Come listen to the drums of the Hoang Phu royal court festival

No one knows when the sound of the royal drum appeared in Hoang Phu (Hoang Hoa), but today in all big and small events of the village, commune, in cultural and artistic activities... the sound of drums of folk artists, who have devoted their whole lives to preserving and promoting the beauty of traditional culture, always resounds.

About listening to the drums of the Hoang Phu royal court festival Hoang Phu Royal Drum Club performs at the village festival. Photo: Van Anh

Phu Khe village belongs to two communes, Hoang Phu and Hoang Quy (Hoang Hoa). Phu Khe communal house was recognized as a national historical, cultural, architectural and artistic relic in 1992. Here, every year in the second lunar month, is the place where the Ky Phuc Festival takes place, the biggest festival of the village, which has been maintained for hundreds of years. Phu Khe village festival is famous for the art of royal drums. The drum sound has been passed down for hundreds of years, once resounded during the 1000th anniversary of Thang Long - Hanoi and continues to resonate to this day, present in all important cultural activities and events of the district and commune.

To maintain and develop the art of royal drums, in 2004, Hoang Phu commune established the Hoang Phu Royal Drum Club. From 19 initial members, the club has now grown to 40 people, with 20 years of experience. The difference, also a good sign, is that the Hoang Phu Royal Drum Club gathers both the elderly and the young, which is a rare thing in traditional art clubs. That shows that traditional art always has a strong attraction for everyone, regardless of age, just need to be nurtured with love and the pioneers to arouse the enthusiasm of passion and responsibility.

One of the pioneers who spared no effort, money and devoted most of his life to restoring and preserving the art of royal drums was Meritorious Artisan Le Minh Triet, the club's first generation director and the one who made great contributions when the club was founded. Born into a family where no one was involved in art, Mr. Triet admitted that he had no talent for traditional arts. But since his youth, Mr. Triet loved to go to village festivals. While his peers were attracted by the vibrant and colorful performances, Mr. Triet focused his attention on the festival drum performance. He felt the excitement of the festival starting with the urging sound of the drum. He knew that "the sound of the drum is like the soul leading the festival", from there, he researched, studied and learned to play the drum. He loved the art of royal drums, an art that had appeared for a long time in the village, the drum sound that people heard most "familiarly". When he grew up, Mr. Triet had a treasure trove of knowledge about royal drums, could play all types of drums skillfully, and knew how to play all drum pieces.

Before 2004, traditional arts, including royal drums, had no place to perform in the village, and no one followed the profession. Seeing that sad situation, Mr. Triet sought out families who still knew the craft and were fond of drums to mobilize and establish a club. In the beginning, when the club was still lacking funds and confidence in its activities, Mr. Triet was the one who spent a lot of effort, enthusiasm and money, determined to maintain the club. After 20 years of preserving and promoting it, he can now proudly boast: “In this land, every spring, everyone eagerly looks forward to the Ky Phuc festival in January every year. It is not only an occasion to remember and show gratitude to the person who founded this place, an occasion for people in the region to gather, go on spring outings, and have fun with the wish for a year of peace and prosperity, but also an occasion for the village to listen to royal drums and watch the artists perform.” Confirming his words, he told us: “One day, just follow the procession and the drumbeats, you will be overwhelmed by the festival atmosphere. Normally, this place is quiet, most of the villagers work far away, only returning during Tet and festivals. Just wait for the drumbeats to sound, everyone will gather, the quintessence of this land will awaken and show its beauty.”

Mr. Triet's enthusiasm attracted many young people to learn drums and become members of the club. Mr. Le Van Huan, one of the young artists, although only 32 years old, has played the drum skillfully and has mastered many royal drum songs. He said: "To play the drum well, you have to practice diligently. There are many sets of drums and many songs, each song has a different meaning and way of playing, besides that, there is a way to perform, to show skillful and smooth movements in harmony."

A drum performance at the village communal house usually has 25 participants, and in large festivals with large performance spaces, the number of performers is up to 35 - 40 people. The traditional costume is that men wear red ceremonial clothes, women wear four-panel shirts, and turbans. The royal drum used in village communal house ceremonies includes 11 pieces such as: procession drum, welcome drum, peace drum, chinh khung drum, drum of drumstick dance, drum of worship, drum of solemnity, three solemnity... During the performance, the artists not only play the drum but also combine many beautiful movements such as drumstick dance, turning around, changing drum position, making the royal drum not only have a sound but also an attractive choreography that attracts viewers. The drum piece that the club artists often perform is 18 beats in the procession drum piece. The festival drum uses a variety of drums such as: bong drum, ban drum, cai drum...

The sound of the royal drums of Hoang Phu commune has now resounded far and wide, spreading to many other localities in the province. Many places have established village drum clubs and invited Meritorious Artist Le Minh Triet to teach. Talking about this joy, Mr. Triet said: "Up to now, I wish for nothing more than for more and more students, young people to know and study traditional arts, because that is the cultural quintessence of the nation. And we are always ready to contribute and teach."

Van Anh

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