Known formerly as Desheng gongs and drums, Yunsheng gongs and drums sprang from Deshengkou area in the north of Datong, where there is an important mountain pass beyond the Great Wall.

Wars were frequent in ancient Datong. When the army victoriously returned, local people led by a respected elder would welcome the soldiers with gongs and drums at Deshengkou. That is how the activity got its name. Later, the art became widespread in Yunzhou (Datong) area, so it was renamed Yunsheng gongs and drums.

Yunsheng gongs and drums is a percussion ensemble favored by the public. It has characters, plots and stories. Therefore, it differs from the performances in Jinnan as well as in Taiyuan areas.

Today, Yunsheng gongs and drums performed by the Jinhuagong Coal Mine of the Datong Mining Bureau has become a well-known art form of universal appeal. They have won many honors in various art competitions. It also represented China, together with the Anhui Shengquan Flower-drum (a folk dance popular in the Changjiang valley), in the third International Folk Art Festival held in Beijing in August 1994.

Their passionate and unconstrained performances have won high praise from Chinese as well as foreign audiences.