The magical love song of the Raglai people.

The sound of the stone xylophone echoes throughout the mountains and forests, playing melodies with the many emotional nuances of the Raglai people. Listening to it, one can sense the swirling clouds and blowing wind; the intense longing and affection. A myriad of sounds from the mountains and streams blend into an echo from the distant past of the highlands…

The Khánh Sơn stone xylophone area. (Photo by Nhuận Vỹ)

In the mountainous region of Khánh Sơn, Khánh Hòa province, there are resonant stones, which the Raglai people simply call goong lu or khánh đá, scientifically known as Rhyolite. Since ancient times, the Raglai people have used the sounds produced by these stones to protect their fields and villages by arranging stones with small hammers attached to them in streams. The force of the flowing water causes the hammers to strike the stones, producing sounds. The Raglai people crafted these stone musical instruments.

Mr. Mau Quoc Tien, a researcher of Raglai ethnic folklore, affirms: As the "sacred soul" of the Raglai people, the stone xylophone is always the first instrument played during important Raglai festivals.

According to researchers, the scale of the Khánh Sơn stone xylophone mimics the pitch of folk songs. Long, large, and thick stone bars have a low pitch range; short, small, and thin stone bars have a high pitch range. Stone xylophone artisan Bo Bo Hung says that each stone bar has its own mood. It seems he wants to say that stones also have feelings and souls.

The sound of the stones, following a unique scale, captivates the heart like the simple yet profound epic poems of the Raglai people, Akhàt Jucar. Listening to it, one can sense the swirling clouds and blowing winds; the intense longing and affection. A myriad of sounds from the mountains and valleys blend into a deep, echoing voice from time immemorial, from the distant past of the mountains…

As the "sacred soul" of the Raglai people, the stone xylophone is always the first instrument played during important Raglai festivals.

Mr. Mau Quoc Tien, researcher of Raglai ethnic folklore

Evening falls. The To Hap River flows dreamily in the mist. On the bank, amidst the tranquil mountains and forests, I hear the melodious sound of the stone xylophone playing the tune "Sing Along with Me, My Musician" by composer Bang Linh. Mau Quoc Tien hums along to the lyrics: "...Oh, stone xylophone of Khanh Son / Oh, stone xylophone of Vietnam / The sound of a thousand years ago echoes..."

"That voice belongs only to Bo Bo Hung!", Mau Quoc Tien asserted, like a close friend.

Where are you, that the sound of the stone xylophone seems so close? The high notes are clear and melodious, like the sound of a stream flowing through the vast forest. The low notes are like the mountains and forests stirring from the rain, shaking trees, and crumbling rocks. I hear the sound of the stones as a symphony of swirling wind, drifting clouds, flowing water, and falling wood, like the breath of the vast forest from countless years. Your stone xylophone echoes throughout the mountains and forests, calling the mountain spirits, forest spirits, and ancestors to awaken and celebrate the new rice harvest with the Raglai people. The stones seem to know how to weep and laugh with Bo Bo Hung.

I have heard many times People's Artist Do Loc perform on the stone xylophone with pieces such as: "Spring in Ho Chi Minh City," "The Girl Sharpening Bamboo Stakes," "Greeting the Rising Sun," etc. The sound is so clear and captivating, even the low notes. On one occasion, listening to the stone xylophone, the late Professor and Doctor Tran Van Khe felt that the stone xylophone "expresses emotions just like a human being"; at the same time, he affirmed that no country in the world possesses two types of prehistoric musical instruments with such profound cultural, artistic, and philosophical significance as the bronze drum and the stone xylophone of Vietnam.

Listening to the two young artisans Tro Thi Nhung and Bo Bo Thi Thu Trang perform a duet on the stone xylophone, I was extremely surprised. Their performance included many subtle melodic runs that I had previously only seen on guitars, pianos, and violins. Now, besides singing Raglai folk songs, the stone xylophone can also be used in ensembles with other instruments such as the ma la, tale piloi flute, and gourd horn… or it can even produce the melodious sounds of bells on New Year's Eve in Western music like "Happy New Year…"

According to the collection of musician Nguyen Phuong Dong, former Director of the Khanh Hoa Provincial Cultural Center, the first set of stone xylophones found in Vietnam, called Ndut Lieng Krak, was unearthed in Dak Lak in 1949 by French ethnologist Georges Condominas. Ndut Lieng Krak was taken to France for research and is currently on display at the Museé de l'Homme in Paris.

The set of 12 stone xylophones, considered representative of Vietnam, with varying sizes, shapes, and sounds, was hidden by the Bo Bo Ren family at Doc Gao Mountain, in Trung Hap commune, Khanh Son district (formerly), Khanh Hoa province. Despite the fierce war, the family was determined to preserve this precious set of stone xylophones. Archaeologists concluded that this is a set of stone xylophones belonging to the Raglai ethnic group, dating back 2,000-5,000 years. In 1979, Vietnam officially announced to the world the discovery of the Khanh Son stone xylophones, an ancient musical instrument of exceptional historical, cultural, and artistic value to the nation.

Composer Nguyen Phuong Dong recounted that in 1979, upon discovering the Khanh Son stone xylophone, he, along with artists Hai Duong and People's Artist Do Loc, were assigned to practice and perform for the Ministry of Culture and Information. Later, Khanh Hoa province established a folk music and dance troupe. Composer Nguyen Phuong Dong was appointed deputy head of the troupe, and he began his journey to find the "singing" stones to craft the stone xylophone for performance. According to him, the Khanh Son stone xylophone is mainly made from Rhyolite Porphyre stone, which has the best sound found in the Doc Gao area, hence its distinctiveness compared to stone xylophones from other places.

According to documents from the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Khanh Hoa province, in 1979, after the announcement to the world about the two sets of Khanh Son stone xylophones, on March 16, 1979, Mr. Mai Duong, then Chairman of the People's Committee of Phu Khanh province, handed over the two sets of stone xylophones to musician Luu Huu Phuoc, Director of the Vietnam Institute of Music Research and Chairman of the Khanh Son Stone Xylophone Scientific Council, for research. Units under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism took these two sets of stone xylophones to introduce and perform domestically and internationally, attracting the attention of the scientific research community.

According to the collection of musician Nguyen Phuong Dong, former Director of the Khanh Hoa Provincial Cultural Center, the first set of stone xylophones found in Vietnam was called Ndut Lieng Krak, unearthed in Dak Lak in 1949 by the French ethnologist Georges Condominas.

In 2020, the People's Committee of Khanh Son district undertook the restoration of three original Raglai people's water stone xylophone systems; placing them in natural waterways in Doc Gao (To Hap town); Ba Cum Nam commune and Thanh Son commune; and commissioned musician Nguyen Phuong Dong to create 10 sets of stone xylophones for performances.

At that time, the Chairman of the People's Committee of Khanh Son District, Nguyen Van Nhuan, shared: "We are determined to preserve and promote the traditional music of the Raglai ethnic group. Based on preservation, the locality will inherit and promote the value of the Khanh Son stone xylophone in particular and the culture of the Raglai people in general to serve the development of local tourism in the future."

On March 27, 2023, at the headquarters of the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts, under the Vietnam National Institute of Culture and Arts, the two aforementioned stone xylophones were handed over to Khanh Hoa province. On January 18, 2024, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 73/QD-TTg recognizing the Khanh Son stone xylophones as a national treasure.

The stone xylophone is a treasure, the sacred soul of the Raglai people. However, nowadays, not many young Raglai people are passionate about it. Proof of this is that the number of people who know how to craft and play the Khánh Sơn stone xylophone can now be counted on the fingers of one hand. Remarkably, there are still people like Mr. Bo Bo Hung, who are passionate about the sound of the stone xylophone and enthusiastically pass on the flame of their traditional music to young Raglai men and women.

This morning, Bo Bo Hung woke up early. He roused us with the clear melodies of the stone xylophone. The mountains and forests were still drowsy in the mist. In the lingering afterglow of last night's tapai rice wine, I dreamily listened to the sounds of the stones and mountains echoing far and wide, magical like the poetic and emotional love songs of the Raglai people.

PHONG NGUYEN

Source: https://nhandan.vn/nhiem-mau-khuc-tu-tinh-raglai-post923246.html