Binh Dinh (VNA) – A ceremony was held in Quy Nhon city, south centralprovince of Binh Dinh, on May 5 to receive a certificate from UNESCOrecognising Bai Choi singing, a popular folklore style of singing in central Vietnam,as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, leaders ofministries, sectors and provinces, and representatives of UNESCO Vietnamattended the ceremony.

The PM expressed his pleasure to be present in Binh Dinh province to share joy ofthe local people on the occasion, while highlighting the folk music genrepractised in Vietnam’s central region which is both entertainment andcreativeness as well as connects the community.

With 12 intangible cultural heritage recognised by UNESCO, Vietnam now rankseight out of 177 member nations of the Convention for the Safeguarding of theIntangible Cultural Heritage, he said.

By recognising Bai Choi singing as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity byUNESCO, the world community reconfirmed Vietnam’s rich cultural heritage andacknowledged the country’s contributions to further enriching the cultural heritageof humanity.

He called on people to join efforts in maintaining and preserving Bai Choisinging as it is now the common asset of the humanity.

At the ceremony, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Ngoc Thienannounced the national action programme on protecting and promoting theintangible cultural heritage of Bai Choi singing.

Under the action programme, a series of activities will be implemented topromote and popularise the values of the heritage.

On the occasion, 400 artisans and singers from nine central provinces with BaiChoi singing heritage joined an art performance programme, highlighting theestablishment and development of Bai Choi sining.

Earlier, the recognition of Bai Choi singing was made during the 12th sessionof the UNESCO Inter-governmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the IntangibleCultural Heritage in Jeju, the Republic of Korea (RoK), on December 7.

The folk singing genre is popular in the central provinces of Quang Binh, QuangTri, Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen and Khanh Hoa,and Da Nang city.

Bai choi is often seen at local spring festivals and resembles a game, usingplaying cards and village huts.

The stage for Bai choi performances encompasses nine cottages, each containingfive or six ‘players’. One of the cottages, the central house, contains atroupe of musicians and instruments. A deck of playing cards is split in half,with one stack distributed amongst the players, and the other placed in thecentral house. The cards are stuck onto bamboo poles and erected outside thecottages.

The game singer delivers a flag to each cottage, all the while singing Baichoi, and then draws a card from the central house. Whoever holds the cardclosest in value to the game singer’s card wins.

The Bai choi songs are about festivals, daily life and work, and areaccompanied by musical instruments.

The game and songs were developed by Mandarin Dao Duy Tu (1572-1634) to helplocals protect their crops.

According to the Inter-governmental Committee for the Safeguarding of theIntangible Cultural Heritage, Bai Choi is an important cultural activity inVietnamese villages and communes, meeting the demand for entertainment and artsof the community.

Bai Choi songs are moral lessons, demonstrating patriotism, connectivity in thecommunity and living experience of people.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognised Bai Choi as nationalintangible cultural heritage during 2014-2016.

Apart from Bai Choi, the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible CulturalHeritage of Humanity includes other 11 Vietnamese heritage – the traditionalpractice of “Tho Mau Tam Phu” (Worship of Mother Goddesses), tug-of-war game,which is also played in Cambodia, the RoK and the Philippines, Nghe Tinh province’sVi-Giam folk singing, Don ca tai tu (amateur singing in southern Vietnam), HungKing worship ritual, Xoan singing of Phu Tho province, Giong festival and Soctemples in Hanoi, Ca Tru (ceremonial singing), Bac Ninh province’s Quan ho(love duet singing), the space of Gong culture in the Central Highlands andHue's royal court music.-VNA