More than 250 professional and amateur artists from 24 clubs in HCM City participated last weekend in the tai tu (amateur music) festival Hoa Sen Vang (Golden Lotus). — Photo vov.vn

HCMCITY (VNS) — More than 250 professional and amateur artists from 24 clubs in HCM City participated last weekend in the tai tu (amateur music) festival Hoa Sen Vang (Golden Lotus).

During the two-day event at the HCM City Music Centre, artists performed hundreds of songs and instrumental music pieces before 1,000 people.

One of the city's prestigious troupes, the Tan Binh Tai Tu Club, impressed fans with songs in praise of the country, President Ho Chi Minh and soldiers.

Talented artists from the Workers Cultural House's Tai Tu Club, with their strong voices and performance skills, performed the popular song Da Co Hoai Lang (Night Drumbeats for the Absent Husband), composed in 1919 by Cao Van Lau, a native of the Mekong Delta province of Bac Lieu. It tells of the love, anguish and pride of a young woman watching her husband fight for the country.

The festival also included talks on music by music researchers like Mai My Duyen, Huynh Khai, Van Mon and Nguyen Kim Loan, who are members of the jury.

The festival Hoa Sen Vang is organised every two years by the HCM City Cultural Centre, in co-operation with the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, to encourage music researchers, young talents, veteran artists and fans of tai tu music to expand the art further.

"We hope that the festival will give people, particularly youth, the opportunity to understand and preserve the region's traditional music," said music researcher Ngo Hong Khanh, a member of the festival's organising board.

Tai tu music is considered the prototype for vong co (nostagic tunes) and cai luong (reformed opera) of southern Viet Nam. It is a part of the region's traditional music that began 100 years ago.

The music is associated with farmers who sing the songs in the fields or while they relax at the end of a hard day.

The songs are performed at festivals, weddings and death anniversary events in the provinces of Ca Mau, Bac Lieu and Can Giuoc.

Musicians play traditional instruments, including the two-stringed guitar called dan kim, to accompany singers who move the audience with their emotion.

In 2013, the music was recognised as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

The award presentation ceremony and performance gala will be organised on July 26 at the Sen Hong Stage in District 1. Entrance is free. — VNS