'Super band' of Thai farmer family in Nghe An

(Baonghean.vn) - They are all brothers in a poor Thai family in a mountainous commune of Tuong Duong district (Nghe An) who can both compose and play many traditional musical instruments..

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Watch Mr. Lay Van Thao's family "band" perform:

We arrived at La village (Luong Minh commune - Tuong Duong) on ​​an early spring day. Suddenly we heard the sound of panpipes and flutes resounding together, creating a joyful melody in the mountains and forests. That passionate sound came from a hut located next to the clear Nam Non river. In the narrow space, several brothers of Mr. Lay Van Thao's family and the old neighbor Lo Van Thinh were playing the song "Chu ma dam ban noong" (Remembering to visit my hometown) composed by Mr. Thao himself.

Brothers Lay Van Thao and Lay Dai Cuong performed the music they composed.

Although they are all over 50 years old and still living in poverty, the brothers in Mr. Lay Van Thao's family have never stopped being passionate about traditional musical instruments. Mr. Thao confided: Since his father, Mr. Lay Van Nam, has been passionate about music. He is the one who made the famous panpipes of this land and also translated the lyrics of the song "Uncle's Advice Before Going Far" into Thai to sing in the village every time there is a festival. Mr. Thao's brother, Lay Cong Hoanh (deceased), is also equally passionate. Mr. Hoanh also learned from his father and composed the song "Cau treo Cua Rao" expressing the wish of the Luong Minh people to have a bridge across the Nam Non River for people to cross.

Mr. Lay Van Thao plays the panpipe, a traditional musical instrument of the Thai people.

Mr. Thao's extended family is considered "music-loving farmers". In addition to farming, his father was also very fond of musical instruments. His father died early, the family was poor, Mr. Thao and his younger brother Lay Dai Cuong both studied and learned to play traditional musical instruments of the Thai people. Currently, the two brothers can play many musical instruments fluently such as flute, panpipe, bamboo lute, two-stringed fiddle, monochord, organ...

Mr. Thao is currently working as an accountant for a school in the commune while working in the fields with his wife and children. His family is still poor, but in his spare time he tries to compose songs in Thai and then translates them into Kinh. "At the cultural festivals in the district and the province, we are always invited to perform the songs we composed," Mr. Lay Van Thao proudly boasted.

Compared to his brother Lay Van Thao, Mr. Lay Dai Cuong has an even more difficult situation. Mr. Cuong is a veteran who fought in the battlefields of Laos and Cambodia. During the days of eating wind and sleeping in the dew on foreign lands, he was infected with Agent Orange. After being demobilized and returning to his homeland for 10 years, he gave birth to 7 children, but all were affected by this poison and died early. Currently, this farmer has adopted 1 child, who is studying in grade 7 at Tuong Duong Secondary School for Ethnic Minorities. That is also the greatest source of encouragement for this veteran's life.

Mr. Lay Dai Cuong is passionate about the Mong flute he ordered from the northern border.

Talking about music, Mr. Lay Dai Cuong revealed: “I am most passionate about flutes and panpipes. Every day, wherever I go, I have to bring these instruments with me as my companions.” Then, he pointed to the panpipe and said that in the past, when he and his fellow artists from the district performed in Vinh, they were awarded more than 1 million VND. That amount of money was not small for him, but he saved it to buy this panpipe. And then the Mong flute, he had to send money all the way to Lao Cai to buy it for 700,000 VND.

In their spare time, they often sit together and play music praising their homeland and mountains and forests.

On normal days, he still brings these musical instruments to perform for his secondary school students to instill in the young generation a love for traditional national music.

Coming to this land, we often hear the locals recite the saying: "Xo Xieng Men, Khen Ban La, Pa Xop Xuong" (Xieng Men girls (Yen Hoa), Khen Ban La, Dao Xop Xuong (Yen Thang), now listening to the music of these poor people, we truly understand.

Dao Tho