AsemconnectVietnam -  The first Khmer folk singing festival of the Mekong Delta region opened in Soc Trang province on October 1, drawing more than 300 contestants, mostly students, amateur artists and artisans from regional localities.

The 96 performances at the festival were themed around the Party, President Ho Chi Minh, as well as positive changes in several localities, the love for homeland, traditional festivals, and family sentiments.

Following the opening ceremony, audiences were able to enjoy nine folk performances.

Soc Trang is home to a large society of Khmer people. According to Nguyen Van Bon, Director of the provincial radio and TV station and head of the organising board, the event is a chance for amateur singers to share and exchange experience to promote the traditional culture of Khmer people through folk songs and musical instruments.

The festival is also an opportunity to honour, preserve, and develop the unique art of the Khmer people, contributing to developing the cultural identities of the group, while meeting the demand for folk art from locals and audiences from other localities, he said.

The festival will run until October 5 in Studio 3 of the Soc Trang radio-TV station. The opening and closing ceremonies are broadcast live on channels STV1 and STV2 of Soc Trang TV, as well as channel 5 of the Vietnam Television.

Source:VNA