Sang Co singing- A heritage resonates in the hearts of San Chay ethnic people

Sang Co singing echoes endlessly throughout the mountains and forests.

The San Chay ethnic people possess a rich culture with many unique customs and practices. Traditional festivals and sweet folk songs serve as a vivid evidence of rich spiritual life and artistic creativity of this community. The most typical and unique of these is the art of Sang Co singing - a cultural feature closely associated with the life of the San Chay community.

Sang Co, in San Chay language, means love song, a type of lyrical folk song has been passed down through many generations. Lyrics of dialogues between men and women were often shown in a form of seven-word quatrain, has been passed down in oral form or in ancient Chinese characters. Sang Co singing is not only a form of folk cultural activity, but also expresses the spirit, intelligence and identity of the San Chay ethnic people. The way of singing follows certain rules and regulations. Even without the use of musical instruments, Sang Co melodies still resonate smoothly, naturally, and have the power to move people's hearts.

Members of Sang Co Singing Cultural Preservation Club gather in the stilt house of Ms. Hoang Thi Hang's family

In Phu Luong district, the art of singing Sang Co is a unique intangible culture that has been preserved and taught by generations of San Chay ethnic people in oral and direct form until today. This type of folk song is still maintained in the daily spiritual activities of the local people. The Sang Co Singing not only presents artistic value but also contains profound educational meaning about our tradition of "When you drink the water, remember the man who dug the wel", solidarity and community cohesion. This performing art with rustic melodies, simple and easy-to-understand lyrics, clearly shows the characteristics of ethnic minorities in the mountainous region, contributes to helping people balance their souls and emotions in life. Thanks to these unique cultural values, Sang Co singing of the San Chay ethnic  people in Phu Luong district was named in the List of National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism under a Decision No. 246/QD-BVHTTDL dated January 19, 2016.

Expressing the significance of Sang Co singing, Ms. Pham Thi Lan Anh, Department of Culture, Science and Information of Phu Luong district said: “Sang Co singing not only educates the tradition for future generations, evokes national pride but also encourages solidarity, and contributes to  building cultural life at the grassroots level. The Phu Luong district is gradually turning this art into a unique cultural product, serving tourists to visit, enjoy.”

We visited the stilt house of Ms. Hoang Thi Hang's family (born in 1962) in Dong Tien hamlet, Yen Lac commune, Phu Luong district. When all members of the Sang Co Singing Cultural Preservation Club gathered, the meeting began with simple, rustic folk songs with full of sweetness and depth. The Sang Co Singing Cultural Preservation Club was formed by the local people of Yen Lac commune in 2017 and consists of 20 members; all of whom are San Chay ethnic people, including the elderly and young people, aged 15 to 70. Immediately after its introduction, the members proactively sought out the elders in the village to collect and record ancient songs that are still circulating in communities. Every week, they regularly gather and participate in activities at the stilt house of Ms. Hoang Thi Hang's family serving as a familiar, cozy cultural space, connecting generations who love the art of Sang Co singing.

The members of the Sang Co Cultural Preservation Club are not afraid of the hardship of collecting, recording songs and teaching them to others. 

Ms. Hoang Thi Hang said: witnessing the flow of increasingly modern life, I feel troubled when seeing the songs of Sang Co facing the risk of being lost.  I therefore always try my best with small actions to preserve my hometown's melodies by teaching them to my children and grandchildren, participating in cultural activities and performing at events...etc. with my hope that Sang Co singing will be known and appreciated by many people.

She futher said that Sang Co singing possesses the rustic beauty of lyrics, a performance space close to nature, and reflects the unique customs and practices of the San Chay people in Phu Luong district. This is also a valuable source of information in the study of ethnic history and culture.

Having lived and grown up with Sang Co folk songs for nearly 10 years, Ninh Trieu Vu, a student at Yen Lac Secondary School, always feels proud of his ethnic cultural identity. He said that since I was a child, I have listened to my grandparents sing and followed them to enjoy Sang Co singing performances. The songs have rich contents, guiding the people to good things. That is why I love these folk songs and actively participate in Club activities with its members to contribute to preserving, conserving and passing on ethnic culture to future generations.

It can be seen that Sang Co singing is not only a precious cultural heritage of the San Chay ethnic people but also a "bright pearl" contributing to enriching the treasure of Vietnamese folk culture. In the modern context, preserving and promoting the values of Sang Co singing, especially arousing the love of national culture in the young generation, is considered as an urgent task. It is necessary to organize more regular teaching classes, folk singing competitions, or programs to introduce national culture so that the Sang Co singing continues to resonate in the mountains and forests, becomes a bridge connecting the hearts of  present and future San Chay people generations.