1. As a tour guide, Y Thien Adrong (35 years old, Akô Dhông village, Buon Ma Thuot city) has chosen a novel and creative approach by spreading the sounds of gongs and drums through social media. For nearly 8 years, he has become a bridge between technology and cultural heritage, contributing to the dissemination of the beauty of gong culture to the community.
In 2017, after living and working in Ho Chi Minh City for some time, Y Thien decided to return to Dak Lak. With a deep love for his ethnic culture, he began posting videos , images, and articles about Ede culture on his personal Facebook account. These simple, unpretentious shares quickly received great attention from the community...
Through social media, he connected with many culture enthusiasts both domestically and internationally. Many tourists and travel companies sought him out as a local guide to witness firsthand the resounding gongs in the mountains and immerse themselves in the life and customs of the Ede people through hands-on experiences.
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| Thanks to a social media post by Y Thien Adrong (pictured on the far left) , many tourists have come to experience the culture and life of the Ede people. |
Not stopping there, he expanded his media channels on the TikTok platform and continued to share short videos about festivals, traditional music , and the daily lives of the people of the Central Highlands. The combination of modern technology and traditional culture has helped him spread the image of gongs closer to young people.
Y Thien shared: “Currently, many artisans are elderly, while the younger generation hasn't really shown interest in gongs in particular and traditional Ede ethnic musical instruments in general. I fear that one day, these sounds will fall into oblivion. Therefore, I want to preserve and share the images, sounds, and stories so that future generations will have something to learn and understand.”
In 2023, he and a friend founded a website called Sap Rje with the desire to preserve, conserve, and sustainably develop traditional musical instruments. Sap Rje specializes in manufacturing, servicing, repairing, and restoring traditional musical instruments such as gongs and t'rưng (a type of lute); and organizing themed performances and cultural events for tourist groups. Y Thien plans to develop and connect his YouTube channel, which shares many videos about festivals, traditional instrument performers, and the journey of exploring the cultural identity, with this website to help people more easily access the culture of the Ede people.
2. Since September 2024, a group of students including Trao Nhat Hang, Luu Vuong Khanh Ha, Luong Nhat Thi, and Cao Hoang Anh (Multimedia Communication Management major, FPT University Ho Chi Minh City) have initiated a project called "Gong Coordinates". This project applies digital technology to preserve the Gong Culture Space of the Central Highlands.
Trảo Nhật Hằng, the project manager, shared: “In the early stages of researching and implementing the plan, we faced many difficulties in finding artisans and materials about the heritage. The team's efforts were rewarded when we met some special individuals, including music researcher Bùi Trọng Hiền, who supported the team with a collection of ancient gong pieces that he and his colleagues had compiled.”
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| Young people are listening to digitized versions of ancient gong music. Photo provided by the subject. |
To date, the project has achieved significant milestones, including the launch of a digitized collection of 40 ancient gong pieces, the completion of a digitized heritage collection comprising 10 3D gong models inspired by 5 ancient gong sets currently on display at museums in Gia Lai and Dak Lak provinces. In addition, the project collaborated with the Student Affairs Office of FPT University Ho Chi Minh City to organize the "Homeland's Melodies" exhibition of traditional musical instruments, announced the digitized heritage collection, and exhibited traditional ethnic costumes.
The highlight of the project is the "Gong Night" music event, held in collaboration with the Young City Festival and the Thu Duc City Youth Union. This event brings together traditional values and modern creativity, giving the public, especially young people, the opportunity to experience and appreciate the richness of the Central Highlands Gong Culture through performances combining gong music, electronic music, and visual arts.
What started as a graduation project didn't stop there. The project team, along with young people passionate about digital design and music, incorporated inspiration from the Central Highlands Gong Culture Space into their design and music products to spread it widely to everyone.
Source: https://baodaklak.vn/van-hoa-du-lich-van-hoc-nghe-thuat/202505/danh-thuc-nhip-chieng-bang-cong-nghe-14c16c5/
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