Performers from three generations of the Chapei Dang Veng met on Wednesday in Sorya Market in Phnom Penh to celebrate the instrument’s sixth anniversary after it was included to UNESCO’s 2016 list of intangible cultural heritage in need of urgent protection.
A group of singers from various age groups gave a performance while teaching the audience the basics of Chapei Dang Veng.
About 100 people attended the event, some of them even attempted to play the instrument.
The 22 young performers of the day were seen encouraging the attendees to go to the Chapei Dang Veng tutorial that was offered at the event to promote Chapei Dang Veng in the community.
In 2016, just three people expressed interest in learning Chapei Dang Veng; today, more than 200 students are doing so, which is positive, according to Pich Sarath, director of the Community of Living Chapei, which organized the event.
“UNESCO did not want Chapei Dang Veng to disappear from the face of the world. The indigenous Cambodian musical instrument was thus added to its list of urgent safeguarding. In the future, we should make every effort to move it from the UNESCO Safeguarding list to the Representative List, said Sarath.
For those who want to learn how to play the Chapei Dang Veng, Sarath said that he conducts free sessions every Saturday and Sunday from 5pm to 6pm at Sorya Market.
“I also teach students online, including those from remote areas of the Kingdom and music lovers in China, the USA, Australia, and Japan. My goal is to spread awareness of Chapei Dang Veng throughout society, and I’m hopeful it succeeds, he added.
A 15-year-old vocalist named Pov Reaksmey Panhavon expressed his pleasure of performing with Chapei Dang Veng’s more experienced performers.
Reaksmey Panhavon said, “Considering how many students are interested in Chapei Dang Veng, I think it will be fantastic if Chapei Dang Veng is incorporated in the school curriculum.
“Chapei Dang Veng looks like a guitar, and I want to see it gain popularity like the guitar,” he stated.
In its first news letter, The Better Cambodia featured living legend Chapei Dang Veng performer Kong Nay. Please read, http://thebettercambodia.com/kong-nay-a-living-legend-of-cambodia
Source: Khmer Times
