Born and developed in the life and religious activities of the Khmer people, many cultural features and folk art forms have gone through the ups and downs of time and have now become unique heritages. However, preserving and promoting Khmer cultural values is facing many difficulties, especially the lack of successor generations, so good methods and adequate support are needed in the face of the increasing risk of extinction.
IDENTIFYING THE RISK OF EXTINCTION
Through the process of creation, inheritance and development, the culture of the Khmer people in Bac Lieu homeland is not only diverse and brilliant but also has extremely unique values. That is clearly shown in the way the Khmer people practice customs and religious rituals during festivals, in culinary culture, costumes, folk art performances, architectural art...
Although formed a long time ago, many cultural features and art forms of ethnic minorities in general and Khmer people in particular are considered to be easily lost and distorted by the trend of Western cultural integration. At traditional festivals in recent times, Khmer people, especially young people, wear less and less traditional costumes, instead wearing Korean and Dubai style clothes... This situation not only comes from the lack of selective reception of new cultures and foreign-oriented ideology of a part of the youth, but also because propaganda work has not been really focused on.
Traditional art forms are also vulnerable to loss when having to struggle and look for a team to shoulder the responsibility of preserving national culture. In recent years, the human resources in professional art units, clubs, and art troupes of Khmer pagodas in the province have begun to age. Many places have tried to gather and attract young people to art troupes, but due to lack of living expenses and poor training quality, activities have been sporadic and ineffective. In particular, many young people, although talented in art, are unable to pursue their passion due to difficult circumstances.
Young people participate in Rom-vong dance in the 2024 Khmer Ooc-om-boc Festival. Photo: HT
DEVELOPING YOUNG "NUCLEARS"
In the village, the fact that Khmer children know how to dance and sing before they know how to read and write is passed down by word of mouth, proving that culture and art have a profound influence on the spiritual life of the people in general, and the young generation in particular. As affirmed by Mr. Thach Do Ni - the Executive Board of the Bac Lieu Khmer Folk Art Club, the youth have never turned their backs on traditional arts, the difficulty in attracting young people to art lies in the problem of gathering and inappropriate training. The proof is that Khmer pagodas in the province have their own art troupes to serve the holidays and New Year of ethnic minorities.
Based on the current situation of easy loss and the need to preserve the traditional culture of ethnic groups, Bac Lieu Folk Arts Association established the Folk Arts Club based on the gathering of members of the pentatonic music team, Robam dance team, and Chhaydam drum team of the new Gia Rai pagoda (Gia Rai town) as a foundation. After more than 6 months of establishment, the Club with the majority of members being young people in the locality has been active, regularly participating in festivals performing pentatonic music, ethnic dance and serving Khmer festivals in the province.
At Dia Chuoi Pagoda (Vinh Binh Commune, Hoa Binh District), many young people and students have created art teams and groups such as: Rom-vong dance group, singing group, Chhay-dam drum team, and music team. Although these are small teams and groups, they are all the enthusiasm of young people to spread the love of cultural identity, contributing to preserving the beauty of the nation.
The establishment of Khmer art teams and groups in the province has initially fostered love and responsibility for preserving the national culture in the next generation. However, due to lack of funding and lack of specialized training, the quality of the teams and groups' activities has not met expectations. Therefore, attention and support in terms of material resources and the development of young human resources from all sectors and levels are extremely necessary for the traditional culture of the Khmer people to sustainably flourish over time.
Long life
Source: https://www.baobaclieu.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/luu-giu-van-hoa-truyen-thong-cua-dong-bao-khmer-vun-dap-tinh-yeu-trach-nhiem-cho-lop%E2%80%8B-ke-thua-99351.html
Comment (0)