ICHCAP | e-Knowledge Center

Cultural Sounds: The Spirit of Vietnam > Music of Traditional Theatre in vietnam

CULTURAL SOUNDS: THE SPIRIT OF VIETNAM

- CD9
- Music of Traditional Theatre in vietnam
- The traditional theatre is an indispensable element in describing the appearance of traditional Vietnamese music. The forms of traditional Vietnamese theatre are mainly practiced by the Kinh ethnic group and some ethnic minorities such as Khơ me and Nùng. Two special forms of traditional theatre with long histories are Tuồng (classical drama) and Chèo (traditional operetta) of the Kinh group. These art forms gather many elements, including literature, painting, music, dance, and drama.Tuồng was born in northern Vietnam and performed in the court, and then followed mandarins to central and southern Vietnam with a new name Hát bội or Hát bộ. Tuồng was perfected and reached its peak in the Central Vietnam from the seventeenth century to the eighteenth century in the Nguyễn dynasty. Tuồng was performed not only in the court but also in common communities and was loved by common people. At the end of the nineteenth century and beginning of the twentieth century, Tuồng still played an important role in the spiritual life of Vietnamese people, especially to the people in central and southern Vietnam. Tuồng was one of a few traditional Vietnamese artistic types, loved by the court and common people.

In its flourishing period, the artists of Tuồng were categorized into two ranks, including Tuồng thầy artists (professinal artists who are knowlegeable and have exemplary performance style) and Tuồng rong artists (semiprofessional artists who lack of knowledge and have seasonal performances, mainly giving impromptu performances in tuồng cường. The system of Tuồng is clearly categorized according to the content such as Tuồng pho (Tuồng with many acts and performed on many nights), Tuồng đồ (Tuồng with content closer to daily life and based on folk stories), and Tuồng tân thời (Tuồng with the stories from new novels). Special Tuồng plays called Tuồng ngự were selected by the Minstry of Rites to be performed for for the king’s enjoyment.

SOUND LIST
1	Cha con Trịnh Ân (A Tuồng excerpt) Performers: Meritorious artist Trương Đình Bôi, Meritorious artist Hoàng Phương Thảo and the artists of the orchestra of Đào Tấn Tuồng Theatre, Bình Định Time of audio-recording: October 27, 1998	13'50"
2	Sa lệch chênh (the Chèo melody) - Solo of the nhị two-string fiddle and the Chèo orchestra Performers: Meritorious artist Minh Nhương (nhị two-string fiddle) Accompaniment orchestra: Nguyễn Xuân Toàn (flute), Bùi Văn Nhân (tam thập lục 36-string zither), Vũ Đình Cương (percussions) Cao Mỗ village, Chương Dương commune, Đông Hưng district, Thái Bình province Time of audio-recording: July 21, 1999	05'51"
3	Sử rầu vào Ba than(the Chèo melody) Performers: People’s artist Ngô Thanh Hoài (singing) Accompanied by the orchestra of the Vietnamese Chèo Theatre: Nguyễn Minh Chí (percussions), Đặng Công Hưng (nguyệt moon-shaped lute), Lê Xuân Diệu (nhị two-string fiddle), Phạm Văn Khải (nhị two-string fiddle and tam three-string lute), Phạm Văn Doanh (sáo flute and tiêu flute), Trần Thu Hiền (bầu monochord) Time of audio-recording: August 5, 1998	05'45"
4	Nhịp đuổi(the Chèo melody) - Solo of the nhị two-string fiddle and the Chèo orchestra Performers: Meritorious artist Minh Nhương (nhị two-string fiddle) Accompaniment orchestra: Nguyễn Xuân Toàn (sáo flute), Bùi Văn Nhân (tam thập lục 36-string zither), Vũ Đình Cương (percussions) Cao Mỗ village, Chương Dương commune, Đông Hưng district, Thái Bình province Time of audio-recording: July 21, 1999	03'35"
5	Ngâm kép rừng (the Tuồng melody) Performers: Nguyễn Nho Túy and the artists of the Tuồng orchestra Time of audio-recording: November, 1963	03'54"
6	Thảm trần tình(the Chèo melody) -Solo of nhị two-string fiddle and the Chèo orchestra Performers: Meritorious artist Minh Nhương (nhị two-string fiddle) Accompaniment orchestra: Nguyễn Xuân Toàn (sáo flute), Bùi Văn Nhân (tam thập lục 36-string zither), Vũ Đình Cương (percussions) Cao Mỗ village, Chương Dương commune, Đông Hưng district, Thái Bình province Time of audio-recording: July 2, 1999	05'33"
7	Sắp mưa ngâu(the Chèo melody) Performers: Khắc Tư (singing) Accompanied by the orchestra of the Vietnamese Chèo Theatre: Nguyễn Minh Chí (percussions), Đặng Công Hưng (nguyệt moon-shaped lute), Lê Xuân Diệu (nhị two-string fiddle), Phạm Văn Khải (nhị two-string fiddle and tam three-string lute), Phạm Văn Doanh (sáo flute and tiêu flute), Trần Thu Hiền (bầu monochord) Time of audio-recording: August 5, 1998	01'20"
8	Ly biệt (the Tuồng melody) -Instrumental ensemble Performers: The artists of orchestra of Đào Tấn Tuồng Theatre, Bình Định Time of audio-recording: October 27, 1998	05'43"
9	Con gà rừng(the Chèo melody) Performers: People’s artist Ngô Thanh Hoài (singing) Accompanied by the orchestra of the Vietnamese Chèo Theatre: Nguyễn Minh Chí (percussions), Đặng Công Hưng (nguyệt moon-shaped lute), Lê Xuân Diệu (nhị two-string fiddle), Phạm Văn Khải (nhị two-string fiddle and tam three-string lute), Phạm Văn Doanh (sáo flute and tiêu flute), Trần Thu Hiền (bầu monochord) Time of audio- recording: August 5, 1998	02'34"