I love folk songs and rhymes even more.

(Baonghean) - “Ho ơ ơ ơ khoan dô khoan, if you pass through Nghe An, please stop, khoan dô khoan/ Listen to this folk song, full of deep affection, ho ơ ơ ơ khoan dô khoan/ A beloved homeland, we invite you to come and enjoy it together, khoan dô khoan…”. That clear, melodious singing echoed from the small house of Nguyen Thi Nguyet - a student in class 8A, Dai Minh Secondary School (Yen Thanh) - as we arrived at the alley.

Nguyet's house has a striking entrance: a lotus pond on one side and a fish pond on the other – perhaps this serene setting nurtured her love for folk music. Following the sound of the song, the first image that appeared was a little girl washing clothes while engrossed in her song, oblivious to the visitors. Nguyet's smooth voice had impressed us during the opening night of the 2014 Nghe Tinh Folk Song and Traditional Singing Competition for high school students at the provincial level.

Nguyệt inherited her beautiful singing voice from her grandfather, Nguyễn Phúc Thanh (70 years old), who was a member of the 250th Factory's performing arts troupe in Phủ Quỳ. From a young age, he loved singing and actively participated in the village's cultural activities. He collected many folk melodies from his homeland, such as "ví giận thương," "hò đi đường," and "hát khuyên." Every day, he would sing lullabies to Nguyệt using these beloved folk tunes, gradually instilling a deep passion for them in her soul. Thus, the folk melodies he collected were passed down to Nguyệt, with the hope that future generations would continue to preserve and transmit the intangible cultural values ​​of their homeland.

Nguyen Thi Nguyet (center) performs at the 2014 Nghe Tinh folk song and dance competition.

Nguyệt's passion for the folk songs and melodies of Nghệ Tĩnh continued to grow when the Nghệ Tĩnh folk song and melody program was introduced into the curriculum at the primary and secondary school levels. Through music lessons, Ms. Nguyễn Thị Thủy – the music teacher at Đại Minh Secondary School – discovered that Nguyệt possessed a natural folk singing voice and a keen musical sensibility. With Ms. Thủy's guidance on music theory and techniques for emphasizing and articulating words in folk melodies, Nguyệt increasingly successfully performed each folk song and melody with all her heart. From then on, Nguyệt became a key figure in the arts and culture scene of her class and school, excelling in school, district, and district-level arts and culture competitions.

Ms. Thuy said: “Nguyet is a student who actively participates in the cultural and artistic activities of the class and the school. She has a passion for singing and especially loves the folk songs of Nghe Tinh. During the art troupe's rehearsals, her passion has spread to the whole team, making the rehearsals more lively and effective. When practicing a folk song or a ballad, she is very focused and practices the techniques of vocal embellishment and pronunciation in the right rhythm and tempo many times until she is satisfied. When performing a song, she puts her heart and soul into it, making the lyrics softer, smoother, and very captivating to the listener.”

And hard work always brings the expected success. “Listening silently to the lullaby, I travel thousands of miles across the land and sky, only then do I understand/The merits of father, mother, and teacher, are as vast as the sky and sea, as high and deep as the mountains…”, the auditorium of the 2014 Nghe Tinh Provincial Folk Song and Traditional Singing Competition erupted in applause as Nguyet sang the melodious verses about filial piety and the duty of a student in Hong Luu's work, “The Merits of Father, Mother, and Teacher.” Considered to have a naturally gifted voice, coupled with serious and diligent practice, under the stage lights of the competition, Nguyet delighted the judges and the large audience with her precise vocal technique in performing a xẩm song – a very difficult technique in folk songs and traditional singing. When asked why she chose this xẩm song for the competition, she replied... Nguyệt said: “Because this folk song is very meaningful to our generation of students. It helps us deeply understand the immeasurable gratitude we owe to our parents and teachers, and teaches us how to live up to our filial piety as good children and excellent students, so as not to disappoint the expectations of our grandparents, parents, and teachers.” Perhaps for Nguyệt, her love and passion for Nghệ Tĩnh folk songs and melodies is growing stronger not only because of the softness and smoothness of the tunes, but also because she deeply understands the meaning of each verse and melody that our ancestors wanted to convey.

To pursue her passion with the support of her family, Nguyet managed to balance her practice time without affecting her academic studies. Therefore, not only is she a talented singer and enthusiastic participant in school and class activities, but Nguyen Thi Nguyet is also an all-around excellent student for many years; she is a top student in Literature and English at the district level.

The A prize for best performance and best individual at the recent provincial folk song and melodies competition are well-deserved rewards for Nguyet's appreciation of her homeland's folk songs and melodies, and her hard work. And the special admission to the provincial College of Culture and Arts has given her a boost to continue pursuing her passion for singing.

We parted ways with Nguyet in the twilight, yet the gentle, melodious folk song still echoed within us, as if wanting to keep her from leaving: "Ho ơ ơ ơ khoan dô khoan, if you pass through Nghe An, please stop, khoan dô khoan/ Listen to the folk song, full of deep affection/Ho ơ ơ ơ khoan dô khoan, a beloved homeland, we invite you to come and enjoy it together, khoan dô khoan…" We felt even more love and appreciation for the folk songs of our homeland.

Le Hoa