Illustrative image (Source: VNA) The San Diucommunity sings these Soong Co folk songs on every occasion, including duringarduous working hours, on the fields, around a fire and even after dinner, theelders from the local community said.
People may sing togreet one another, express passionate feelings, send best wishes to newly-weds,during birthday parties and new year.
Le Dai Nam, chairmanof Soong Co Singing Club in Dao Tru commune, said the commune has the highestpopulation of San Diu people in the province, and so their culture was the mostvivid there.
“There are 13 SoongCo singing clubs in the commune,” he said.
According to Ly ThiNam, head of a club in Vinh Ninh Village, people of all ages call on oneanother to sing, whenever they can during leisure time after harvest.
“They may sing frommorning until late in the afternoon and yet, do not feel tired at all,” shesaid. “Both members and non-members of the club gather in and outside thecommune.”
Tran Quyen, a memberof Minh Quang commune’s singing club, is a frequent participant at the singingsessions.
“We often sing atthe Vuc Chuong Market from night until early morning,” he said. “Every time I joinin this activity, I feel younger and forget the daily hustle and bustle of myhectic life.”
In recent years, DaoTru commune has encouraged the elders in the community to teach their childrenthe San Diu language and establish more Soong Co singing clubs, Nam said.
“Every Saturday andSunday or on holidays, elders gather the young people of the commune topractise some melodies,” Nam said. “The elderly teach the youngsters; thebetter singers teach those who are not as gifted. That’s how folk songs havebeen passed down from generation to generation."
Since the Soong CoSinging Club of Vinh Ninh Village was established, the atmosphere in thevillage has become cheerful. Many people have joined the club’s singingactivity, Nam said.
“In the 13 singingclubs, there are some 600 members,” said Lam Xuan Tien, chairman of the Dao TruCommune People’s Committee. “Many of the members have been recognised asartisans of the art.”
On an average, aclub organises one singing session every month, excluding the exchanges withclubs in other localities.
“We have alsoorganised singing contests for teenagers in the commune to encourage moreyoungsters to learn the local folk songs,” he said.
There are around34,000 people from the San Diu ethnic group residing at the foot of the Tam Daomountain range in the northern province of Vinh Phuc.
They have their ownwritten and spoken language and traditional identity.
Soong Co singing hasbeen handed down for hundreds of years from generation to generation in the SanDiu community.
The art includesduet singing among young men and women. Singers have to learn by heart thelyrics of the songs. One may sing just a few lines of the song and goad theother teams to complete them or find appropriate lyrics from other songs astheir response.
Soong Co songs coversubjects such as love, love for nature, loyalty, respect for parents,grandparents, and humanity. - VNA
VNA
