VietNam travel: The Cultural Space of Gong in the Central Highlands

• ›  Visiting a breath-taking Ha Long bay so easily with E-visa
• ›  UNESCO World Heritage in Vietnam: The ancient Hoi An

The Central Highlands gong culture of Vietnam has been officially recognized by UNESCO as the masterpiece of the intangible and oral culture of mankind. This affirms  Vietnam is a country with a long tradition of culture, many traditional arts need to be preserved and promoted. Owners of this special cultural type are ethnic groups such as Ede, Ba na, Xo-dang, Gia rai, M’nong, Co ho The gong is closely connected with the life of the Tay Nguyen people, the voice of the spirit, the soul of human, to express the joy, in labor and in their daily activities.

Traditional cultural values

Researchers on Tay Nguyen culture said that gong culture originated from the ancient Dong Son civilization, which is known as a famous bronze drum culture in Southeast Asia. Gongs are considered by the ethnic groups in Tay Nguyen as the leading human communication language with the divine and the supernatural. The gong sets of each family also exemplify the wealth of the people of the Central Highlands.

Tay Nguyen gongs are the unique and diverse instrument. The Central Highland gong orchestra took the natural accretion scales as the basis for setting up own scale. In each of the payrolls of each ethnic group is composed of 3 negative tones, 5 tones or 6 basic tones. The gong is a polyphonic instrument, next to the basic sound always accompanied by some other sounds. In fact, a gong 6 will give you at least 12 or more. That explains why the sound of gong sounds so plump and deep.

Spiritual culture

The value of gongs is not only reflected in the technique but also in the spiritual sense. Gongs represent the Tay Nguyen culture, which is used in many important rituals and creeds. As the sound of gongs resonates, fellow congregations can help people communicate directly to the gods, a bridge between the members of the community. When human was born, people heard the gong welcome, when growing up to get married, groom husband gong on a happy day and when the farewell to the ancestors also have gong guided tours. Gongs of the Central Highlanders are not used indiscriminately but are used only in rituals, festivals of families, villages, in the occasion of receiving guests.

Gongs bring the sacred to life, making people feel live in a space high, spiritual, fanciful. The sounds of gongs in the Central Highlands suggest the audience to see the hunting space, slash-and-burn space, festive space of the Central Highlands. Not only that, gongs bring the life of ethnic Highlands ethnicity romance. That is the source of the epic, poetry into the heart.

It can be said that the culture and music of gong show the creative talent of culture and art at the peak of ethnic groups in the Central Highlands. And so it deserves to be honored by UNESCO as the masterpiece of the intangible and oral culture of mankind.

At present, the Central Highlands provinces are trying to collect, preserve and promote the values of the cultural heritage of Tay Nguyen gongs. In the province of Dak Lak, besides hundreds of gongs of Ama, Ami (the elderly father, mother, grandfather), there are 300 gong teams from 12-18 years old with over 2100 children. Every year, Dak Lak organizes cultural festivals of gongs, songs, dances, performances of ethnic musical instruments in order to preserve and promote the Tay Nguyen gong cultural heritage.

Gong Festival in Highlands Vietnam

Visit Tay Nguyen, traveler not only visit the beautiful scenery, enjoy fresh air and cool, experience the life of ethnic people such as Ba Na, Gia Rai, Ede, Co Ho, Ma, Xo Dang, Mo Nong … and also have the opportunity to learn about the special festival only here. Especially to the Tay Nguyen gong culture festival in Gia Lai province in 2018.

The Central Highlands Ceremony is held annually to promote the image of the Central Highlands’ gong culture space which has been recognized by UNESCO as an oral and non-human heritage. This is not only an important event for the people of the Central Highlands but also for Vietnam.

This is a big festival of color so it is often introduced in the Tay Nguyen tourism program. The special folk festivals of the peoples will be rebuilt, in order to call on the community to jointly preserve and promote cultural values of ethnic people. At the same time introduce to tourists the economic, cultural and tourism potential of the Central Highlands.

Electronic visa or E-visa

Hanoi (VNA 23/8) The government has assigned the Ministry of Public Security to urgently implement an electronic visa / e-visa, starting January 1, 2017. This is an improvement to build a friendly image of Vietnam.

Dossiers and procedures for e-visa declaration for visitors

Step 1: Enter information on the application for E-visa on the website of the Directorate of Immigration Control or through the service of electronic visa registration provided by the Law.

Upload your passport photo and portrait face note to look straight and do not wear glasses.

After this step, the applicant will be granted an electronic file system.

Step 2: Pay the visa electronic via online payment tool Visa Card or MasterCard

Step 3: Use the electronic file code to check the results, if approved, perform electronic visa.

We advise on conditions for an electronic visa and assist guests to perform the fastest electronic visa processing.

If you are interested in serving or would like more information please contact us right away for support!