Visiting Huoi Giang 1 village in Tay Son commune this time of year, amidst the vibrant red rose gardens and bright yellow mustard flower fields, are traditional houses with dark brown thatched roofs, interspersed with early-blooming peach blossoms swaying in the breeze. It's a truly ancient and poetic scene. Rarely is there a place with such a concentrated cluster of thatched houses, retaining the pristine mountain and forest character of Huoi Giang. Mr. Vu Ba Re – Vice Chairman of the Tay Son Commune People's Committee – leisurely recounted: "Many of these houses are hundreds of years old. People only replace the wood underneath, while the roofs remain original and have become a distinctive feature of the village. Sa mu is a rare and precious wood; its trunk contains oil that makes it water-resistant and termite-proof. Therefore, since ancient times, the Mong people in Tay Son have used sa mu planks to thatch their houses. However, now the Mong people in Tay Son strictly adhere to the general policies of the Party and the State, no longer cutting sa mu for wood to build houses, but instead working together to plant and preserve the forest."
The houses, built by their ancestors and roofed with precious cypress wood, have been preserved by generations to maintain the cultural heritage of the Hmong people in Tay Son. They also add a scenic highlight to the village and are increasingly attracting visitors. One of the oldest houses in Huoi Giang 1 village belonged to Mr. Vu Pa Lia (deceased), and is now only lived there by his wife, Mrs. Lau Y IA, who is over 90 years old, and their youngest son. Mrs. Lau Y IA said that the house, passed down from her ancestors, used to be simple with earthen pillars, but now it has been raised on stilts, with only the cypress wood roof remaining unchanged for hundreds of years. The cypress wood roof keeps the house windproof, warm in winter, cool in summer, and prevents mold.
Currently, the ancient thatched-roof houses of the Mong people in Tay Son commune are increasingly considered a valuable asset of the community. However, what worries the local Party committee, government, and village officials is that, due to the erosion of time and the effects of sun and rain, some thatched roofs have cracked and become damaged, but there are no replacement materials to match the original design, due to strict regulations prohibiting logging. Therefore, some households have had to replace their roofs with green or red corrugated iron sheets.
Our conversation was interrupted by the haunting, melodious sound of the Hmong flute in the hazy, cloud-filled air. The Vice Chairman of the Tay Son Commune People's Committee, Vu Ba Re, exclaimed: "That's the sound of the flute played by Artisan Vu Lau Phong! Mr. Phong is deeply committed to preserving the cultural identity of our Hmong people. He was also the first household to repair damaged thatched roofs by replacing them with transparent plastic sheeting underneath…"
Following the sound of the Hmong flute, we visited Vu Lau Phong in his wooden house, adorned with Hmong musical instruments and certificates of merit recognizing his contributions to preserving and promoting the ethnic cultural heritage. To welcome his uninvited guests, Mr. Phong cheerfully performed a Hmong flute dance while gracefully and elegantly dancing to the music. He explained that the art of Hmong flute dancing is a distinctive cultural feature, the "soul" of the Hmong people's spiritual life, passed down through generations. His grandfather was also a renowned Hmong flute and pipe player. Mr. Phong was taught the Hmong flute by his grandfather and father, Vu Pa Lia, from a young age of over 10.
With his innate talent and passion for traditional musical instruments, Artisan Vu Lau Phong has been invited to perform at festivals and competitions from the commune to the district, province, and national levels, winning numerous awards, certificates, and commendations. Of the 11 traditional Hmong musical instruments, Mr. Phong says he can play 10, but he excels at the khaen (bamboo mouth organ) and flute. "As long as the khaen melodies, xia dances, costumes, and musical instruments remain, the cultural identity of the Hmong people will not be lost," he believes, and therefore actively teaches his family and the younger generation of Hmong people in the district. He is also an active member of the Tay Son Commune's Folk Arts Club with over 20 members. He has also been invited by Tay Son Ethnic Boarding Primary and Secondary School to teach khaen dance and perform folk songs and traditional musical instruments in extracurricular programs for students.
Mr. Phong's family is also a key factor in preserving the cultural identity of the Mong ethnic group, as both of his sons skillfully play the Mong flute, his two daughters know how to sing and dance the Cu Xia (a Mong folk song), and his granddaughter, Vu Y Do, who is only in 7th grade, is also very good at singing and dancing the Cu Xia. Mr. Phong's wife, Mrs. Lau Y My, also regularly participates in training the children in the village to sing and dance the Cu Xia.
In Tay Son commune, there are 6 villages with 336 households and approximately 1,760 inhabitants, all of whom are Mong ethnic people. Not only Mr. Phong's family but the entire commune has formed a vibrant movement to preserve the art of performing the khene dance and folk songs and traditional musical instruments. For the people of Tay Son, khene dancing and cu xia singing are not simply about telling stories of daily joys and sorrows, but also about recounting the history and identity of their ethnic group. The transmission of these values aims to remind descendants to remember their roots. Many other activities are still maintained by the Mong people of Tay Son commune, such as the bullfighting festival held in the spring with activities like pao throwing, cu xia love songs, crossbow shooting, gù fighting, stick pushing, and Mong cuisine. The commune has also initially opened one shop and established three groups of households embroidering traditional Mong costumes in Huoi Giang 1, 2, and 3 villages.
According to discussions with the leaders of Tay Son commune, the Resolution of the Commune Party Congress for the 2020-2025 term set the goal of establishing a Traditional Flute and Bamboo Flute Club and a Folk Dance Club in the community, both to preserve traditional culture and to align with the policy of developing eco-tourism and community tourism. However, to date, only one Folk Performing Arts Preservation Club has been established in the commune's Ethnic Minority Boarding Primary School; a Folk Dance Club has not yet been established in the community because young people are leaving to work elsewhere, leaving only the elderly and children in the villages, thus lacking the manpower to maintain regular club activities; some young women who were taught the art have later married and moved to other villages, resulting in a loss of the source of talent.
The village elders and leaders in Tay Son are also concerned that the younger generation only knows how to play the bamboo flute, and there are not many who can perform skillfully to serve at festivals, weddings, and funerals.
Located in the southwestern part of Ky Son district, 9km from the district center, Tay Son commune covers a natural area of 11,578.22 hectares and enjoys a mild subtropical climate. Tay Son is not only rich in ethnic cultural values but also blessed with breathtaking natural landscapes, featuring the fragrant scent of many flowers that bloom naturally throughout the year, and the gentle aroma of essential oils emanating from the beautiful fir and cypress forests. Since ancient times, the people of Tay Son have been conscious of planting and protecting forests, considering them a precious asset for future generations.
According to the leaders of Tay Son commune, the main contributors to creating these lush forests were Mr. Vu Pa Re and his son – former Vice Chairman of the Tay Son Commune People's Committee. This led to the reforestation movement spreading throughout the commune, encouraging people to plant trees. Ky Son district also promptly developed a project providing support of 2 million VND per hectare. In addition to legal regulations, the village customs include specific provisions on forest protection responsibilities and penalties for illegal logging for house construction or slash-and-burn farming. Thanks to this, the Pơ Mu and Sa Mu forests, planted with the sweat and effort of the Mong people over the past decades, have proven to be a valuable asset for future generations. Currently, Tay Son commune has approximately 96 hectares of Pơ Mu and Sa Mu forests. Recently, these forests have become a popular check-in spot for tourists, especially young people, opening up opportunities for tourism development for the local people.
According to the Party Secretary of Tay Son commune, Mr. Vu Ra Tenh, the commune has a development orientation for community tourism linked to the preservation of ancient houses with thatched roofs, and investment in infrastructure for the Pơ Mu and Sa Mu forest ecological tourism area to attract tourists. However, the results have only reached the stage of promotion and advertising, and have not yet generated revenue…
To ensure stable livelihoods and better preserve and promote cultural identity, in recent years, in addition to investing in the development of livestock models such as local cattle, black pigs, and black chickens, the commune has encouraged people to plant Codonopsis pilosula on 0.5 hectares; Panax quinquefolius on 0.3 hectares; and local peach and plum trees on 29.5 hectares. Wild apples, a native species of Tay Son commune, grow naturally in the forest during the season, and the villagers gather them to sell. Later, the Provincial Ethnic Affairs Committee surveyed the area and brought wild apple saplings from the North to plant here on a trial basis. Currently, the entire commune has about 7 hectares of wild apple trees, which were once hoped to be a livelihood crop to help people escape poverty, but they still face difficulties in finding markets for the produce.
The family of the Party Secretary of Vu Ra Tenh commune also planted 1 hectare of wild apple trees, a variety brought from the North, but the fruit is smaller than naturally grown trees and ripens and falls earlier. Last year, they sold it for 10,000 VND/kg, only earning about 2 million VND. Besides wild apples, another tree often mentioned in Tay Son, which both provides livelihoods and enhances the landscape, is the persimmon tree, including two types: astringent and egg-shaped persimmons. According to the commune's leaders, with support from the District Department of Agriculture and Rural Development for seedlings, the commune has expanded its cultivation, and the area planted with persimmons has now reached 6 hectares. In addition, they have planted 2 hectares of Nhan Hau persimmon trees in Huoi Giang 3 village… Many models have been implemented with high efficiency, such as the 7-leaf 01-flower ginseng model in Huoi Giang 1 village; the wild apple and cantaloupe cultivation model in Huoi Giang 3 village…
From the commune's perspective, efforts must be made to find markets for key local agricultural products (ginger, persimmons, medicinal herbs, etc.), actively stimulate ecotourism and community tourism, and build new rural areas while preserving the cultural identity of the Mong people in Tay Son.
Despite the many challenges, with new directions and approaches, it is hoped that in the future, the hospitable land of Tay Son will not only have flowers, music, forests, and warm, hospitable people, but also undergo transformation in all aspects, becoming an attractive destination for tourists from near and far.
