Preserving and promoting Xoan singing is not only about safeguarding an art form but also affirming cultural identity and fostering the Vietnamese people’s solidarity, national pride, and aspirations.
The northern midland province of Phu Tho has carried out all-round measures to improve tourism infrastructure, services, and offerings, elevating visitor experience and reinforcing the province’s unique cultural identity.
The Hung Kings’ Commemoration Day is viewed as a celebration of great importance among Vietnamese people. It also acts as a symbol of cultural value, great solidarity, and sense of gratitude and worship of the ancestors of Vietnamese people.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has recently inscribed the Ba Chua Xu (Holy Mother of the Realm) Festival at Sam mountain in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, raising the total number of Vietnam’s such UNESCO-honoured intangible elements to 16.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited the command and control centre of the Phu Tho police and examined the construction of this northern province’s house of culture and arts on April 18.
Experts, managers and artisans looked into intangible cultural heritage preservation in Vietnam over the past 20 years at a workshop in Hanoi on December 26.
National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue attended the opening of the fourth session of the People’s Council of Phu Tho province on July 13, lauding the efforts of the northern midland locality in all fields, especially COVID-19 control and socio-economic recovery and development.
Together with Xoan singing artisans, heads of Xoan guilds have retained, upheld and developed the ancient art form of singing in the community. Xoan singing is an intangible cultural heritage of northern Vietnam.
Xoan singing is a valuable intangible cultural heritage of the ancestor land of Phu Tho. This heritage has links to the worship of Hung Kings, a belief that originates from the Vietnamese practice of ancestor worship.
The art programme “Sacred roots - the Ancestral Lands of Hung Kings” featured a kaleidoscope of stellar performances at Van Lang park, Viet Tri city, the northern midland province of Phu Tho on April 20 in commemoration of the Hung Kings, who were believed to be the founders of the Vietnamese country.
Politburo member and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has suggested that the northern midland province of Phu Tho turn tourism into a spearhead economic sector by enhancing the added value and quality of services and diversifying tourism products.
Additional 14 people in the northern province of Phu Tho have been presented with the “Xoan singing artisan” title in recognition of their contributions to preserving and promoting the value of the UNESCO-recognised intangible cultural heritage.
From a small-scale economy and disaster-prone province, Phu Tho has grown to become the second most developed province in the northern midland and mountainous region after implementing the local 18th Party Congress’ resolution for only half of the 2015-2020 tenure.
Bestowed with an array of world and national cultural heritages, the northern midland province of Phu Tho is looking for breakthrough measures to capitalise on its strength to become a must-visit destination for both domestic and international tourists.
On the occasion of the Hung Kings Temple Festival, scheduled to take place between April 20 and 25 in Phu Tho province, Xoan singing performances will be held between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm every day.
The northern province of Phu Tho launched a daily tour from Hanoi to the land of Hung Kings in early April, allowing tourists to explore traditional Xoan singing. The tour is designed to boost tourism and preserve the local intangible heritage, according to a local official.
The annual Hung Kings Temple festival hosted by the northern midlands province of Phu Tho will be held from April 21-25 (6th to 10th day of the third lunar month) with an array of cultural festivities.
As soon as Xoan singing was added to the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity, Phu Tho has made the folk art performances a tourism product. The move has so far proved effective.
