HCM CITY (VNS)— Professional and amateur artists from dozens of music clubs in HCM City and southern provinces took part in the Tai Tu Music Spring Festival on Sunday night in the city's September 23 Park in District 1.

The event saw them perform 32 newly composed song and music pieces in front of an audience of nearly 500.

Among the most popular songs were Tre Que Huong (Homeland Bamboo) and Bien Dao To Quoc Toi (The Seas and Islands of My Country), respectively composed by Nguyen Dinh Chien of An Giang Province and Minh Dang of Ca Mau Province.

Tai tu music is considered the forerunner of vong co (traditional tunes) and cai luong (reformed opera) of southern Viet Nam. It is part of the region's traditional music heritage stretching back to 100 years ago.

Organised by the HCM City Cultural Centre, the festival brought together, keen young talents, veteran artists, and fans of tai tu.-VNS