The unique ching kok musical instrument

It's unclear when exactly, but the sound of the ching kok (also known as the frog gong or toad gong) has become widely used by the Ede people in Ninh Tay commune (Ninh Hoa town) during family and village festivals and holidays. According to artisans in Ninh Tay, this type of musical instrument is used exclusively by the Ede people in this area.

A lively sound

Recently, while visiting Ninh Tay, we were fortunate to see Ede artisans perform several traditional musical pieces on the ching kok instrument, including the Y DLơng kok. This piece is commonly used by the people in festivals such as water-worship ceremonies, harvest festivals, ceremonies for bountiful harvests, coming-of-age ceremonies, birthday celebrations, longevity celebrations, ancestor worship, ceremonies for mountain and forest spirits, weddings, funerals, and burial ceremonies. The lively and resonant sounds of the ching kok evoke feelings of joy in the listeners. Mr. Y Hy, Secretary of the Party Committee of Ninh Tay commune and an artisan knowledgeable about ching kok, said that this piece is named after Mr. Y DLơng. According to oral tradition, Mr. Y DLơng was the first person to create this piece for use with the ching kok. However, the exact time period in which this person lived remains unknown.

Artist Y Guanh performs a piece of music from the ching kok ensemble.

Listening to the sounds emanating from the ching kok, we realized that this instrument mimics the sound of the bronze gong (ching k'nah) of the Ede people. The ching kok is a percussion instrument made from wooden bars of varying lengths and thicknesses, each producing sounds with a different pitch range. Each ching kok set consists of six wooden bars, usually from softwoods such as Eucommia ulmoides, mahogany, or acacia.

When performed, the ching kok can be played by multiple people, each holding and striking a wooden stick. The long, short, low, and high notes of the ching kok are controlled by the hands gripping the sticks, sometimes tightly, sometimes loosely. The sounds of each stick blend together, sometimes chasing each other, creating melodies that captivate the listener. If there aren't enough performers, the ching kok are arranged together, similar to the arrangement of the sticks on a xylophone. A single-person ching kok set usually has 6 to 11 sticks, arranged in order of pitch from low to high. Uniquely, a ching kok player can hold four bamboo sticks simultaneously to create chords that sound like a group performing together. “Like bronze gongs, ching kok produces sound from the impact of bamboo (or wooden) mallets against wooden bars to create different rhythmic patterns, resulting in powerful, fast-paced music. The sound of ching kok is crisp, resonant, and lively, suitable for a joyful and entertaining atmosphere, and is often used by the people in the fields or when young men and women drink alcohol in the village or in stilt houses. A proper ching kok performance usually includes a dance troupe to enhance the festive atmosphere,” said artisan Y Guanh (Buon Lac village, Ninh Tay).

Further investigation and research are needed.

Currently, we have not found any documents written about this unique musical instrument. The Ede people in the Central Highlands provinces have a musical instrument similar to the ching kok, called the ching kram (also known as bamboo gong). Although both instruments imitate the sound of bronze gongs, they differ in materials and playing techniques. The ching kok consists of wooden sticks that are struck to produce sound, while the ching kram uses bamboo sticks placed horizontally on bamboo tubes to create resonance and melody when struck. Mr. Y Hy shared: “I have done some research and learned that the ching kok is only used by the Ede people in Ninh Tay. The Ede people in Dak Lak province and Khanh Vinh district are unaware of the ching kok. I heard from the elders that the ching kok existed even before bronze gongs. But these things cannot be verified. Therefore, we very much hope that folk music researchers can come and learn more about the ching kok instrument of the Ede people in Ninh Tay.”

The Ede people in Ninh Tay commune play the ching kok together.

In the lives of the Ede people and some other ethnic groups such as the Raglai, bronze gongs or cymbals hold immense spiritual and economic value. Only families with sufficient means can afford to buy bronze gong sets. For the Ede people who cannot afford bronze gongs, they have devised a way to create ching kok as a substitute, similar to how the Chapi instrument of the Raglai people also mimics the sound of the cymbals.

Currently, the ching kok is still unfamiliar to many people. The information we have is only preliminary and suggestive. Hopefully, in the future, music researchers will take an interest in this instrument. This will allow us to provide the public with the most accurate and scientifically sound information possible.

The Ching kok of the Ede people in Ninh Tay commune consists of five basic pieces: Tong klei krong drai ea, mimicking the sound of a flowing waterfall; Bo yoh, urging people to go to a certain place; klei arai, often played in harmony with the ding nam instrument; klei aduc adei la, played in harmony with dances to express greetings to friends; and kok Y DLong, the most commonly used piece of music during festivals. While the Ede people usually play bronze gongs in their longhouses, sitting on kpan chairs, the Ching kok, due to its compactness and simplicity, is often carried to the fields for performances. At any time, the people can use the Ching kok to play their traditional ethnic music.

GIANG DINH

Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/van-hoa/202311/doc-dao-nhac-cu-ching-kok-4ba3ea8/