Music Feature and Characteristics in Ca Tru Singing

Traditional Vietnamese singing is very rich and diverse, in the Red River Delta alone, there are many different genres such as: Cheo, Xam, Quan Ho, Hat Van, Ca Tru… Each of them has its own characteristics of music, singing method, performance form, etc. Ca Tru’s basic feature requires a poetic expressing in a high level and the singing techniques become different compared to other traditional singing forms. The vocal techniques of Ca Tru include vibrating/bouncing, singular sound, accent and rubato… In this article, the author clarifies some specific characteristics in Ca Tru; analyzing the standards and the factors that directly affect the quality of Ca Tru, etc. and find out some solutions to help preserving and popularizing the traditional Ca Tru values and intangible culture of Vietnamese.