The Muong ethnic gong set - the pride of Mr.
Dinh Van Nien is always being placed in the most prominent position and most
visible in the house.
Although being passionate about gongs since
he was very small but in 1994, when he became a cultural officer of Yen Mong
commune, Mr. Nien was able to collect and buy Muong ethnic gongs. On his
working days in the commune, he began to save a part of his salary to buy
gongs. Having done continuously in 15 years, in 2009, his gong set was full of
12 pieces.
Previously, he loved to play and watch
playing gongs. He did not have one at his home, so he had to borrow from the
women in the village. Every time there is a need, he had to go around the village
to borrow a few gongs for playing. Borrowing for a long time made him so
embarrassed; he bravely bought the gongs for his own. At that time, his commune
staff salary was only about 500,000 VND / month. He had to feed the family,
support for the children’s study,he had to save every change to have enough
money to buy each gong. Most of these gongs were bought from Thanh Hoa, Ha Nam
and some other places. A set of gongs can have 7 or 9 pieces but the standard
set of Muong ethnic group must be 12 pieces resembling for 12 months of the
year. Each gong carries a different sound. Despite difficulties, he still tried
to buy a set of 12 pieces because "12 months to make a new year, 12
different sounds to create a piece of Muong ethnic music."
Since his family had gongs, at festivals or
cultural exchanges events, he has lent them to the women in the local. Mr. Nien
said: "In 2015, Yen Mong commune received the title of the new rural
standardized commune. His gong set, together with gongs from other households were
up to 50 gongs, were performed by the art team at the ceremony. Especially, on
the occasion of the 55th Anniversary of Uncle Ho's visit to the Hoa Binh Youth
Vocational School, the gong team of the commune was honored to contribute
special performance, contributing to the opening ceremony of the Relics Area
more exciting and deep of ethnic culture. The gong has been displayed in his
house for many years and he considers it as a member of the family, an integral
part of his life."
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