The sound of the zither echoes in the mountain town

In recent times, Ms. Ho Nhu Quynh has devoted herself to teaching, aiming to spread among the youth of the mountain town of Pleiku the love for the zither - a unique traditional musical instrument of Vietnam.

Ms. Ho Nhu Quynh pursues her passion for the zither. **Photo: NVCC**

Although coming from a family with no tradition of working in the arts, Ho Nhu Quynh soon revealed her passion for music with instruments such as guitar, organ, and especially the zither.

Ms. Quynh said: “Since grade 10, I have loved traditional musical instruments. However, it was not until the end of grade 12, when choosing between majors, that I decided to take the entrance exam to the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music to study the zither. I feel lucky that my family supported my choice. When I received the admission notice to the Conservatory of Music, there was truly nothing happier.”

According to Ms. Quynh, many people often confuse the Vietnamese zither with the Chinese zither because they have many similarities. However, when placed side by side, these two instruments are completely different, from structure, size and strings. The Chinese zither uses large blocks of wood, uses nylon-covered iron strings and uses separate tools for each instrument to tune the strings. The number of strings on the Chinese zither is 21. The Vietnamese zither is smaller, more slender and more suitable for the Vietnamese body shape.

Students practice playing the zither under the guidance of teacher Nhu Quynh. **Photo: NH**

“The strings of the Vietnamese zither are iron or metal strings combined with a small shaft at the end of the instrument, making it easier for us to tune the strings. The number of strings of the Vietnamese zither was 16 in the past and was gradually improved to 17 strings for the current zither,” said Ms. Quynh.

With the desire to help more people understand more about the Vietnamese zither as well as love the traditional musical instrument of the nation, at the end of 2022, after graduating from the major of zither at the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music, Ms. Quynh decided to return to Pleiku and open a class to teach traditional musical instruments to students. Currently, Ms. Quynh's class has 30 students, including 15 children.

By participating in traditional musical instrument classes taught by a young teacher, students not only learn about the history, structure, and techniques of playing the zither, but also learn how to appreciate the sound, how to vibrate, and flex the body parts to the rhythm as well as relax with the clear sounds of the zither and other musical instruments.

Expressing her interest in taking part in the zither class, Chau Ngoc Bao Tran (10 years old) excitedly said: “I saw the girls at school playing the zither well, so I also wanted to try learning. I like the zither and I want to learn so that I can play more good songs in the future.”

Ho Nhu Quynh and her students perform traditional musical instruments. **Photo: NH**

Ms. Quynh shared: “I want to promote more so that young people will be more proud of traditional musical instruments. Hopefully in the future, more young people will know and care about their country's traditional musical instruments, and can combine modern music performances with traditional musical instruments. From there, we will promote traditional musical instruments of the Vietnamese people to many places around the world .”

Source: https://baogialai.com.vn/vang-tieng-dan-tranh-noi-pho-nui-post561203.html