Xoe dance of Thai people reflects the labour of life and the struggle of human against nature, aggressors at the same time express farmers’ wish for a happy and a prospevous life.
The Thai migrated to Vietnam early about X century. Formerly, human had to face with many challenges such as nature, dangerous anmials that gave them solidarity. In the task of defending the country, all villagers drive away the aggressors and then together enjoy victory. They dance and sing around the fire. According to old people, these dances are the background of forming Xoe dance of later.
Through working and struggling with nature, many “xoe” dances are founded and have been developed such as: paper fan “xoe”, hat “xoe”, scarf “xoe”, butterfly “xoe”, light “xoe”…
Xoe dance reflects the labour of life and the struggle of human against nature, aggressors at the same time express farmers’ wish for a happy and a prospevous life.
The musical instruments used in Xoe dance including two kinds of drum (Coong and Cèng). Cèng is about 1m long made of buffalo leather with a wooden body, dimension of 4,5m with the near resound. Cong is 1,5-3m long, 5-7m diameter, closed with cow leather with the hollow and clear sound.
Talking about “xoe” structure, we can’t help talking about music which is the spirit of dance. With the flexible and jubilant tune, movement of dance in harmony with the tune of the drum, gongs form a harmonious combination among movement-melody-rhythm.
There are two styles of singing in Xoe dance as poem singing (khap xu) and “goi” singing (khap chieu) that are the opening singing for the xoe dance.
Clothing in Xoe dance: In Xoe dance, Thai women are always proper and spruce. When the dance starts, all of the girls wear the same clothes: black skirt with silver key chain, blue belt, “com” shirt with silver buttons, colourful “pieu” scarf which all make xoe dance striking and splendid.
The Thai concept that “without xoe, rice is not good and not full of basket”. Because this dance plays an important role in the Thai life, it is always passed down orally through many generations. Up to now the craftman, who know this dance are few. If these craftman die, we will lost a great cultural treasure. Therefore, preservation and development of the Xoe dance is to conserve traditional folk culture that contribute into the general target of the Party and Government “Building of our country culture for the advanced, imbued with national identity
