Efforts to preserve and promote Then singing heritage

Tay artists perform Then singing and Tinh lute

Then singing appeared around the end of the 15th century, the beginning of the 16th century during the Mac Dynasty. According to legend, among the mandarins of the Mac Dynasty, there were two men named De Phung and De Dang who loved music and singing. They created Tinh Tau and established two singing groups to serve the royal court. Later, people found it interesting and imitated it, and it was passed down among the people. On December 12, 2019, the Then practice heritage of the Tay, Nung, and Thai people in Vietnam was officially recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Then singing in each region has the same range, but the way of singing is slightly different and there are many versions of the lyrics to suit the characteristics and customs of each locality. In Ha Quang district, Cao Bang province, the Tay people often use Then on important occasions, especially in village festivals, family and clan prayers on New Year's Day, etc. The Tay people in Ha Quang have some popular types of Then such as: Then cau mong is Then vui, singing about love songs, historical songs, usually held in January every year. People often invite Then men and women with good singing voices to their home to perform ceremonies to pray for peace and luck; Then to cure diseases; Then tong tien (Then used in the ceremony to send off the soul of the deceased); Then vui vui, congratulation, praise is often sung at the ceremonies of the rich; Then trung le, dai le cap sac...

Over the years, the leaders of Cao Bang province and the Tay people have always paid attention to preserving, developing, promoting and honoring the Then melody. The Then singing festival has been organized by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Cao Bang province three times in 2017, 2019 and 2022. The Tay people here also set a Vietnamese record with the performance of Then singing - Tinh lute performed by 1,000 artisans, actors and Tay ethnic children at the natural beauty spot of Ban Gioc Waterfall.

Then singing and Tinh lute teaching class in Xuan Hoa town, Ha Quang district, Cao Bang province

Particularly for Ha Quang district, Then singing has been included in Resolution No. 03-NQ/HU dated April 23, 2021 of the Executive Committee of the Ha Quang district Party Committee (term XX) on developing services and tourism in Ha Quang district for the period 2021-2025 and Resolution of the 2nd Congress of Delegates of the Association for Preserving Folk Songs of Ethnic Groups of Ha Quang district for the term 2023-2028.

Mr. Hoang Van Khanh, an officer of the Culture and Communication Center of Xuan Hoa town, Ha Quang district, shared: “The Department of Culture and Information of Ha Quang district is building a policy mechanism to encourage, give incentives, and honor artisans who have contributed to and are dedicated to preserving and teaching art forms to submit to the District People's Committee. At the same time, it is guiding hamlets, villages, and hamlets to research and collect folk cultural materials of ethnic groups, including the art form of Then singing, to build programs and performances to serve the people. This is both a task and to arouse awareness of preserving the value of our ethnic cultural heritage.”

Recently, the Cultural and Communication Center of Ha Quang district opened a Then teaching class at Xuan Loc and Xuan Dai groups, Xuan Hoa town. The class is led by artisan Be Thi Bich Do. The class has 21 students aged 9-35. While teaching, the artisans combined teaching dance movements and telling historical and cultural stories, the origin of Then singing, or the story of the Tinh instrument and how to make it, making the students very excited about each class.

Then singing is a type of oral folk performance, the artist plays an important role in training successors, therefore local authorities need to regularly organize conferences to honor folk culture artists, have specific policies for Then singing artists; Develop a long-term strategy to be able to perform Then art to serve the audience; Invest more in organizing Then singing festivals and performances at all levels to spread Then singing art to all classes of people. Along with that, then singing should be included in extracurricular lessons in schools to improve understanding and foster the love of the young generation for Then art in particular and folk art forms in general.

Source: https://baodantoc.vn/no-luc-bao-ton-phat-huy-di-san-hat-then-1741057455415.htm