The soul of thousands in the Khoi-lui flute
In the traditional costume of the Bru-Van Kieu people, the old man of Ho Ai village appeared in Khe Cat village (Truong Son commune, Quang Tri province) as part of the soul of the great city. The gray hair, the skin is dark and sunny, the warm voice of the elderly blends with the sound of the Kho-lui flute, the sound that has been with him all his life.
The old man Ho Ai was born and raised in Truong Son, where the sound of the wind and the sound of birds blends into an endless song. Kho-lui sticky rice tree, a symbol of the Bru-Van Kieu people, travels everywhere: Up and down the village, to village festivals. The old flute is both a story and the breath of the mountains and forests.
When I was young, I followed my father into the forest to hear the sounds of birds and the wind. His father said that the sound was the voice of the Jiaang (the sacred thing). When I grew up, I learned to blow the whistle to say that I would replace people's hearts with heaven and earth," the old man said, his eyes lit up with pride.
In the midst of the burning fire in the stilt house, old man Ho Ai sang the Si-nhip, the epic of the Bru-Van Kieu people. The voice of the elderly includes the sound of ripe streams, the sound of rain in the forest and the nostalgia for the ripe rice seasons. It is not just a song, but a treasure trove of folk knowledge that he has preserved for decades.
For Bru-Van Kieu people in Truong Son, the old Ho Ai is not only an artisan, but a "sacred pillar" connecting the past with the present. He understood every ritual, every dance, every gong sound. Every time the village has a big festival, a rice festival (fill the gap), a new rice celebration or a seasoning festival, the old man Ho Ai is often invited to be the host of the festival.
During holidays, the elderly stand in the middle of the village yard, raising their hands and vowing in front of the idol altar. The answer in Bru resounds in the middle of the mountains and forests, expressing gratitude to the earth and sky for giving you favorable weather and a good harvest. After the ceremony, there was a bustling gong sound, a dance revolving around the fire, symbolizing the warmth and unity of the village.
The old saying: "Every ritual, every gong is the soul of the Bru-Van Kieu people. If no one held it, it would disappear like a wave of smoke flying into the sky. Therefore, despite his old age, he still persistently teaches children to blow the flute, play gongs, and sing folk songs.
Not only is he the "music teacher" of the village, the old man Ho Ai is also the one who manufactures and teaches how to make traditional items such as bows, baskets, plastic weapons, musical instruments... "clouds, bamboo, wood are all gifts of the forest. I teach my children and grandchildren how to do it to keep their job, he laughed gently.
According to Vice Chairman of Truong Son Commune People's Committee Hoang Trong Duc, old man Ho Ai is a special person in the Bru-Van Kieu community. He not only preserves but also revives the ancient cultural treasure trove. Partly thanks to him, the rice festival of the people has been recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage.
Holding the fire in the midst of a thousand
The stilt house of the old man Ho Ai is nestled on the edge of the mountain, where the sound of the wind blends with the sound of the flute every afternoon. From here, many young generations of Bru-Van Kieu have learned their first lessons about folk music and the cultural pride of their nation.
The old man often said: "identity is breath. Losing it is losing yourself". That belief urged him to establish traditional music classes right in Khe Cat village and neighboring villages. The elderly's students include the elderly, young people, and even children under ten years old.
"At first, I had to go to each house to mobilize, just hoping that they would fall in love with the flute and gongs of their ancestors. Teaching is very difficult, just word of mouth. It takes perseverance, some students can study for a whole month to blow the right sound, the old man said, still rotating the flute with his hands.
After many years of hard work, the results have come. More and more young people in Truong Son know how to blow Pi flute, play Polsat, and dance Tao Dai. Those sounds are echoed during festivals, in classrooms, and even on community tours that the commune is developing.
In 2018, the Vietnam Folk Arts Association awarded the title of People's Artist to the actor Ho Ai in the field of folk singing and using traditional musical instruments. But for him, the biggest reward was to see the younger generation singing Si-lin, playing gongs and bowing before the Giang altar.
Recently, Gia and other artisans in the province have represented Quang Binh (old) to attend national folk music festivals, introducing Bru-Van Kieu music to domestic and foreign friends. I did not expect that there would be a day when the Khoi-lui flute would resound on a large stage, in the midst of bright lights, he said emotionally.
Old man Ho Ai still remembers as his father told him when he was young: "The sound of the mountains and forests will never be extinguished". Now, he keeps that promise with all his heart.
Music is the way I talk to my ancestors, to Giang, to this mountain and forest. I hope that when I am no longer there, that whistle will still have someone to continue, the coach said.
On the majestic Truong Son range, where the fog covers everything morning, Khe Cat village still echoes the flute of old man Ho Ai. The people here consider him as the "soul of the village", a bridge between humans and earth and sky.
The knowledge of folk culture that he preserves is not only in rituals or music, but also in every way of thinking and teaching about life ethics: Kinh Giang, love people, love for the forest, and cherish the land.
Now, the young people in the village know how to organize festivals, make musical instruments themselves and teach each other to sing Si-nhip and Ta-oai songs. They still mention the old man Ho Ai with gratitude and respect.
Amidst the echoes of the mountains and forests, the Khoi-lui flute of the old Ho Ai is still burning, sometimes like a flute, sometimes like a call. It carries the breath of the mother country, carrying the soul of Bru-Van Kieu people over time, like a river that still flows through many seasons of forests changing leaves.
The old man said, in the afternoon smoke: "As long as there is the flute, there is the singing, as long as there are still Bru-Van Kieu people living with the great Truong Son".
