A scholar at Shanghai Fudan University has called on the city government and neighboring regions to preserve the dying ancient folk songs of the Yangtze River Delta.

"I'm a little bit pessimistic about the future of the region's folk songs that are considered by some to be cultural relics threatened with extinction," said Zheng Tuyou, professor with Fudan's department of Chinese literature.

Folk songs originating in Shanghai and neighboring Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces date back to Spring-Autumn and Warring States Periods (770-221BC).

They are still sung by people in the region's mountain areas.

Zheng said more than 30 songs with thousands of years' history had been discovered.

However, existing folk singers were aged above 50 and few young people would listen to the songs, let alone sing them, he said.

Scholars said the key was providing singing environments.

"People in the past were accustomed to folk song performances and even held singing contests at regular market gatherings," Zheng said. "But both activities are missing with the disappearance of market gatherings."

(Shanghai Daily March 18, 2008)