Diverse traditional music characteristics at National Traditional Instrumental Solo and Ensemble Contest 2023 

19 art units from many regions across the country gathered at Khanh Hoa Provincial Conference Center (46 Tran Phu Street, Nha Trang City) from June 10 to 14 to participate in National Traditional Instrumental Solo and Ensemble Contest (stage 1) 2023.

Diverse traditional music and cultural characteristics 

Through their performances, the art units showed diverse traditional music and cultural characteristics of many Vietnamese ethnic groups. Hai Dang Song and Dance Troupe incorporated the cultural features of Cham people, Raglai people and people in coastal region in their performances. The artists of Ha Giang Province performed with bamboo flute and the music instruments of the ethnic people in northern mountainous region. Khmer art troupe from Tra Vinh Province introduced the culture and music of Khmer people in the southwest region with unique traditional music instruments namely Ro-niet-ek, Ro-niet-thung, Ta-khe, Th'ruo-u, Khum, Sko-day , Sro-lay, etc.

The typical melodies of Thua Thien Hue Province performed by the artists and lecturers of Hue Music Academy stirred the audience’s emotions. With ensemble of gong, drums, T'rung, K'long put, bamboo flute, the artists of Binh Phuoc Province, a locality in the southeast region, conveyed sounds of mountains and forests and images of men and women of S'tieng ethnic group. The performances of Bong Sen Theater of Traditional Music and Dance (Ho Chi Minh City) with solos and ensembles of traditional music instruments such as monochord and kim brought a sense of emotional bond of people in the southern region to the contest hall, creating audience engagement and leaving good impression on them. 
 

Artists of Hue Music Academy play typical music of the land of ancient capital

Venue for art exchange

According to Tran Huong Duong, deputy director of the Department of Performance Arts, head of the organization committee, Nha Trang-Khanh Hoa was selected as the venue for the 1st stage of National Traditional Instrumental Solo and Ensemble Contest 2023 because the locality had suitable factors for the contest to be organized successfully. Through the contest, the organizers hoped that art units and schools of traditional music in Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa had an opportunity to exchange and learn from other art units in the country. This was a professional contest, so the participating art units paid much attention to their repertoires and registered their best artists to participate in the contest. The units brought many colors of culture and traditional musical instruments of Vietnamese ethnic groups to Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa.

The contest was a necessary activity for a developing tourism city like Nha Trang. It created a venue where the public could enjoy diverse performances of traditional music instruments, as said by Screenwriter Nguyen Sy Chuc. As for Khanh Hoa artists, this served as a valuable opportunity to learn useful things from other participating units. Artist Phuong Linh of Hai Dang Song and Dance Troupe arranged her time to watch all the performances of other units for self-assessment of her skills and abilities. She has also come up with an idea to try new things and performance techniques to improve her competences.

Giang Dinh
Translated by H.N