This July, audiences who love Vietnamese Ca Tru can enjoy this traditional art form at the Heritage House every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday evening from 8pm to 9pm for 210,000 VND. With the name “Ca Tru – Preserving for future generations”, the Ca Tru works here are performed by artists of the Thang Long Ca Tru Guild; including Ms. Nguyen Thi Chuc (folk artist - singer); Mr. Nguyen Phu De (folk artist - lute player) and Ms. Pham Thi Hue (singer & lute player). The Thang Long Ca Tru Guild is currently the pioneer group in reviving this traditional art form.
Ca Tru is a traditional art form, originally reserved for the nobility, recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity a few years ago. Ms. Pham Thi Hue, Head of the Thang Long Ca Tru Guild, said that the audience for the performances are mainly tourists. Although the performance space at 87 Ma May is quite small, there are performances with 30-40 audiences. At the same time, local travel companies have quickly included Ca Tru in tours of the old town. Thanks to that, the number of visitors to the performances has gradually increased.
A ca tru performance usually lasts about an hour. In addition to enjoying the art, the audience is also introduced to ca tru musical instruments, ca tru poetry and ca tru cultural activities in both English and Vietnamese. The audience also has the opportunity to interact with the singers and the performers. Many international guests, after listening to the performance, expressed their admiration for the cultural activities, the techniques of breathing, releasing the voice, pausing the beat, and the techniques of the Dan Day instrument of the artists.
The singing voice of the singer, the sound of the cymbals and the deep sound of the stone zither in the ancient space will certainly make this place an interesting destination not only for tourists but also for young people who are passionate about traditional culture and art.
