Quan ho has become a unique cultural feature representing the diverse culture of Kinh Bac region. The image of young men and women in traditional costumes singing Quan Ho has been considered one of the most beautiful images of Vietnam. Although quan ho has been heavily modified, the main elements, especially its music and rhythm, are still well preserved.

Quan ho – Quan ho playing field – Quan ho singing playground

The first noticeable feature of Quan Ho is that it is a type of war singing. That can be compared to the rap battle in Western culture, where rappers battle each other verbally; However, singing quan ho is gentler and more communicative than fighting. Quan ho singers act more flexible with gentle movements, touching vocals show the serenity as well as bring emotional rhythms to the audience, making Quan Ho like a singing performance. multiple.

Singing traditional Quan ho folk songs on a dragon-shaped boat – Photo: @levanchuIn addition, when entering a match or any Quan ho performance, the singers are divided into two groups: the male group sings one group, the female group sings another. Some people think that this separation makes the Quan ho melody harmonious and easy to listen to because the low male voice and the soprano voice do not completely blend together. Some other opinions argue that most Quan ho songs are love songs with romantic lyrics, so the division increases the image of the repertoire.

The lyrics of Quan ho songs are oral poems from more than a thousand years ago, mainly about love between men and women. The lyrics of Quan Ho songs are divided into two parts: the main part and the sub part. The main parts are the core of the song that reflects the content of the song, while the complements are words like “I hi, u hu, a ha”, which are used to make the lyrics smoother. .

Quan ho – The art of playing the piano with complicated rules

If there was a list of singing arts in the world with sophisticated rules and techniques of singing, Quan Ho could dominate the top 10 because Quan Ho has a system of rules and requirements inherited from the people. created it to create a perfect Quan ho performance.

Singer Quan Ho masters the song with his own voice with very few instruments in the background

First of all, traditional Quan ho does not use musical instruments, but uses the singer’s voice to create a beat. They use rhythmic movements of tones and tongues to “compose” the rhythms of their performances. The background music of today’s Quan ho performing instruments is composed based on the general rhythm of traditional Quan ho songs over thousands of years of existence.

Therefore, the role of the singer itself is the most essential compared to other forms of singing art. That is also the reason why Quan ho singers are divided into different positions such as lead vocalist (control and lead vocals on songs) or counter (meet and respond to parts of the singing partner). answer). Other techniques such as vibrato or humming are used frequently and are appropriate to connect the sessions of the song and make the whole performance harmonious.