Quan ho Bac Ninh is a traditional music which is very well-known in Kinh Bac region in Bac Ninh, Viet Nam. The video was taken on January 29.

Instead of performing in the yard of a communal house, which is the typical venue, the singers perform on boats on the Lake. The audience will stand and sit around the lake to hear singers on the boat.

When performing Quan ho folk songs, women need to wear “non thung quai thao” (a kind of hat), camisole, tunic, skirt, scarves tied about the waist and slippers. Their hair will be wrapped by a scarf. As for men, their costume consits of turban, umbrella, shirt or robe including undershirts and long tunics with 5 pieces, trousers and slippers.

In performance, the outfits of Quan ho are distinctive. The female costume includes non thung quai thao (the large round Quan ho hat) and scarf for wrapping the hair, camisole, tunic, skirt, scarves tied about the waist and slippers. The male costume includes turban, umbrella, shirt or robe including undershirts and long tunics with five pieces, trousers and slippers.

Because of distinctive features about performing arts, lyrics, costume, style of contact and cultural value, Quan ho folk songs was listed in intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2009 by UNESCO.

Transmitted orally through many generations, Quan ho is considered having the most melodies among folk-song genres of Vietnamese traditional music. Quan ho folk songs own 213 different melodies and over 400 song lyrics. Each song lyric consists of 2 parts with the main text is the core of the song derived from Vietnamese poems and folk verses and the additional text including words like i hi, u hu, a ha, etc. to support the melodies.