## Ca Trù and Village Festivals – An Inseparable Bond Spanning Centuries There was a time when every spring, as peach blossoms painted the northern Vietnamese countryside in shades of pink, the sound of Ca Trù singing would rise from village temple courtyards like a greeting to the new season. From the ancient communal houses of Kinh Bắc to the temples of the Đoài region, from the streets of Thăng Long to the quiet countryside of Hải Dương, Ca Trù was an indispensable part of every traditional festival. The deep tones of the đàn đáy lute, the crisp clicks of the phách clappers, and the crystal-clear voice of the đào nương mingled with incense smoke and flickering candlelight, creating an atmosphere that was simultaneously sacred and intimate. The bond between Ca Trù and festivals stretches back hundreds of years, to when the art form was still called "hát ả đào" or "hát cửa đình" – literally "singing at the communal house gate." This very name tells the story: Ca Trù was born in the village communal house, grew up within festivals, and carried a sacred mission – connecting humans with the divine, binding communities together through the singing of poetry. In centuries past, every village in northern Vietnam maintained at least one giáo phường – a professional Ca Trù guild comprising female singers, male lutists, and learned connoisseurs. Whenever a village held a festival – spring celebrations, harvest prayers, or commemorations of the village guardian deity – the guild would be invited to perform at the communal house. This was both a great honor and a weighty responsibility, for Ca Trù at festivals was not mere entertainment but ritual, the collective voice of an entire community raised to heaven and earth. ## Hát Thờ – When Ca Trù Becomes Sacred Ritual Within traditional festivals, Ca Trù appeared in various forms, but the most important and solemn was **hát thờ** – ritual singing. Hát thờ was performed in the sacred space of the communal house or temple, its purpose to offer praise, prayers for favorable weather, abundant harvests, and community peace to the guardian deities. A ritual singing session typically began at dawn, when mist still hung over the village pond. The đào nương wore a red or golden áo dài, her hair pinned high, her makeup gentle and understated. She sat on a floral mat placed before the altar. The lutist sat beside her, cradling his đàn đáy, eyes closed as though listening to another world. The connoisseur sat opposite, the lacquered praise drum gleaming before him. Incense smoke curled through the air, white candles flickered, and the entire communal house was submerged in an atmosphere of solemnity and mystery. The ritual songs began with slow, majestic melodies that seemed to echo from ancient times. The lyrics praised the virtues of the village guardian deity, retold legends of the spirit who protected the community. At such moments, the đào nương's voice was no longer that of an individual – it became the voice of an entire community, carrying the hopes of hundreds or thousands of villagers upward to the heavens. ### The Ritual Sequence of Hát Thờ The ritual singing followed a strict sequence passed down through generations. First came the **giáo hương** – the incense offering song, inviting the deities to witness the ceremony. Next was the **giáo trống** – the drum opening song, awakening the spirits through sound. Following these were songs of praise, storytelling, and prayer, each carefully selected to honor the specific deity being worshipped and the significance of the festival. Throughout the entire session, no one spoke, no one moved. The village fell silent, leaving only the voice, the lute, and the drum. ## Hát Thi – The Brilliant Stage of Ca Trù Competition If hát thờ was sacred and solemn, **hát thi** – competitive singing – was the vibrant, electrifying heart of Ca Trù at festivals. Hát thi pitted giáo phường against giáo phường, bringing together đào nương from across the region to compete in artistry, vocal skill, and mastery of the repertoire. These were the moments when Ca Trù artists reached their artistic peaks, and for many northern Vietnamese villages, the singing competition was the most significant cultural event of the year. Historical competitions typically took place during spring festivals, lasting anywhere from three to seven days. Guilds were invited from neighboring villages, each sending their finest singer and most accomplished lutist. Before competing, each đào nương declared the vocal styles she would perform – hát nói, hát giai, hát mưỡu, hát kể chuyện, among others. The judging panel consisted of the most respected connoisseurs, scholars with the deepest understanding of the art form. The atmosphere at these competitions was intensely exciting. Each đào nương who took the performance mat bore the weight of her entire guild and the village she represented. Her voice had to be clear and powerful, her ornamentation exquisite. Her phách clappers had to be crisp and perfectly synchronized with the lute. Above all, each song had to touch the hearts of listeners, compelling the connoisseurs to strike their praise drums in cascading "tom" beats of approval. ### Legendary Singing Competitions in History Ca Trù history preserves accounts of competitions that achieved legendary status. One celebrated contest at Lỗ Khê village (Đông Anh, Hanoi) in the seventeenth century reportedly drew more than twenty guilds from across the Kinh Bắc region. The competition lasted seven days and seven nights. The ultimate winner performed "Tỳ Bà Hành" (Song of the Lute) with such transcendent beauty that every connoisseur rose to their feet, praise drums sounded without pause, and villagers wept with emotion. Another legendary contest at Phú Nhiêu communal house (Phú Xuyên, Hanoi) in the early twentieth century saw two đào nương from the most prestigious guilds locked in an all-night artistic duel. They performed style after style, each equally magnificent. In the end, the judges could not choose a winner, and both were awarded first place – an unprecedented decision that became part of Ca Trù lore. ## Ca Trù During Tết – Songs That Welcome the New Year Of all festivals, Tết Nguyên Đán – the Lunar New Year – was the occasion when Ca Trù shone most brightly and carried the deepest meaning. From the first day of the new year through the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Ca Trù echoed through communal houses across northern Vietnam, blessing the new year and praying for a peaceful spring. In the old days, on the morning of the first day of Tết, after performing ancestral rites at home, villagers would stream to the communal house. There, the Ca Trù guild would be ready – the đào nương seated on her floral mat, the đàn đáy tuned, the praise drum in position. The Tết performance opened with **"Chúc Xuân"** (Spring Blessings) – a song celebrating the new season, wishing everyone good fortune, robust health, and bountiful harvests. One of the last đào nương of the twentieth century, the late Trần Thị Lan of Chanh Thôn village (Phú Xuyên, Hanoi), once recalled: "In the old days, Tết without Ca Trù singing was no Tết at all. Every first morning of the year, everyone would gather at the communal house to hear the singing, and their hearts would fill with joy. The singing was like a spring breeze, blowing away the troubles of the old year and carrying hope for the new one." During Tết, Ca Trù didn't only resound at the communal house. Singers would travel from home to home among the village's prominent families, performing a few blessing songs at each stop and receiving lucky money envelopes and warm wishes in return. These were the happiest, most bustling days of the year for any Ca Trù guild. ### Ca Trù at Harvest Festivals and Village Celebrations Beyond Tết, Ca Trù appeared at festivals throughout the year – planting season prayers, post-harvest thanksgiving celebrations, and commemorations of village guardian deities. Each festival carried its own character, and the Ca Trù repertoire shifted accordingly. Harvest prayer festivals featured bright, optimistic songs celebrating the land, the rain, and the crops. Thanksgiving festivals brought more contemplative, grateful performances honoring the deities for a successful season. Guardian deity celebrations called for the most formal and ancient pieces in the repertoire. ## Decline and Revival – Ca Trù at Modern Festivals The tumultuous twentieth century brought devastating changes to Ca Trù's role in festivals. War, land reform, and urbanization dismantled many guilds, destroyed or repurposed communal houses, and stripped Ca Trù of its traditional performance spaces and audiences. The art form slipped toward oblivion. But beginning in the 2000s, and especially after UNESCO inscribed Ca Trù on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2009, a revival movement took root. Numerous northern villages restored the tradition of Ca Trù singing at spring festivals. Communal houses were renovated, guilds were re-established, and master artisans were invited to train younger generations. At Lỗ Khê village (Đông Anh, Hanoi), considered the cradle of Ca Trù, the annual spring festival once again rings with Ca Trù singing. White-haired grandmothers sit on floral mats, their voices carrying songs learned in childhood. Beside them, young women concentrate intently on learning each phrase, each word, each ornamental technique. The image inspires confidence that Ca Trù at festivals will never truly die, even when the flame occasionally flickers to its lowest point. ### Contemporary Ca Trù Festivals – New Forms, Ancient Spirit Alongside the revival of Ca Trù within traditional festivals, modern Ca Trù festivals have emerged. The National Ca Trù Festival, held periodically since 2005, brings together clubs and artisans from across northern Vietnam. These events serve simultaneously as competitions, reunions, and – most importantly – opportunities for Ca Trù to be performed before wide public audiences who might never otherwise encounter the art form. In Hanoi, a Ca Trù festival held at the Temple of Literature (Văn Miếu – Quốc Tử Giám) each spring has become a cultural highlight. Beneath ancient roofs, among moss-covered doctoral steles, Ca Trù singing rises into spring sunlight – a moment where past and present intersect, a testament to the enduring vitality of an art form that has accompanied the Vietnamese people through centuries of change. ## Ca Trù Keeps Festivals Alive, Festivals Keep Ca Trù Eternal The relationship between Ca Trù and festivals is symbiotic – each needs the other to survive and flourish. Ca Trù gives festivals cultural depth, sacred significance, and artistic meaning. In return, festivals give Ca Trù performance space, audiences, and a reason to exist. When Ca Trù disappears from festivals, celebrations lose their soul, becoming hollow and superficial. When festivals no longer exist, Ca Trù loses the soil that nourishes it, becoming alienated from the community. Understanding this relationship, cultural researchers and administrators increasingly emphasize that preserving Ca Trù cannot be separated from preserving festivals, and vice versa. In the golden light of a northern Vietnamese spring, when peach blossoms are in full bloom and fine rain mists over ancient communal house roofs, the sound of Ca Trù still rises – gentle yet haunting, ancient yet ever-new. It is the voice of the past speaking to the present, a reminder that amid all of life's changes, some values endure through time, like poetry singing in a village temple courtyard every time Tết arrives and spring returns. > "Spring comes, peach blossoms open, the village temple holds its festival. Ca Trù singing rises through incense smoke, resonating forever in the heart like a spring that never fades." ## Explore More - Ca Trù – An Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding - The Praise Drum – The Refined Critique Instrument of Ca Trù - Hát Nói – The Most Popular Ca Trù Style Blending Poetry and Music - The Giáo Phường – Professional Ca Trù Guilds of Northern Vietnam ## Frequently Asked Questions About Ca Trù at Festivals ### Which festivals feature Ca Trù performances? Ca Trù appears at most traditional festivals in northern Vietnam, including Tết Nguyên Đán (Lunar New Year), planting season prayer festivals, post-harvest thanksgiving celebrations, and commemorations of village guardian deities. The art form is especially closely associated with communal house festivals throughout the year. ### What is hát thờ (ritual singing) in Ca Trù? Hát thờ is the most sacred form of Ca Trù, performed in the sacred space of communal houses or temples to offer praise and prayers to guardian deities. It follows a strict ritual sequence beginning with the giáo hương (incense offering song) and giáo trống (drum opening song), maintaining a deeply solemn and spiritual atmosphere throughout. ### How do Ca Trù singing competitions work? Hát thi (competitive singing) brings together guilds from different villages to compete in artistry. Competitions typically last three to seven days during spring festivals. Singers perform multiple vocal styles and are judged by panels of respected connoisseurs. These events were historically the most significant cultural occasions in many northern Vietnamese villages. ### What makes Ca Trù during Tết special? During Tết, Ca Trù serves as a blessing for the new year. Performances at the communal house begin with "Chúc Xuân" (Spring Blessings) songs on the first day and continue through the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Singers also visit prominent homes throughout the village, performing blessing songs and receiving lucky money – making it the most festive time of the year for Ca Trù guilds. ### What is the current state of Ca Trù at festivals? After decades of decline during the twentieth century, Ca Trù at festivals is experiencing a revival, especially since UNESCO's 2009 inscription. Many northern villages have restored traditional Ca Trù performances at spring festivals. National Ca Trù festivals and special events at venues like Hanoi's Temple of Literature have also helped bring the art form back to public attention. ### Where can I experience Ca Trù at festivals? You can experience Ca Trù at village festivals throughout northern Vietnam during Tết and spring, particularly at Lỗ Khê village (Đông Anh, Hanoi) and Chanh Thôn village (Phú Xuyên, Hanoi). In Hanoi, the spring Ca Trù festival at the Temple of Literature and regular performances in the Old Quarter offer excellent opportunities for both Vietnamese and international visitors. ### Why is Ca Trù important to festivals? Ca Trù gives festivals cultural depth, sacred meaning, and artistic richness. In ritual singing, it serves as the medium connecting humans with the divine and binding the community together. The relationship between Ca Trù and festivals is symbiotic – both need each other to survive, and preserving one requires preserving the other. ### Are young people interested in Ca Trù at festivals? An increasing number of young Vietnamese are engaging with Ca Trù at festivals through clubs and national festivals. Many are learning to sing and play instruments, and they actively participate in festival performances. While numbers remain small, this growing interest provides genuine hope for the art form's continued vitality in festival settings for generations to come.