What is Hat Xoan Phu Tho and why is it also called communal house gate singing?
Hat Xoan Phu Tho is a ritual folk performance tradition practiced mainly at the gate of communal houses and shrines in early spring, to worship the Hung Kings and spirits and to pray for good harvests and community peace. Because the performance space is tied to the communal house gate, people commonly call it "communal house gate singing".
Researchers say Hat Xoan dates back thousands of years, linked to spring festivals, harvest prayers, and remembrance of the Hung Kings' nation-building merits. At the start of the new year, villagers held Hat Xoan at the communal house to praise ancestral merits and pray for favorable weather, abundant crops, family peace, and community harmony.
Artistically, Hat Xoan combines singing, dancing, and music into a unified whole that is both sacred and accessible. Rich melodies such as qua cach, don dao, tho nhang, and trong quan carry a bright, joyful folk spirit.
What are the three stages of Hat Xoan?
Hat Xoan has three basic parts, also called three stages: worship singing to the Hung Kings and spirits, ritual singing, and festival singing. These stages form a tight structure, moving from the solemnity of ritual to the bustle of the village festival.
- Worship singing: the opening part, singing in worship of the Hung Kings and spirits, spiritual and reverent. This part most clearly shows Xoan's function as communal house gate singing.
- Qua cach singing: the ritual part, tied to the custom of twinning between Xoan villages, expressing exchange and community solidarity.
- Festival singing: the joyful, accessible part reflecting working life and love, with many female and male singers and audience participation.
In the festival singing stage, Xoan female singers are graceful with paper fans. Unlike the solemnity of worship singing, festival singing is lively and reflects rich spiritual life and community bonds.
Where are the four original Xoan guilds and what is their role?
The four original Xoan guilds are An Thai, Phu Duc, Kim Dai, and Thet. Previously, Hat Xoan was practiced regularly at these four guilds, in Kim Duc and Phuong Lau communes of Viet Tri city, Phu Tho province.
In Van Phu ward today there are the original Xoan guilds Phu Duc, Kim Doi, Thet, and An Thai. The An Thai Xoan guild is tied to Lai Len shrine, considered the birthplace of Hat Xoan. The Thet, Phu Duc, and Kim Doi Xoan guilds are ancient villages with generations of Hat Xoan teaching.
Some sources record the guild name as Kim Dai, others as Kim Doi. This is a difference in place-name transcription between documents, not two different guilds. This article follows the common spelling in current documents, Kim Dai.
| Original Xoan guild | Current area | Associated features |
|---|---|---|
| An Thai | Van Phu ward, Viet Tri city | Tied to Lai Len shrine, considered the birthplace of Hat Xoan |
| Phu Duc | Van Phu ward, Viet Tri city | Ancient village with a tradition of teaching Hat Xoan |
| Kim Dai | Van Phu ward, Viet Tri city | Ancient village with a tradition of teaching Hat Xoan |
| Thet | Van Phu ward, Viet Tri city | Ancient village with a tradition of teaching Hat Xoan |
Why is Hat Xoan closely tied to Hung King worship?
Hat Xoan and Hung King worship are organically linked and inseparable. Hat Xoan arose from the need for rituals, praising ancestral merits, and praying for harvests and peace for farming communities in the northern midland. Its natural performance space is the communal house and shrine, where rituals related to the Hung Kings take place.
During the Hung Kings Commemoration, the original Xoan guilds perform for visitors at heritage spaces such as An Thai communal house, Thet communal house, Lai Len shrine, Kim Dai communal house, and Hung Lo communal house. Ancient Xoan melodies are performed according to traditional rules, recreating the ancestral cultural space and bringing visitors back to the spiritual depth of the ancestral land.
At Lai Len shrine, considered the birthplace of Hat Xoan, the heritage space is recreated in connection with Hung King worship, closely linking performance art and spiritual life. Activities such as festival drumming, folk games, heritage exchanges, and the "Mo ca" Xoan singing experience let visitors immerse themselves in traditional culture.
What is the performance structure and artistic character of Hat Xoan?
The performance structure of Hat Xoan involves smooth coordination between female and male singers. This is characteristic of communal house gate performance art, showing cultural exchange and community solidarity. The ritual gestures of Xoan male singers show a tight performance structure combining singing, dancing, and rhythm.
Every hand gesture and vocal ornament is carefully polished. Hat Xoan demands hard training and strong community spirit, where young female singers learn to coordinate smoothly to give new life to ancient melodies. The performance lineup at the communal house yard always combines veteran artisans and successors, ensuring continuity and unbroken transmission.
According to Phu Tho folk culture researcher Pham Ba Khiem, Hat Xoan is not only a performance form but also a valuable archive reflecting production labor, emotions, and customs of farming communities in the northern midland. Through each melody, listeners feel love for the homeland, community bonds, and the desire for a prosperous life.
How did the journey from urgent safeguarding to representative heritage unfold?
In 2011, UNESCO inscribed Hat Xoan Phu Tho on the Urgent Safeguarding List of intangible cultural heritage. Just six years later, with the involvement of the whole political system, community support, and artisans' dedication, Hat Xoan was removed from the urgent list and became a Representative Heritage of Humanity in 2017.
This is a rare case in the practice of the 2003 UNESCO Convention: a heritage once identified as seriously threatened revived strongly enough to move to the representative list. Performing Hat Xoan during the Hung Kings Commemoration is not only a cultural activity but also evidence of Phu Tho's efforts to preserve and promote world cultural heritage values.
What preservation solutions are being implemented in Phu Tho?
Phu Tho province has implemented many coordinated solutions to preserve the heritage, from restoring performance spaces and repairing communal houses and shrines to reviving old customs such as keeping the communal house gate and twinning between Xoan villages. At the four original Xoan guilds, teaching is maintained regularly. In 2020-2025, the province organized dozens of teaching classes for hundreds of artisans and successors, ensuring continuity.
Today, Hat Xoan is practiced regularly with more than 400 members at the original guilds and spreads through 37 clubs with more than 1,250 members. Notably, bringing Hat Xoan into schools has become a strategic direction. 100% of music teachers are trained, helping bring the heritage closer to younger generations through extracurricular activities, experiences, and performances.
At the provincial level, the network of Hat Xoan and folk song clubs is widespread. According to 2023 data, the province has 37 provincial-level Hat Xoan and folk song clubs with 1,557 members, 64 district-level clubs with 1,325 members, and 42 commune-level clubs with 1,430 members. 100% of schools in the province include Hat Xoan in education through Music and extracurricular programs, and about 50% of schools have established school-level Hat Xoan clubs.
How is Hat Xoan integrated into tourism and contemporary life?
Since 2018, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, with the Viet Tri city People's Committee, officially launched the "Hat Xoan ancient village" product, tied to the daily Hanoi - Phu Tho tour. Hat Xoan is performed at Lai Len shrine, Thet communal house, Hung Lo communal house, An Thai communal house, and Cam shrine. Since operation, the "Hat Xoan ancient village" sites have welcomed over 13,000 tourists, mostly international groups from the UK, France, the Netherlands, and the US.
In 2022, the Department added the school tourism program "Towards the roots", connecting the Hung Kings Museum, Hung Kings Temple, Hung Lo ancient communal house, Lai Len shrine, Tam Giang Temple complex, and Dai Bi pagoda. The program combines visiting relics and practicing Hung King worship with experiential activities to promote Hat Xoan heritage.
Beyond watching, visitors can experience practicing such as learning to sing, beating the phach, and learning about the heritage's history and values. This lively approach raises community awareness in safeguarding the heritage and creates livelihoods for local communities.
Why is Hat Xoan considered the oldest cultural layer of the Vietnamese people?
The songs and dances of Hat Xoan all bear the mark of the oldest cultural layer of Vietnam, containing historical and cultural meanings of the Vietnamese people in the ancient Van Lang land. This is the view of folk culture researchers analyzing the melody structure, ritual system, and connection to Hung King worship.
Hat Xoan is the voice of farming people, the sublimation of the artisan's soul. For people in Xoan villages, Hat Xoan is not only a performance form but also breath and pride preserved through historical ups and downs. Elderly artisans in Xoan villages today are living human treasures, keeping the refined vocal ornaments and rhythms of ancient Xoan.
In international integration, Hat Xoan has moved beyond communal house roofs and old houses to appear on many large domestic stages, becoming a highlight in cultural exchange. The vitality of Hat Xoan today comes from balancing the preservation of the original communal house gate ritual and expanding practice spaces in contemporary life.
