The youngest outstanding artist of Nghe An has a deep love for Vi Giam folk songs

(Baonghean.vn) - Born in Dong Hieu (Thai Hoa town), from his childhood, little Tran Van Hong (born in 1972) followed his grandmother and mother to immerse himself in the folk songs and melodies of the performance space at the farms in Phu Quy land. Few people expected that when he grew up, he would become aMeritorious ArtistThe youngest in Nghe An with many contributions to the development of folk songs and Vi Giam of his home province.

Tran Van Hong's singing talent was revealed when he was only 5 or 6 years old. At that age, he already knew how to sing and sing the folk melodies of Vi Giam in different high and low pitches in an expressive way. Day by day, he continued to nurture that love through singing practice sessions with his grandmother and mother and boldly participated in competitions in the neighborhood and at school.

Meritorious artist Tran Van Hong in a session teaching Vi Giam folk songs to students of Dong Hieu Secondary School (Thai Hoa Town).

At the age of 11, the milestone marking the maturity of the singing boy Tran Van Hong was when he won first prize in the art competition organized by the school and then the highest prize in the art competition at the district level. From then on, Tran Van Hong participated in many local cultural and artistic activities and conquered the hearts of many people who love Vi Giam folk songs with his own voice.

When the farms in Phu Quy area were no longer as bustling as before, the performances and dialogues also became less frequent. With a heavy heart for a folk cultural value that was in danger of being lost, at that time he had a burning desire to restore and preserve the Vi and Giam melodies of his homeland.

To realize that wish, in 1995 he founded the Dong Hieu Commune Vi Giam Folk Song and Music Club. From a modest number of only 4 participants at that time, it has now grown to 31 members.

Artist Tran Van Hong (holding microphone) and members of the Dong Hieu Commune Folk Song and Music Club performed at the 2015 Sen Village Festival.

According to him, the club's members are of all ages and backgrounds. They are farmers, workers, and civil servants who share a passion for singing. In the early days of operation, the club encountered many difficulties, but overcoming all of them, the members still enthusiastically practiced and painstakingly collected ancient Vi Giam folk songs and composed new lyrics for many melodies and dialogues. From here, the love for folk songs and Vi Giam has spread to more and more people.

In particular, the club has created a buzz after many competitions and performances in the region and the whole area. Most recently, the club represented the province in the happy family building competition held in Quang Nam province. The group was honored to be ranked 7th out of 46 participating groups nationwide and won the award for the best opening performance of the competition.

Previously, in 2012, the club won the A prize of the Provincial Vi Giam Folk Song Festival Finals.

The achievements that the club has achieved have no small contribution from artisan Tran Van Hong.

Mr. Tran Van Hong with the certificates of merit he has received in nearly 30 years of singing Vi and Giam folk songs.

As for him personally, in 30 years of being attached to the love of Vi Giam folk songs, he has achieved many achievements and been awarded many certificates of merit and prizes. Notably, in 2013, he was awarded the title of "Folk Artist" by the Vietnam Folk Arts Association and was awarded a commemorative medal for his contribution to the Vietnamese Folk Arts. In 2015, he was recognized as an excellent artist. At that time, he was the youngest excellent artist in the province to receive this award.

With those achievements, many people have admired his tireless dedication to preserving a precious folk cultural value of the nation. But for him, those awards are not the final destination but the inspiration for the next young generations. That is the reason why he and the remaining members of the club he founded do not hesitate to look for talented artists and then teach them traditional folk songs.

Tran Ngoc Dieu, class 7A, Dong Hieu Secondary School is one of the young talents that Mr. Hong enthusiastically teaches.

Along with that, he also taught many primary, secondary and high school students in the town. From here, many generations of students have grown up and achieved many achievements, thereby creating a strong spread of love for Vi and Giam folk songs among today's young generation in Thai Hoa town in particular and Phu Quy in general.

Thanh Quynh