UNESCO removes Xoan singing from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding

At 10:52 local time (8:52 Vietnam time) on December 8, 2017, at the 12th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2003 held in Jeju, Korea, the Phu Tho Xoan singing heritage was officially removed by UNESCO from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.and inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

As a performing art heritage, Xoan singing of Phu Tho province includes singing, dancing, drumming and clapping. Xoan singing is closely associated with the worship of Hung Kings, a belief that originated from the practice of ancestor worship of the Vietnamese people.

The keepers and practitioners form four Xoan guilds, in which the male and female Masters play the most important roles: they preserve the songs, select disciples, teach the singing style and repertoire, and organize practices. They also actively introduce and teach Xoan singing in Xoan guilds and in clubs.

As a community performing art, Xoan singing fosters cultural understanding, community cohesion and mutual respect. The Vietnam Academy of Music has collected 31 Xoan singing songs and thanks to the efforts of some artists, many Xoan guilds have been established. There are 33 Xoan singing clubs currently operating, and workshops are held to expand knowledge about Xoan singing.

Experienced artisans teach Xoan singing through oral tradition combined with the use of sheet music, audio and video recordings. Experienced artisans also teach Xoan singing to club members and to music teachers in schools, who in turn pass on this knowledge to other club members and students.

According to the results of the National Periodic Report (2016) on the status of Xoan singing in Phu Tho, Vietnam and the assessment of the implementation of the heritage protection plan, the Intergovernmental Committee for the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage concluded that the Xoan singing heritage in Phu Tho no longer meets one or more criteria of the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding for the following reasons:

Xoan singing is a form of community performance art.

- The status report demonstrates that Xoan singing is no longer in need of urgent safeguarding as recent efforts by local communities and the Government have significantly restored its viability since its inscription on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2011. For example, in 2009, the four Xoan guilds had approximately 100 singers and musicians who were active on a casual basis, with more than half being over 60 years old. Today, the guilds have nearly 200 members with an average age of 35.

In 2009, of the 31 oldest artisans (aged 80 to 104), only 7 were able to perform and teach the ancient Xoan repertoire. Today, a total of 62 successors have been trained and are all fully equipped to teach the Xoan repertoire. The number of young people participating is growing rapidly. Some better protection results could be achieved through collaboration with national sustainable development projects. However, some challenges remain, such as the threat of homogenization of performances; young people still leave the craft village in search of work and study, thus losing the opportunity to practice.

- The project to protect and promote Xoan singing approved by the Prime Minister of Vietnam has been implemented since 2013 and will continue until 2020, playing an essential role in protecting and restoring the heritage with the full support of the community. The protection measures combine teaching Xoan singing, training on the protection of intangible cultural heritage, restoring the space necessary for heritage practice, collecting literary documents in practice and publishing them for educational purposes and introducing the heritage in schools. Four guilds of Xoan singing practitioners have made great contributions to the protection of Xoan singing since the 1980s until now. Their knowledge and continuous practice have helped to restore this art form.

- Xoan guilds and communities, practitioners and relevant organisations have been actively involved in the preparation of the National Periodic Report, enthusiastically participating in interviews, discussions and workshops. Furthermore, this heritage has been extensively inventoried with community participation from 2012 to 2015, with information updated annually. A systematic inventory of Xoan singing is also carried out by the Vietnam Institute of Musicology under the Vietnam National Academy of Music.

For the above reasons, the Intergovernmental Committee has taken note of Vietnam's proposal to remove Phu Tho Xoan Singing, Vietnam from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding.

This is the first time the Intergovernmental Committee has decided to withdraw an element from the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding and transfer it to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Based on the experience gained during the Committee's consideration of this proposal from Viet Nam, the Committee will continue to discuss the draft guidelines and define clear procedures for withdrawing an element from the list and transferring an element from one list to another.

According to VOV