Watch the 'perfect couple' of Khmu people sing Tom

(Baonghean.vn) - The Khmu people in Na Be village, Xa Luong commune (Tuong Duong) often call Moong Van Cuong and Moong Thi Tam the "perfect couple". Because they came together through the traditional Tom tune and have been together for the past 30 years.

Whenever there is a happy event such as a housewarming, wedding or Tet holiday, the people of Na Be often enjoy the pi sound of Moong Van Cuong (born in 1967) and the tom singing of Moong Thi Tam (born in 1972). For decades, this couple has been present at most of the happy events of the villagers, contributing to preserving a beautiful spiritual feature of the Khmu people.

Clip of Moong Van Cuong and his wife singing to celebrate their new house:

Mr. Cuong and Ms. Tam were born and raised in Xen My village, Luan Mai commune (Tuong Duong, now mostly relocated to resettlement areas in Thanh Chuong). Passionate about pi tom since childhood, with the enthusiastic guidance of his uncle, by the age of 16, he had mastered the game. And from then on, he began to appear and perform in the village's entertainment.

The performance of Mr. Cuong playing the pi and Ms. Tam singing tom has received many awards at festivals and mass art performances at district and provincial levels. Photo: Dinh Tuan.

Since the time Tam learned to carry bamboo tubes to the stream to fetch water, her mother taught her to sing the Tom tune - a typical folk song of the Khmu people. At the age of 14, she was like a beautiful Ban flower blooming in the middle of March, singing the clear Tom tune at every party, making many young men from near and far villages feel nostalgic and moved.

Then both of them joined the village art troupe, he played the pi, she sang the tom and became the “perfect couple”. Back then, the Xen My art troupe traveled up and down the Nam Non River many times to exchange with other villages. Wherever they went, everyone was amazed and praised the pi playing and tom singing of the couple Moong Van Cuong and Moong Thi Tam.

The Khmu people's pi tom is made of separate bamboo segments. Photo: Cong Kien.

In 1987, the commune chose their act to perform at the district center on the occasion of the inauguration of the Cua Rao suspension bridge, connecting the two banks of the Lam River. That trip down the Nam Non River left behind many memories, the love that had been kindled for many years was now fanned into a flame. After that trip, the couple returned to Xen My and got married a few months later.

In 1990, Cuong and his wife moved to Xa Luong commune and settled in Na Be village. Life was full of hardships, making a living was always busy, sometimes hunger and poverty lurked, but they did not abandon the pi and tom tunes. Sometimes at noon in the hut, after a tiring day of farming, he would start the pi, and she would immediately start the tom tune. All the fatigue seemed to be dispelled, giving way to joy and enthusiasm for work.

In family life, Mr. Cuong and Ms. Tam are always in agreement. Photo: Dinh Tuan.

Now, after 30 years of living together, the children have all grown up, but the passion for Pi and Tom singing of Cuong and Tam has not changed. They still accompany each other in fun activities, their performances are selected by the commune and district to participate in festivals and performances and have achieved proud achievements. Those are the A prize of Lang Sen Singing in 2014 and the A prize of the Cultural Performance of Ethnic Minorities in the whole province in 2015.

Mr. Moong Van Cuong shared: “My wife and I are very happy to contribute to preserving the musical identity of the Khmu people, bringing the spiritual beauty of our ethnic community to friends near and far. As long as we are healthy, we will still play the pi and sing tom!”

Tuong Anh - Dinh Tuan

Technique: Lam Manh