The Echoes of Kon Tum Stone Xylophone

The stone xylophone is the oldest percussion instrument in Vietnam and one of the most primitive musical instruments of humankind. It has been included by UNESCO in the list of instruments within the "Gong Culture Space of the Central Highlands" that need to be preserved. When listening to the stone xylophone, one can feel the sound sometimes like the deep, majestic echoes of the mountains and forests, and sometimes like the sound of a flowing stream. The sound of the stone xylophone seems to speak volumes, sharing joys and comforting sorrows in the lives of the local people.

Distinguished artisan A Huynh performs on the stone xylophone.

Although a primitive ancient musical instrument, the crafting of stone xylophones is considered a difficult technique, known to few. Therefore, the number of people who know how to craft stone xylophones in the Central Highlands today is not large, if not very rare. For over 20 years, Master Craftsman A Huynh, a Gia Rai ethnic minority from Chot village, Sa Thay town, Sa Thay district, Kon Tum province, has been diligently searching through countless stone slabs to create sets of stone xylophones with unique sounds.

According to A Huynh, the stone xylophone usually has 3 to 15 bars of varying lengths, thicknesses, and shapes; they are carved, but the stone bars essentially retain their natural, rustic appearance. Long, large, and thick bars produce a low pitch; short, small, and thin bars produce a high pitch. In the high pitch, the sound of the stone xylophone is clear and distant; in the low pitch, it resonates like an echo from a cliff. Ancient people believed that the sound of the stone xylophone was a means of connecting the spiritual realm with the earthly realm, between humans and heaven and earth, between gods and spirits, and between the present and the past.

Based on the standard scale of ancient gongs , the stone xylophone initially consisted of seven stone bars, each representing a musical note corresponding to the notes in the gong scale. Building upon these basic notes, stone xylophone artisans gradually added more stone slabs, each corresponding to a different note, enriching the melodies and developing the instrument to include up to 15 stone bars.

Following A Huynh to the Ya Lan stream, we witnessed his nimble hands picking up stones from the stream bank, tapping them with a small hammer, producing clear, crisp sounds. It was hard to imagine these stones becoming musical instruments. A Huynh recounted that, since childhood, when he accompanied his father to the stream to arrange stones to prevent erosion of the fields, he heard strange sounds emanating from the stones on the bank. He tried tapping the stones and was surprised by the sounds they produced. He continued this process, trying one stone after another, each producing a different sound. Curious and fascinated, he decided to find suitable stones and began crafting sets of stone xylophones. “To make a xylophone, you have to choose stones that produce a sound first. Then you cut and shape them, adjusting the length to create the different pitches,” A Huynh shared.

Each stone typically produces a different sound, but through the exceptional ears of the artisans, they know which stones are suitable for the stone xylophone; only then do they adjust the stones brought back. The methods of chiseling, shaping, and carving these stones are quite sophisticated and refined. These seemingly lifeless, rough stones have been transformed by artisans into unique musical instruments that produce sounds like echoes from the vast Tây Nguyên (Central Highlands) forests. The sound of the stone xylophone serves as a narrative, a source of comfort, reflecting the joys and sorrows of the local people's lives.

As evening falls, sitting by A Huynh's communal house with its many traditional musical instruments, it's delightful to hear the soaring sound of his stone xylophone, with melodies of familiar ancient folk songs of the Gia Rai people, or revolutionary songs that are sometimes soaring, sometimes majestic like the vast forest. To prevent the stone xylophone from disappearing, A Huynh also shares his passion with the younger generation in his village during festivals and in his free time.

Source: https://baodaknong.vn/am-vang-dan-da-kon-tum-229002.html