"Supporting" the spread of the art of Bai Choi

VHO - Faced with the risk of the art of Bài Chòi being lost, the Quang Ngai provincial government and generations of artisans have worked together to overcome difficulties, bringing new vitality and influence to Bài Chòi.

Mr. Nguyen Van An, a member of the folk music and singing club of Binh Thuan commune, Binh Son district, is singing a folk song.

Revitalize

Quang Ngai Province Cultural and Arts Center has opened a training class to teach the art of Bai Choi performance to connect people with the same passion, contributing to preserving and promoting the value of the nation's traditional cultural heritage.

Mr. Nguyen Van An, a member of the folk singing and instrument club in Binh Thuan commune, Binh Son district, shared that he is very passionate about singing Bai Choi. By participating in the training and teaching class on Bai Choi, he was able to experience and experience the unique and attractive features of Bai Choi in a close and lively way. From the way of building the hut, the names of the cards, his costume, to the way of singing, gestures, performance, and talented improvisation.

“When there was a training class on the art of Bai Choi, I immediately joined in. The humor, wit and artistry of the Bai Choi melodies combined with the erhu, flute, drum and clapper rhythms aroused my love and passion for learning and singing Bai Choi. Through the class, I can sing better to serve tourists visiting Bau Ca Cai mangrove forest,” An said.

According to Mr. An, his hometown now has the eco- tourism site Bau Ca Cai, where visitors not only enjoy exploring the wild nature, but also enjoy Bai Choi singing. It is really interesting to sit on a small boat, visit the long mangrove area, the immense and charming river and listen to Bai Choi singing.

Recently, the folk song - bai choi club under the provincial Culture - Arts Center was established. The club has nearly 30 members, each with a different job and profession but with the same passion and enthusiasm to preserve and promote the art of bai choi. The club members are mostly young people.

Teacher Ta Van Cuong, a teacher at Le Hong Phong Primary School, is one of the core young members of the folk song - bai choi club of the Provincial Cultural and Arts Center.

Mr. Ta Van Cuong (37 years old), currently a teacher at Le Hong Phong Primary School, Quang Ngai City, is one of the core young members of the Folk Song - Bai Choi Club. Mr. Cuong said that recently, he and the club members have regularly performed Bai Choi performances at many programs, competitions, and performances organized by the cultural sector. He is currently a Physical Education teacher, has a talent for performing arts, so he regularly participates in local cultural and artistic activities.

“Because I have a passion for singing and Bai Choi, I signed up to participate in teaching classes as well as folk song and Bai Choi clubs to gain more knowledge and experience. From there, I will teach my school’s students in particular and the young generation in general to pass on and preserve the beauty of Bai Choi art,” Mr. Cuong shared.

Meritorious artist Tran Tam (right) is the one who passes on the torch of Bai Choi to the younger generation.

Passing the torch to the next generation

Currently, many localities in the province such as Quang Ngai City, Tu Nghia, Nghia Hanh, Mo Duc, Binh Son, Duc Pho town have established folk song - bai choi clubs. The head of the folk song - bai choi club (Cultural - Artistic Center of the province), Meritorious Artist Tran Tam shared that with the guidance of many artists knowledgeable in the field of bai choi, it will help club members gain performance experience, master bai choi melodies to contribute to promoting the art of bai choi in contemporary life.

“We organize regular activities and performances to create a playground for everyone to participate in performances, develop their talents and search for and discover new factors to train,” said Mr. Tam.

In recent years, many clubs have been established and have participated in many art festivals and bai choi competitions in and outside the province. However, the current difficulty is that the funding to maintain activities is limited. The bai choi artisan classes are considered "living heritages" and are mostly old and not many left. Therefore, in order for folk song - bai choi clubs to operate effectively, authorities at all levels need to create favorable conditions to support funding to maintain activities, pay attention to the treatment of elderly artisans and regularly organize classes to teach the art of bai choi.

Singing Bai Choi to serve tourists at Go Co community tourism village, Pho Thanh commune, Duc Pho town

Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Quang Ngai province Nguyen Tien Dung said: “Quang Ngai is implementing the Project to Preserve and Promote the Art of Bài Chòi. In particular, focusing on developing Bài Chòi clubs in localities, linking this art form with tourism activities. Bringing Bài Chòi into service for tourists is necessary, in order to diversify tourism products, contributing to promoting local socio-economic development. Through this, it helps to preserve and promote the art of Bài Chòi in contemporary life.”

Source: https://baovanhoa.vn/van-hoa/tiep-suc-cho-nghe-thuat-bai-choi-lan-toa-112851.html