Ca tru

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Ca trù (also known as hát ả đào or hat noi, in English song of the women singers) is a kind of Vietnamese folk and popular music. Ca trù translates as tally card songs, referring the bamboo cards given to men who entered the clubs or inns where ca trù was performed. The genre is said, in folklore, to have been created by a woman named Ả Đào.

[edit] History

Ca trù's origins are in a kind of light music performed by attractive young women who served men food and drink. This music reached its early peak in the 15th century, when it was performed throughout nortern Vietnam.

In the 20th century, ca trù nearly died out. When the Communists came to power after the 1945 August Revolution, ca trù was systematically suppressed.

[edit] Music

A ca trù singer, who is always a woman, plays the phach, while another musician drums and another plays the stringed dan day (which is used exclusively for this genre). The drummer can signal his approval of disapproval of a performance by hitting the drum in specified spots or rhythms.