ONE LIFE WITH XOAN

We met Ms. Nguyen Thi Lich (born in 1950), People’s Artist and Head of An Thai Xoan Ward, Phuong Lau commune, Viet Tri City, as she was training with Xoan Ward for the Hung King Temple Festival and Ancestral Land Culture-Tourism Week 2024. Ms. Lich’s voice is deep, warm and inspiring. Her drum beats are rhythmic and resonant, pushing listeners to immerse themselves in smooth, passionate Xoan songs.

In Xoan singing, both male musicians and female artists wear traditional costumes, singing and dancing following the rhythm of drum beats of male musicians. However, in An Thai Xoan Ward, one of Phu Tho’s four original Xoan wards, the drum beats are made by People’s Artist Nguyen Thi Lich.

Mrs. Lich grew up in a family where her grandpa and father were prominent Xoan heads of An Thai Xoan ward. She went through many ups and downs of the life. At the age of 13, she was able to own all of the songs in one of the three major parts of Xoan singing thanks to her exceptional singing talent and voice. She became both a Xoan singer and a musicians in any Xoan singing.

According to long-standing laws, head of Xoan Ward is a noble post that only men may inherit; for a woman to assume this position is unique. However, due to family history and a strong love and loyalty to Xoan singing, Ms. Lich was appointed as the head of An Thai Xoan ward since 2006, when the Provincial People’s Committee decided to re-establish the ward.

Despite the ups and downs of history, Ms. Lich quietly kept the “fire” for Xoan to burn eternally. She started the Xoan Singing Club, which has 15 members for teaching, practicing, and performing Xoan singing. Ms. Lich received the Meritorious Artist title in 2015, then the People’s Artist title in 2019. The noble titles honored her contributions to the preserving, practicing, and teaching of Xoan singing, contributing preserving humanity’s intangible cultural heritage.

Artisan Nguyen Thi Lich, head of Xoan ward, has consolidated, coordinated instruction, and participated in numerous Xoan singing performance activities for the development of An Thai Xoan ward. Currently, Xoan An Thai ward has 117 members with 5 straight generations, of whom the youngest is just 6 years old= and the oldest member is over 90 years old.

To promote the Xoan Singing heritage , People’s Artist Nguyen Thi Lich, in collaboration with An Thai Xoan Ward, participates in performing “Ancient Village Xoan Singing” programs on the occasion of the annual Hung King’s Death Anniversary - the Hung Temple Festival for domestic and international tourists in Hung Lo communal house, An Thai ward and other provinces and cities.

Ha Trang

2:16:04:2024:21:21 GMT+7