Artist born in the village
Born and raised in the low-lying village of Trung Lap, Tri Trung commune, now Hong Minh commune (Phu Xuyen district) - where the Cheo melody has echoed since ancient times, Ms. Le Thi Nhue Phai soon became attached to the singing of her hometown at the age of 13. At that time, due to the war, the provincial and central art troupes and Cheo troupes evacuated to the locality to operate. At the age of 15, she officially joined the commune's art troupe, marking her journey of being attached to Cheo as a passion that is hard to break... At that time, there were no formal schools, with her sensitive ears and simple love for Cheo, Ms. Phai learned from the "village artists" and cultural officers of Ha Son Binh province who came to the locality to build a mass cultural movement. In 1969, she was fortunate to attend a short-term supplementary training course on Cheo directing for non-professional artists organized by the province, from which her singing voice and understanding of Cheo became increasingly profound and skillful.
For Mrs. Phai, Cheo is not only a passion but also her blood and lifeblood. Even when she got married, her life was busy, her husband was in the army, she raised three children alone, took care of her elderly parents and participated in local work, she never left the song. There were times when she had to carry her child and the nanny and travel dozens of kilometers, the road was difficult to travel to perform. Even when she was 7 months pregnant with her first child, she still confidently stood on stage, absorbed in the Cheo melodies...
Over the past decades, not only has she been a performing artist, Ms. Le Thi Nhue Phai has also been a talented "general director", directly staging 41 skits, ca canh, cheo long plays... performed during festivals and important days of her homeland. In addition, she has edited, restored, and staged hundreds of excerpts from ancient cheo plays, preserving the soul of traditional cheo art. Over the decades, she has taught the art of cheo singing to countless generations of local and neighboring people. Currently, despite her advanced age (75 years old), she is still tirelessly teaching for free to 47 students from many different cheo clubs. She has a deep wish that the ancient, rustic cheo melodies will forever be preserved and resonate into the future.
With her guidance and inspiration, the Cheo singing club of Trung Lap village, Hong Minh commune is always vibrant, with a "core" team in the mass cultural and artistic programs of Phu Xuyen district and Hanoi city. Ms. Le Thi Nhue Phai also actively participates in many large cultural and artistic organizations, such as: The People's Cultural and Art Association of the Voice of Vietnam , the Folk Music Lovers Club of the Vietnam - Soviet Union Friendship Cultural Palace...
A lifetime of passion...
Along with gold and silver medals from provincial and city performance competitions, she was also awarded many noble titles: Meritorious Artist, Folk Artist, Medal for the Cause of Mass Culture, Second Class Resistance Medal, Medal for the Cause of Liberation... These awards recognize her talent and demonstrate her lifelong commitment to her hometown's culture.
Continuing the tradition, Mrs. Phai's eldest daughter (currently a teacher) also became a core member of the Trung Lap Village Cheo Singing Club. Although the other members do not participate in the Cheo clubs, she has taught them ancient Cheo singing. "I have taught many people, although not all of them follow the Cheo stage, but I believe that if anyone is imbued with folk culture, they will soon "bear fruit" when conditions are favorable," Mrs. Phai confided.
When mentioning her, the people of Hong Minh not only admire her, but also love and cherish her. Outside the splendid stage, Mrs. Phai is a gentle, hard-working woman, who takes care of her housework and is loyal to her village. Sharing about the respected "teacher", Vice President of the Cheo Club of Trung Lap village, Hong Minh commune, Dao Thi Thom, emotionally said: "Not only teaching us each song and each melody, Mrs. Phai is also the general director of many large and small Cheo plays. Above all, she teaches us how to love and cherish each lyric and word as if preserving the soul of the homeland. She always reminds us that singing Cheo is not only a performance, but also a way to preserve the soul of the homeland. Every time she sings, it brings us back to the bustling village festivals, motivating us to preserve and build the club stronger and stronger, worthy of being the "cradle" of the ancient Cheo melodies of our homeland, Phu Xuyen.
Commenting on folk artist Le Thi Nhue Phai, Head of the Department of Culture - Information and Science of Phu Xuyen district Nguyen Xuan Quynh said that Ms. Phai is one of the non-professional artists, but extremely special in her hometown Phu Xuyen. She is a shining example of "keeping the fire" for the folk culture movement - an important source in the spiritual life of Phu Xuyen people in particular and the Vietnamese people in general... "Culture is the identity of a nation, if culture exists, the nation exists, if culture is lost, the nation is lost" - The teaching of the late General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong proves that the source of national culture has been and is contributing to building an advanced Vietnam with a strong national identity in the new era, in which there is a great contribution of many folk artists such as Ms. Le Thi Nhue Phai...
Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/nu-dai-thu-cua-lan-dieu-cheo-o-phu-xuyen-699101.html
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