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Land of Ca Tru in northern region

(BGO) – Hiep Hoa district, where Cau River runs through more than half of its villages, preserves a number of proofs of existence and development of Ca Tru (ceremonial singing) of Bac Giang – a representative of Ca Tru in the northern region.

 

Land, Ca Tru, northern region
Singing Ca Tru at Lo Hanh communal house.

The proofs of Ca Tru in Bac Giang are seen at Lo Hanh communal house in Dong Lo commune, which was built in the 16th century during the Le Mac Dynasty.  In the house, there is a wooden sculpture which depicts a girl siting on a deer and playing Vietnamese plucked lute or Dan Day – a musical instrument only used for Ca Tru. Another sculpture illustrates a gentle performance with a man playing Dan Day. The sculptures show that Ca Tru has been present in the commune as well as its activities. 

Meanwhile, Trung Viet communal house in Hop Thinh commune displays a stone stele about a local Ca Tru guild. According to the book “Getting to know the history of Ca Tru” by Dr. Nguyen Xuan Dien, a stele erected in the year of Vinh Tri 5 (1681) said a maternal ancestor of Ha family of several members in a guild in Dong Lam commune, Hiep Hoa district, Bac Ha prefecture, Kinh Bac region was Phuc Dao, who resided in Trung Trat commune and set up a guild. His daughter, Ha Thi Khanh, married a man of Nguyen family in Dong Lam and formed a guild here. Showing their gratitude to the ancestor, Dong Lam guild members set a rule that the guild is responsible for all costs of feasts held at Trung Trat communal house. As such, it can be understood that Ha Thi Khanh, a member of Trung Trat’s Ca Tru guild, created the Ca Tru guild of Dong Lam commune. 
In addition, a document of Pham family wrote that a great man of the family sponsored 300 quan (an ancient Vietnamese currency unit) for three Ca Tru singers.  Hence, the guilds decided to build an ancestral temple in Canh Doan village and created singing rules and specific benefits for singers. In another document on customs of Duc Thang commune, Duc Thang township, Hoa Hiep district records that “Ca Tru performances were held at citizenship granting or god worshipping ceremonies every year…”
Ca Tru made its presence in Hiep Hoa district for more than two consecutive centuries, Ca Tru performances at festivals in villages along Cau River have been developed tremendously. It is significant to say that the ancient Lo Hanh communal house and the stele at Trung Trat communal house are valuable tangible heritages which are useful for studying Ca Tru.

Hiep Hoa district has taken numerous measures to preserve and promote the values of Ca Tru in recent years. In Dong Lo commune, four Ca Tru clubs have been established in four hamlets of Cham, Khoat, Chung and Hung Dao, gathering 38 learners. Specialised agencies of the district and the province have provided musical instruments and facilities for the clubs while inviting artisans of Thanh Khuong Ca Tru Club (in Thuan Thanh district of Bac Ninh province) to teach singing skills. Thanks to this, many female singers and male instrumentalists who are farmers in Dong Lo commune have performed fluently five to six songs of four tones in the forms of recitative (hát nói), lullaby (hát ru), flirty Xam (xẩm huê tình) and A dao singing (đào hồng đào tuyết). They have even got skilled at instrument playing techniques such as twiddling (vê) and plucking (vẩy). 
Meanwhile, the provincial culture centre has coordinated with the Bac Giang Cheo Theater to organise training courses for female singers and invited artisans from Lo Khe Ca Tru Club (Dong Anh district of Hanoi) to teach singing techniques.

Defining the importance of the preservation and development of Ca Tru, the Party committee and authorities of Dong Lo commune have facilitated the clubs’ operation. In Hiep Hoa district, poets Dang Ba and Hoang Hop from local poet clubs have composed a number of recitative songs with new contents which are compatible with Ca Tru. This is a favourable condition for the land of Ca Tru by Cau River to revive. 
Tran Thai
Land, Ca Tru, northern region
 
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