For the third chapter of our Musical Road to WOMEX, the journey continues east. After first stopping in Lagos and then in Galilee to join Etuk Ubong and Akram Abdulfattah, we now arrive in the Stone Forest region of Yunnan, south of Kunming. This dramatic karst landscape is home to the Sani people, one of the many Yi communities in China, known for their distinctive language, clothing, festivals, and music. Sani traditions are marked by ballads that tell of love and hardship, drinking songs sung at feasts, and ritual melodies tied to seasonal cycles. Music is inseparable from daily life, carried on instruments like the lusheng pipes and sanhu fiddle, or even in the whistling of leaves learned in childhood. From this cultural landscape come Manhu — their name meaning “fierce tiger” — musicians who embody the vitality of Sani heritage while taking it to international stages.

Formed in 2003, the five musicians have taken their repertoire from farming communities to concert halls and festival tours, including Beijing’s National Theatre, two extended visits to the United States, and the cover of The Rough Guide to World Music Unplugged. Their 2020’s debut Voices of the Sani broke into the top ten of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a rare breakthrough for a group rooted in rural Yunnan and performing in the Sani tradition.

In Tampere this October, Manhu will bring the voice of the Sani to WOMEX, showing how music born in small farming communities can stand confidently on the world’s leading stage for global sounds. For this episode, Sam Debell, co-founder of their label Sea of Wood, which has worked with them since 2016, supported in shaping the Q&A, as the musicians are more accustomed to sharing their stories through songs than through written words. The playlist, however, comes directly from the band, offering an unfiltered glimpse into the music that inspires them.

For those discovering your work for the first time, how would you introduce the music of the Sani people, and what makes it distinct within China’s rich cultural landscape?

Understanding the significance of Sani music goes hand in hand with understanding the history of Yunnan’s ethnic groups, which is quite a long story. To cut it short, we are just one small part of the Yunnan musical landscape. The 100,000 Sani people are one of over 40 subdivisions of the Yi ethnic group, which are in turn one of 25 recognised ethnic groups in Yunnan province (China has 56 in total). Despite this, Sani music is very recognisable for its distinctive five-beat dances and melodies, the legend of Ashima, and the visual identity of the Stone Forest where we live. Although our music generally fits into the wider bracket of Yi music, we have several instruments not found elsewhere, including the Da-Sanxian (Big Three-string), which is a kind of acoustic bass, and the Sanhu, a bowed instrument like a Chinese Erhu but with an extra string. Another key difference is that our traditional songs tend to be in major keys, unlike much of Yunnan music, which is in minor.

Many of your songs are drawn from community traditions, from celebratory drinking songs to more intimate ballads. Can you share a personal moment when performing this music carried a special weight or meaning for you?

Among Manhu’s songs, there is a very special one, “Ashima”, which most strongly represents the musical characteristics of the Sani people. It is written in compound metre, and in particular, the coda uses the Da-Sanxian (Big Three-stringed lute) in a 3+2 compound rhythm, creating a powerful impact. Every time we perform this song, it fills us with immense pride. These moments are special not only because they showcase the beauty of Sani music, but also because, through emotional expression and cultural exchange, they resonate deeply with the audience.

WOMEX arrives in Tampere this year, a city known for its cultural life and its deep ties with nature. What are you most curious to experience there, and how do you imagine your music connecting with audiences far from Yunnan?

We have been overseas before, but for the most part we rarely leave Yunnan, so to be coming to Tampere is a huge adventure for us. We know it’s just a coincidence that the name is similar, but we can’t help being intrigued by the Sámi people, and we’ve heard there will be a Sámi artist, Marja Mortensson, performing, along with more elements to learn about them. As for Tampere itself, a place of lakes and forests, it reminds us a lot of home. We’re not sure how much opportunity we’ll get to be in nature, but we all grew up herding goats through the valleys and forests of our region, so it would be great to see. For the audience, although we don’t really speak English (thanks Sam for the translation), we are always surprised by how our music connects with other cultures. We just do what we do, and we’re very happy when it receives a good reaction.

WOMEX brings together music from all over the world. How do you see Sani traditions resonating in this global conversation, and what do you hope listeners in Tampere take away from hearing your showcase?

We think we have a place in the conversation. The experience of passing music through generations is at the heart of any ‘world music’ conversation, so we have just as much a claim as anyone to being relevant. China might not be known for its minority cultures, but Yunnan has been getting some recognition. We think and hope that people will be very surprised to hear that this music comes from China.

Are there other showcases or artists you are particularly looking forward to meeting or hearing at WOMEX?

We are interested in artists who share stories similar to our own – for example, we want to see Marja Mortensson because she comes from the Sámi people. Like us, she sings from an Indigenous tradition that has faced challenges but is still alive. We are curious how she brings the old joik into today’s world. We also want to see Suraras do Tapajós from Brazil. They come from the Amazon and play music from their own community. Even though we live far apart, we feel close to them because they also carry village songs onto the big stage. We want to learn how they keep their roots strong while sharing with new audiences.

Performing in smaller, attentive venues is something Tampere is known for. How does sharing your music in this kind of close setting influence the way you perform?

For a smaller venue we would probably include an unplugged section of the show with purely Sani instruments. It’s something we love to do but it doesn’t really work on big festival stages. It can be very special that way, without the pressure to make ourselves sound forceful. People can get a real close-up glimpse of our culture.

The landscapes of Yunnan often feed into your sound. In Tampere, nature is equally present, from its lakes to its forests. Do you think performing in such a setting will create a special link between your music and the city?

We think it will. Culture is shaped by landscape, especially when conditions are harsh. Neither the mountains of Yunnan nor the forests of Finland are the best land for farming! It means that people living there need to adapt a lifestyle that suits the land. We are historically nomadic herders. Maybe that fits with Tampere.

At a time when questions of cultural preservation and globalisation are so urgent, what role does keeping Sani traditions alive play for you as artists?

We can be considered the last generation of Sani people who have a real link to the tradition. We grew up hearing music by the fireside before the internet, before globalisation, so it’s very important for us to continue what we do and to succeed. Just getting us to WOMEX to play was a big community effort, with several local Sani business people putting up money to help with our airfares. It’s an age where there’s a lot of pressure on youth to be mainstream, and the community seeing us succeed internationally makes a big difference when it comes to the next generations having confidence in their culture. So cultural preservation is central to what we do.

Looking beyond your upcoming WOMEX showcase, are there new projects, collaborations, or releases on the horizon that you’d like audiences to know about?

We are hoping to release a second album in 2026, and we are very excited about how it is developing. We are also planning shows in Europe and Asia. We’ll keep you posted.

If you could write a personal invitation to people in Tampere and beyond to come and discover your showcase, what would it say?

Dear people of Tampere, We’ve come a long way, and we’ve waited a long time for this moment. Our music grows out of a simple mountain life of herding and song, and we hope it resonates with you. Our forests are stone, yours are pine — but the sound of the wind through them is the same our ancestors heard. Let’s take this journey together. – Manhu

On 25 October, between 21:30 and 22:15, Manhu take the Torni Stage at Paja Kongressi in Tampere,
bringing leaf-whistles, lutes, and Sani voices from Yunnan’s Stone Forest onto the WOMEX stage.

PLAYLIST: MANHU X RHYTHM PASSPORT

You can find all the previous episodes of Musical Road to Womex HERE