5 typical musical instruments of Thai people in Nghe An

(Baonghean.vn) - Originating from life and production, the Thai people in Western Nghe An have created their own musical instruments, contributing to creating a unique cultural feature in the community of Vietnamese ethnic groups.

Nghe An Newspaper would like to introduce 5 typical musical instruments of the Thai people (Nghe An):

1. Panpipe:

As a versatile instrument, the khene is most effective when accompanying Thai folk songs (khap, lam, nhuon, xuoi).

The Khen Be, along with other musical instruments, creates a lively, exciting harmony, expressing the optimism, love of life and solidarity of the Thai ethnic community.

Therefore, in most Thai ethnic villages, festivals and happy days cannot lack the gentle sound of the panpipe, because that is the "soul melody" of the nation.

The raw materials for making the Khen Be are 14 small bamboo pieces of different lengths and 7 pairs placed parallel to form a block. This bamboo block is connected together by a wooden gourd, on these bamboo pieces, artisans create air holes and attach bronze bars.

The Khen be requires the user to be truly skillful, delicate and emotional. Those who are good at making and using Khen be musical instruments are often considered artisans by the locals.

Artist Vi Thanh Hai plays the flute. Photo: Dinh Tuan

Clip of artisan Vi Thanh Hai, in Chan village, Thach Giam commune (Tuong Duong) playing the flute:

2. Xixolo:

In addition to being used for solo performances, this instrument can also be used in ensembles or as an accompaniment for folk songs in daily life.

It is a bowed string instrument, made from a bamboo tube 45-50cm long. In the past, the instrument had two strings made of silk, but today, in addition to using iron metal strings, the bow is made from a thin bamboo stick about 45cm long and about 1cm wide; the bowstring is usually made from small nylon threads, but most commonly made from bamboo strings.

Mr. Luong Van An pulls a motorbike taxi. Photo: Dinh Tuan

Clip of Mr. Luong Van An, in Khe Ngau village, Xa Luong commune (Tuong Duong) pulling a rickshaw:

3. Leaf trumpet:

This is the simplest musical instrument, because you just need to take a leaf that is not torn, not damaged, and still fresh, cut the stem, then fold it in half along the leaf's spine to have a trumpet.

The leaf trumpet has a high pitched sound, well expressing the sound of flowing streams and birds singing, or sounds that are characteristic of the nature of the mountains and forests.

The leaf trumpet is a simple instrument that can be used anytime, anywhere.

Artist Lo Thanh Dan plays the leaf trumpet. Photo: Dinh Tuan

Clip of artisan Lo Thanh Dan, Khe Ngau village, Xa Luong commune (Tuong Duong) playing the leaf trumpet:

4.Carving:

The furrow is a rice pounding trough, made from an old tree trunk with twisted grain, little cracked in the middle, about 45cm wide, 2.5-3cm long. People carve this tree trunk into the shape of a boat, it looks almost like a short water trough, one end is drilled with a hole for pounding rice. The pestles are about 2m long, about 14cm in diameter.

The groove carving is considered one of the earliest and most primitive musical instruments. It only takes a few people to make a groove carving. When carving a groove, people hold a pestle and hit it on the wall of the trough or stab it into the bottom of the trough, creating loud, strong, decisive or rapid sounds, depending on the way people decide.

On happy occasions such as weddings, festivals,... the sound of carving furrows echoes throughout the village.

Clip of people in Lau village, Thach Giam commune (Tuong Duong) enjoying the carving festival:

5. Flute:

Made from a bamboo tube about 50cm long, drilled with 4 holes. The Pi can be played solo and accompanied by On (a Thai ethnic melody), used by Thai people on occasions such as weddings, housewarmings, and welcoming friends.

Artist Luong Van Pan plays the pipe. Photo: Dinh Tuan

Clip of artisan Luong Van Pan, Khe Ngau village, Xa Luong commune (Tuong Duong) blowing the pipe:

Dinh Tuan