Khanh Hoa Provincial People's Committee has just approved a plan on preserving and upholding bai choi, an intangible cultural heritage, in Khanh Hoa Province.
Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee has just approved a plan on preserving and upholding bai choi, an intangible cultural heritage, in Khanh Hoa Province.
According to Le Van Hoa, Deputy Director of Khanh Hoa Provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, bai choi is a vivid performance arts form, having its own character which is a good combination of poem, music, singing and performance, etc. The art of bai choi shows the cultural diversity and creativeness of the communities over generations. Bai Choi has been closely connected with the establishment and development of Khanh Hoa. Nowadays, Khanh Hoa is among ten provinces and cities participating in making documents of bai choi to submit to UNESCO for recognizing bai choi as an intangible cultural heritage.
Reportedly, Khanh Hoa Province now has 341 people who know to sing bai choi, living in 72 communes, wards and towns of the localities, including Van Ninh, Ninh Hoa, Nha Trang, Dien Khanh, Cam Lam and Cam Ranh. There are two forms of bai choi in Khanh Hoa: bai choi played solo and bai choi played on the makeshift thatched huts on stilts. The provincial Center of Culture has formed some groups of artisans to hold bai choi festivals at the beach park, Tran Phu Street.
Le Van Hoa said that the preservation and upholding of bai choi needs to be carried out scientifically and be consistent with the reality. It also needs the contribution of many departments and people of many social strata. As planed, in 2016, Khanh Hoa Provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will carry out surveys, statistics to assess the real situation of this folk arts form in the province; organize scientific conferences at the provincial level about the preservation and upholding bai choi in the province, period 2016 – 2020.
In addition, in order to preserve and uphold the values of this intangible cultural heritage, in the upcoming years, the provincial industry of culture will incorporate bai choi into the provincial public arts festivals, and thence organize bai choi festival biennially; cooperate with the localities in the province to make plan on preserving bai choi basing on the characteristics of each place; support the clubs and artisans in teaching bai choi in the communities.
Reportedly, in the period from 2016 to 2020, bai choi will be included in the subjects at schools. Besides, the industry will cooperate with other units to reconstruct and make documentary film about bai choi; promote the propaganda programs about the values of bai choi.
X.T
Translated by H.N
