The craftsmen in Dao Xa trade village are calling for incentives topreserve and develop the production of handmade traditional musicalinstruments to ensure their craft’s continuity.
74-year-old Dao Van Soan, who is now considered one of the topcraftsmen in the village, said it took a lot of patience, skill andenergy for an artisan to complete an instrument such as a “ dan ty ba”(a pear-shaped guitar with four strings) or “dan thap luc” (Vietnamese16-chord zither) .
To produce one, theappropriate wood must be selected, and most work is done by hand fromshaping the body, attaching the neck to the body to fitting the stringsand the final decoration. According to Soan, the most important anddifficult work is to check the instrument’s pitch and the sound quality.
It takes at least one week to make a “dan ty ba”, he said.
Soan voiced concern over the possible loss of the 200-year-oldtraditional craft, saying that only ten households in the village stillcontinue to produce the instruments. Most of the craftsmen are old andthe young generation prefer to do other better-paid jobs, he added.
It takes great love and passion for the makers to pursue the craft,because the work itself hardly supports their lives, young maker Dao VanKhuong said.
Classes have been organised toteach local youngsters how to make traditional musical instruments.The village craftsmen have also focused on making the products that meetclients’ demand to ensure a stable income.
TheDao Xa village in Dong Lo commune, Ung Hoa district, Hanoi, alsoproduces other traditional instruments, such as the “dan bau” (asingle-stringed instrument), “dan nguyet” (full-moon-shaped guitarwith two strings) and “dan nhi” (upright two-string fiddle).
The village, which was recognised as a traditional craft village in2009, has its products sold in every locality across the country andattracted crowds of international and domestic tourists, but the agingartisans are worried the craft will die out one day in the near future.-VNA
74-year-old Dao Van Soan, who is now considered one of the topcraftsmen in the village, said it took a lot of patience, skill andenergy for an artisan to complete an instrument such as a “ dan ty ba”(a pear-shaped guitar with four strings) or “dan thap luc” (Vietnamese16-chord zither) .
To produce one, theappropriate wood must be selected, and most work is done by hand fromshaping the body, attaching the neck to the body to fitting the stringsand the final decoration. According to Soan, the most important anddifficult work is to check the instrument’s pitch and the sound quality.
It takes at least one week to make a “dan ty ba”, he said.
Soan voiced concern over the possible loss of the 200-year-oldtraditional craft, saying that only ten households in the village stillcontinue to produce the instruments. Most of the craftsmen are old andthe young generation prefer to do other better-paid jobs, he added.
It takes great love and passion for the makers to pursue the craft,because the work itself hardly supports their lives, young maker Dao VanKhuong said.
Classes have been organised toteach local youngsters how to make traditional musical instruments.The village craftsmen have also focused on making the products that meetclients’ demand to ensure a stable income.
TheDao Xa village in Dong Lo commune, Ung Hoa district, Hanoi, alsoproduces other traditional instruments, such as the “dan bau” (asingle-stringed instrument), “dan nguyet” (full-moon-shaped guitarwith two strings) and “dan nhi” (upright two-string fiddle).
The village, which was recognised as a traditional craft village in2009, has its products sold in every locality across the country andattracted crowds of international and domestic tourists, but the agingartisans are worried the craft will die out one day in the near future.-VNA
