Gong of Central Highlands stirring up Tropical Carnival in Paris

Gong of Central Highlands, an intangible heritage of Vietnam, has been introduced at the Tropical Carnival in Paris taking place at Léon Blum Square. It is the first time Gong culture to be performed in this carnival.

This is the second time Vietnam delegation to take part in the Tropical Carnival in Paris or the Tropical Carnival de Paris. This year, Vietnam delegation has brought to the carnival a message of cultural features of Vietnamese ethnic people, especially the culture in Central Highlands Vietnam, which are expressed through performances of gong troupes of Ba Na ethnic group from Sa Thay District, Kon Tum Province. Featuring vibrant sacred sound along with rhythmic dances of Highlands’ female artists, performances of Vietnamese troupes have brought audiences to a space of agriculture and hunting, a festive space of Highland’s ethnic groups. The show also gave viewers amazing emotions and experiences of a kind of a distinctive traditional music of Vietnam that had been recognized as a masterpiece of word of mouth and an intangible heritage by UNESCO since 2005.

Vietnam Delegation in the festival

The ambassador of Vietnam in France, Mr. Duong Chi Dung, has expressed his pleasure that Vietnamese people Association in France, Vietnamese Student Association in France have collaborated with Vietnamese troupes to participate actively in Tropical Carnival de Paris 2014. He emphasized that they brought an image of Vietnam modern, developed, and hospitable. The participation of Vietnamese troupes also indicated the positive and effective contribution of Vietnamese people in France to the cultural life and economy of the host country. This point of view has been shared by Mayor of Paris, Ms. Anne Hidalgo in her speech of the great integration of Vietnamese community in Paris in the overall picture of ethnic diversity here.

Other deligations in the festival

Tropical Carnival in Paris is held annually in July, featuring parades by representative troupes from different cultures. The festival has become an event indispensible in cultural life in Paris. This year, nearly 40 troupes gathering around 40 thousand artists have participated in the festival. Artists have performed on the streets from Nation Square, through boulevards of Voltaire, Roquette, Phillippe Auguste and back to the starting point. The total length was 4.5 kilometers. The carnival brings a boisterous atmosphere of tropical lands having diverse cultures. Colorful costumes of countries participating in the carnival along with vibrant sound which combined harmoniously between two factors of tradition and creativity gave Parisians relaxing moments.

Gong culture covers a large area in Central Highlands Vietnam including provinces of Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong. Gong is generally used in community cultural rituals and ceremonies of ethnic groups in Highlands. It can be said that As for the majority of ethnic groups in Central Highlands, gongs are musical instruments of sacred power which embodies the sound of God.

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun

Gong of Central Highlands stirring up Tropical Carnival in Paris

Related stories

Gong of Central Highlands, an intangible heritage of Vietnam, has been introduced at the Tropical Carnival in Paris taking place at Léon Blum Square. It is the first time Gong culture to be performed in this carnival.

related

explore more

most popular

Reading

comment

contribute

Popular

Latest

Reading

Top Keywords