Preserving the Ta Lu zither

QTO - Until now, Mr. Ho Van Viet in Vuc Leng village, Ta Rut commune, is still full of worries and concerns about whether the Ta Lu instrument and other traditional musical instruments that make up the "soul" of the Bru-Van Kieu and Pa Ko ethnic groups will be lost over time. Will the Ta Lu instrument continue to be maintained to accompany time like the beautiful lyrics in the song "The green forest echoes the sound of Ta Lu" (Musician Phuong Nam): "The instrument follows us through streams and streams, through fields and through many forests/The instrument follows us to fight the Americans day and night, in the green forest echoes thousands of songs...".

Mr. Ho Van Viet said, through learning from the elders, the original Ta Lu instrument was made of bamboo tubes and had only one string. Over many generations, Ta Lu artists have modified and improved the Ta Lu instrument to gradually perfect it with 3 strings and can accompany most of the Bru-Van Kieu and Pa Ko folk songs such as: Ca Loi-Cha Chap, Xieng, A Un, Caraun, Terate'k, Ra Zok, Caracadoi, T'rel...

Mr. Ho Van Viet "fell in love" with the profession of making Ta Lu instruments around 2007. That year, Vuc Leng village held the Aya festival (season festival), many artisans playing traditional musical instruments of the Bru-Van Kieu and Pa Ko ethnic groups in other villages and hamlets brought their instruments to play music to entertain Vuc Leng village.

Among the traditional musical instruments used in the Aya festival of Vuc Leng village, Mr. Ho Van Viet was strongly impressed with the Ta Lu instrument. After the festival, Mr. Ho Van Viet proactively sought out Ta Lu instrument makers in many villages to learn how to make instruments, and also learned how to play the Ta Lu instrument as well as many Bru-Van Kieu and Pa Ko folk songs from Meritorious Artisan Kray Suc.

Mr. Ho Van Viet makes Ta Lu lute - Photo: SH

According to Mr. Ho Van Viet, to make a standard Ta Lu instrument, the first step is to choose the material to make the instrument. The material to make the Ta Lu instrument today is mainly jackfruit wood. After being cut down, the jackfruit wood will be sawed into pieces about 1 meter long by the instrument-making artisans, then dried for 1-2 months. When the jackfruit wood is dry, it is time to carve it into the shape of the Ta Lu instrument.

The Ta Lu is about 70cm long; the neck connecting to the body is about 40cm; at the end of the neck is a sound amplifier part that is beveled into the shape of a closed hand to catch a drop of water about to fall and has sound adjustment pins attached.

In addition to the traditional Ta Lu with 2 and 3 strings, Mr. Ho Van Viet has now modified and created a 4-string Ta Lu that can accompany all Bru-Van Kieu and Pa Ko folk songs as well as contemporary songs... with frames of many different sizes. The Ta Lu strings are now used with guitar strings.

Of all the stages of making the Ta Lu, the most difficult is still the stage of arranging the keys to get the right sound. Because at this stage, the craftsman making the Ta Lu must be familiar with folk melodies to be able to place the keys in the right position, so that the sound of the instrument is not "out of tune".

It is known that from 2007 to now, Mr. Ho Van Viet has personally made more than 400 Ta Lu instruments. Many Ta Lu instruments made by Mr. Ho Van Viet have contributed to the bustling, joyful sounds in many festivals of villages in Ta Rut and La Lay communes... Mr. Ho Van Viet always hopes that the relevant agencies will have solutions to maintain and develop the traditional Ta Lu instrument making profession that his ancestors have passed down...

  Sy Hoang

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/van-hoa/202512/luu-giu-cay-dan-ta-lu-6554264/