Ho Khoan Le Thuy – National Cultural Heritage That Needs to Be Preserved

Quang Binh is a land with long-standing historical and cultural values. In particular, the quintessence of culture and art has been distilled from the lifestyle of the people here, clearly depicting the unique culture of the people of Quang Binh.

Ho Khoan Le Thuy is known as a typical folk song of Quang Binh with simple content, clearly depicting the lifestyle and culture of the region. In particular, in 2017, this unique folk song was honored to become a national intangible cultural heritage. Let’s learn to see the spiritual value of these special and impressive folk songs.

History of the birth of Ho Khoan Le Thuy

Ho Khoan Le Thuy was born around the 15th century in Le Thuy, Quang Binh. Previously, this song was simply a performance of the people expressing the lifestyle and behavior of this land.

Later, when the Kien Giang River appeared in the 16th century, this form of performance was named Ho Khoan and has remained the same until today.

The melody of Ho Khoan is essentially the melodization of verses composed by working people during their work and production. Therefore, the content and melody of the verses are very simple and close to Vietnamese farmers.

In particular, the style and melody of Ho Khoan have great influence from the folk songs of Thanh – Nghe – Tinh region.

It can be said that Ho Khoan Le Thuy is an impromptu performance, born to serve the living and spiritual cultural needs of people in this Central region. In addition, Ho Khoan melodies are also recognized as a unique creation of the working people of Le Thuy.

Le Thuy people sing Ho Khoan as a confession, a story, to express their working spirit or feelings when meeting and making friends.

Impressive points about the material of Ho Khoan melody

The melody of Ho Khoan Le Thuy mainly uses the 5-tone scale which is very popular in Vietnamese folk songs. Therefore, listeners of Ho Khoan will have a feeling of closeness and familiarity like the folk melodies of Thanh – Nghe – Tinh.

However, the true nature of the melody of Ho Khoan is the singing, speaking and responding style that is very typical of the Central region. Therefore, the melody of Ho Khoan is also very simple and focuses more on the expressive language of the body and the performance style.

Groups of Ho Khoan Le Thuy

The characteristic of the birth of the Ho Khoan melody is to describe the lifestyle and activities of the river region to promote the working spirit of the people of Le Thuy.

Therefore, the content of the song as well as the melody also highlight the two different characteristics of working underwater and on land.

Melodies that express the method of working on land are clearly shown through the strong, powerful and quite regular rhythms. Meanwhile, melodies that express the method of working underwater will have a more leisurely and leisurely rhythm.

Because of the clear difference between the two components of labor on land and underwater, the Le Thuy Ho Khoan melody is also divided into the following two clear groups.

Hò cạn

They often use mainly spoken singing style which is melodically developed and has a fairly clear structure.

The form of singing Ho Can is usually a section of 2 to 4 sentences, after each sentence there will be a xo verse. The way of singing Ho Can is developed from the 5-tone scale, but mainly still uses 3 main tones.

The verses of Ho Can have short or long melodies depending on the content of the verse and may not have a rhythm. The main focus of Ho Can is on the response, urging or calling between people. That is why Ho Can is often performed collectively.

Hò nước

Ho nuoc focuses on the style of singing in the storytelling, narration, and confiding style. Therefore, the melody of Ho nuoc is quite free and the rhythm in the verse is only symbolic.

The melody of Ho Nuoc is often more winding and soaring than that of dry songs, and the structure and form of the songs are also more complex. The rhythms of water songs are often slow and heavy.

Ho Nuoc can be performed alone to express melodies of feelings, longing, or enlightenment while working alone in the middle of a quiet river.

Main performance methods of Ho Khoan Le Thuy

From ancient times to the present, Le Thuy Ho Khoan has been performed mainly in two ways: leading (individual singing) and group singing (collective singing). Currently, Ho Khoan melodies are also performed on stage by artists in these two main forms.

Lĩnh xướng (indiviual singing)

The lead singing performances are usually performed by one person singing the opening and closing lines. Or this person may only sing the opening lines, and the group will sing in response in the following parts.

A second way of performing a leading chant is to sing alone, or to respond to another person nearby. This way of singing is very popular and develops spontaneously.

Hội xướng ( group singing)

The form of choir or group singing is often performed by a group of people. Previously, the forms of choir took place during the break time after a collective labor session, creating moments of entertainment and relaxation to restore energy.

The singing form has the participation of many people, next to the leader will be a group of people responding and chanting the next sentences continuously. When one person finishes singing, the person next to them will think of the next chant so as not to be interrupted.

In addition, the form of singing often appears during the working process to promote and increase production, reduce fatigue. In many regions, people pound rice, thresh rice, and sing all night with gentle, deep melodies.

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The urgency of preserving the intangible cultural heritage of Ho Khoan Le Thuy

Ho Khoan Le Thuy is not only a purely folk performance method of Quang Binh people but has become an irreplaceable cultural highlight of this arid Central region.

Therefore, maintaining, preserving and developing the intangible cultural heritage of Ho Khoan is a good deed that each of us needs to do.

Cultural value of Ho Khoan Le Thuy

The melody of Ho Khoan carries the cultural value of Quang Binh land. This is a form of folk performance, so the melody can be sung at work, during breaks or when going out to socialize, have fun with relatives, friends,…

The impressive point of Ho Khoan Le Thuy is that it has always kept the 9 Ho Khoan roofs according to the rules set by the ancients and has not changed until today.

In addition, the rustic Ho Khoan singing brings simplicity and closeness between working people.

In particular, the content of Ho Khoan verses is often very meaningful and carries the style of Central farmers in the process of working, producing, playing, or relaxing.

We cannot deny the great cultural value of Ho Khoan Le Thuy to the people of Quang Binh in particular and the whole country in general.

The value of propaganda of patriotism in war

During the war, the Le Thuy Ho Khoan melodies took on a new function, which was to propagate national spirit and patriotism. Ho Khoan melodies were no longer just about friendship and meeting, but were heroic songs that promoted patriotism and the fight for the nation.

Typically, the song “Binh Tri Thien Khoi Lua” reflects the fierce resistance war of the people of the North Central region, at the same time enhancing the fighting spirit and heroic sacrifice to bring freedom and independence to the nation.

And then there are the Ho Khoan melodies that touch people’s hearts with the purpose of encouraging the nation’s fighting movement and increasing labor production for the front line.

Melodies with the meaning of “singing to drown out the sound of bombs” became a characteristic of Quang Binh land during this war period.

Preserving and developing Ho Khoan Le Thuy is everyone’s responsibility.

Because of its long-standing historical and cultural values ​​along with Ho Khoan’s tireless dedication to the war of national liberation, Ho Khoan Le Thuy was honored as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in May 2017 according to the decision issued by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

This is a correct and proud result for the peaceful land of Quang Binh. From here, the melody of Ho Khoan Le Thuy is known and loved by many people both domestically and internationally.

Nowadays, when returning to Le Thuy land with the strong development of urbanization, many places can no longer see the familiar and simple Ho Khoan songs like before.

What each of us needs to do now is to recognize and love this unique cultural value of the people of Quang Binh, thereby contributing to maintaining, preserving and developing the Ho Khoan Le Thuy melody so that it can continue to reach higher and further in the future.

Conclusion

It can be said that Ho Khoan Le Thuy today is not only a spiritual and cultural tradition of Quang Binh people but has become a valuable cultural heritage of the country that needs to be preserved and developed. Let the Ho Khoan melodies be continued from generation to generation to preserve a beautiful cultural identity for future generations.