ATTENTIVE: Young people listen to the clear, pure sound of the Pi flute played by village elder Hồ Ai. VNA/VNS Photos Tá Chuyên

By a stream in Khe Cát Village in Quảng Trị Province, the flute of village elder Hồ Ai rings out over the mountains, weaving through Sa Nớt, the epic song of the Bru Vân Kiều.

For his community, located in Trường Sơn Commune, the flute is not merely an instrument. They believe that only when its notes rise can human prayers reach the gods, which is why it features in ceremonies, festivals and everyday village life.

From the bamboo and reeds of the Trường Sơn forests, the Bru Vân Kiều fashion flutes for different purposes — the Sáo Khui for daily life alongside the Sa Nớt epic, and the Sáo Pi and Sáo Sui for sacred rituals. Hồ Ai has quietly kept these traditions alive for years, travelling from home to home to encourage young people to learn the flute, sing the epic and study the customs of their community.

His efforts are now drawing official support. Mai Xuân Thành, Deputy Director of the Quảng Trị Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, described the community's practice of handing the music down from one generation to the next as the most natural form of preservation.

The department has completed a dossier proposing that Hồ Ai be awarded the title of Meritorious Artisan, and is helping local artisans link up with businesses and travellers as part of a community tourism experience.

This photo essay explores, through images of craft, performance and teaching, how one village elder, a handful of folk artisans and a provincial preservation effort are working, often quietly, to keep an ancestral sound alive amid the vast forests of the Trường Sơn range. VNS

SKILLED: Elder Hồ Ai is the keeper and performer of the Pi flutes of the Bru Vân Kiều ethnic group.

ONE STEP AT A TIME: Young people from the Bru Vân Kiều ethnic group learn to play the flute as they work to preserve their traditional culture.

CULTURAL EXPRESSION: Elder Hồ Ai plays the flute and recites the Sa Nớt epic poem for young audiences.

PART OF THE PAST: The Pi flute plays an important role in the sacred rituals and ceremonies of the Bru Vân Kiều people.

INDISPENSIBLE: The flute is carried by the Bru Vân Kiều people wherever they go.

EYE-CATCHING: The Pi flute is a distinctive musical instrument of the Bru Vân Kiều people.

LEARN FROM THE BEST: Elder Hồ Ai teaches a class on playing the Pi flute.