Seminar talks ways to preserve folk music of northern minorities

Co-hosted by the Vietnam National Academy of Music (VNAM) and the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the event was part of a plan to conduct a national study on urgent measures to preserve and uphold values of folk music of Vietnamese ethnic minorities during the 2016 – 2020 period. 

Nguyen Thuy Tien, a representative of VNAM, said the academy has collected and recorded various genres of folk music of ethnic minorities in the northern mountainous region to conserve and popularise them over the past two decades. 

At the seminar, researchers and cultural artisans from Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Hoa Binh, Cao Bang provinces talked about socio-cultural and artistic values of folk music genres in the region, their role in the spiritual lives, and measures to preserve and uphold them in the current life. 

Reports at the event mentioned practising Then singing in 11 northern mountainous provinces, folk music in ethnic groups in Dien Bien and preservation measures. 

Participants suggested launching drives to teach and learn traditional musical instruments, raising public awareness of the values of folk music, and offering incentives to artists dedicating to preserving music heritages in localities.