes to the rural art school in Zeguo Town, Wenling City, Taizhou City, Zhejiang Province every week to teach villagers how to play the violin. At the age of 70, he is responsible for teaching three instrument classes. Under his guidance, more than 60 students formed folk bands and orchestras, becoming the main force of local rural cultural performances. Busy yet joyful, it's great to be with everyone! ”Dai Xiangen is very satisfied with his current life. "I am a music teacher myself, and seeing villagers who have never been exposed to musical instruments being able to play music in different parts, I am very pleased. We truly have the opportunity to learn and enjoy in our old age!" In fact, forming a band in the countryside is not easy, and all of this can be traced back to the "Rural Art School" in Zhejiang. Door to door delivery of classes: What villagers should learn? Initially, cultural welfare work in Zhejiang Province was mostly carried out at county-level cultural centers, and urban residents could participate in free training according to the opening situation. "We have been thinking about how to make high-quality cultural resources sink." Yang Qian, head of the Cultural Section of the Publicity Department of Wenling Municipal Party Committee, recalled that "in the basic research, it was indeed found that the grassroots people are eager for a richer cultural life." Yang Qian said: "From 2019, on the basis of full research on the literary and artistic needs of the people in towns and villages, we will open related courses based on the cultural auditorium, once a week, for three months. Intangible cultural heritage Paper Cuttings, fan dance, African drums... courses are free, and what to learn is up to the villagers. Do art popularization first, let everyone learn, and plant the seeds of culture." The venue and courses have been finalized, where do teachers come from? The teachers at the cultural center were the main teaching force in the initial stage, and later retired teachers from art schools and art enthusiasts from related associations joined in, becoming a reserve force for the 'talent pool', "Yang Qian said. After retirement, learning with the villagers has given new value to life! ”Dai Xiangen sincerely sighed. In just three months, the rural art school has achieved remarkable results. The local government has decided to promote the normalization of rural art schools, and the curriculum content continues to be enriched, including art and sports, with more diverse categories and names of courses. As of now, Wenling Rural Art School has covered 16 comprehensive cultural stations in local towns (streets), 589 rural cultural auditoriums and community cultural homes, with 75 art categories to choose from, benefiting nearly 1.1 million people in the area. Targeted understanding of needs and customized service provision are also the educational ideas of Songyang County Rural Art School in Lishui City. Considering the dense concentration of enterprises and a large number of migrant workers in Wangsong Street, the local area took the lead in selecting a rural art school site here. There is ample cultural space here, and everyone has artistic needs, which perfectly fits our original intention of building an 'art refueling station at our doorstep,' "said Ye Suzhen, director of the Songyang County Cultural Center. Yang Dan was one of the first students of Songyang County Rural Art School. At that time, there were many courses to choose from. After discussing with my colleagues, I signed up for dance classes once a week at a convenient time for everyone, "Yang Dan recalled. On weekdays, everyone is busy in their respective positions and there are few opportunities for communication. Rural art schools are not only platforms for learning skills, but also provide opportunities for communication and cooperation. With shared learning and performance experiences, there are more common topics among students, and team cohesion is stronger! "Art Runxin: Gaining More Happiness. The changes brought by rural art schools are not only about improving skills, but also about improving the spirit and lifestyle of villagers. Liu Fangying, a student of the Rural Art School in Gushi Town, Songyang County, is a good example. "The content of lessons can be used in life." She said while showing with body movements, "body dancing makes us more relaxed. Cheongsam shows make us more elegant, and most importantly, everyone is more confident and cheerful!" Liu Fangying was grateful for the opening of the rural art school, "Little sisters who never danced before, now every time there are cultural activities in the village actively participate. Even when going out for tourism, everyone will wear cheongsam to take photos together, and art really goes into life." As a grid worker, she is busy with work on weekdays, "but the classes at the art school have to squeeze in time, which is a 'big deal'!" Liu Fangying said with a smile. "Look, now many villagers in their 60s come to class, and everyone's spirits are better! Our rehearsal venue is the playground in front of the cultural center, which is spacious, crowded and lively, making classes very convenient!" Class capacity was a key consideration in the early preparation of the rural art school. Ye Suzhen introduced, "We first investigated the course demand and enrollment intention in the village. At the same time, to ensure the quality of teaching, we initially planned to open 20 to 30 student spots for each class." However, the enthusiasm of the villagers exceeded expectations. "Unexpectedly, more than 400 people registered for the first session, and classes had to be 'snatched'." "Some students who did not get the course spots were unwilling, and there was even a 'wave of taking classes' in the county. This is both unexpected joy and motivation. ”Ye Suzhen said that during the construction of rural art schools, many unexpected things happened, which also brought warmth. "Last time at the end of class exhibition, I actually met an old classmate. She told me that the art school has fulfilled her childhood dream of being on stage. She likes to dance and even if the road is long, she has to come over." Conducting demand surveys, setting courses, daily attendance, and reporting performances are common practices for rural art schools to carry out their work. This' closed-loop 'model can make the participating masses more proactive and ambitious, participate in the entire process, and also give everyone a sense of gain and happiness, "Ye Suzhen and Yang Qian expressed this consideration coincidentally. Cultural Benefit for the People: How to build better "cultural refueling stations" that are rooted in rural areas and provide high-quality cultural resources directly to the grassroots, so that more art enthusiasts can enjoy a touching time of cultural nourishment at their doorstep? Rural art schools are the result of multi-party collaboration and joint efforts. ”Ye Suzhen said that townships provide hardware facilities such as venues and stages, while relevant associations, schools, and art training institutions provide teaching staff. "We are more like bridges, connecting various resources." Nowadays, rural art schools in Songyang County focus more on full age coverage and mobile participation. We offer handicraft and intangible cultural heritage experience courses for children, and gentle exercise courses such as Tai Chi and Baduanjin for the elderly, "Ye Suzhen said." Classes are held all year round, making regular learning a window for folk customs and cultural inheritance. "Wenling City continues to consolidate and improve the cultivation achievements of rural art schools at the grassroots level. In addition to the teacher library and program library, we have also built a talent pool. Nowadays, there are a large number of artistic talents with unique skills in rural areas, who can become the 'endogenous force' of cultural development in various regions and participate in the next stage of work. "Yang Qian introduced that they have developed the core backbone into artistic light cavalry, allowing culture to cover a wider area and population. The artistic light cavalry is the result of our integration of the systems and resources of rural art schools and cultural envoys. ”Yang Qian said, "These people who grew up and rooted in rural areas are the main force of rural cultural work. By 2025, Wenling City will add more than 1000 artistic light cavalry, and currently have a reserve force of more than 4000 people." This artistic light cavalry carries out more than 1500 tours in more than 500 villages throughout the year, bringing normalized cultural services to villagers in towns and villages. Not only that, culture has also become a good gateway to empower industries, "Yang Qian said proudly." Taking the 'Lianzi Night Market' in Fangshan Village, Daxi Town as an example, the ideas of cultural drainage, brand building, and tourism value-added have enabled local people to increase their income and become prosperous. By 2025, the village's cultural and tourism revenue will exceed 6 million yuan. "From fields and fields to art classrooms, and then to vast stages, the flower of literature and art blooms everywhere on the rural land. (New Society)