The newly issued plan by the provincial People’s Committee outlines surveys and research on gong culture and its practitioners, with 1-2 endangered traditional festivals to be restored each year and reintegrated into community cultural and spiritual life.
The province will open classes on gong playing and tuning, and provide training for commune- and ward-level officials on safeguarding and promoting the Gong cultural space heritage. Regular gong performances featuring Bahnar, Jrai, Cham and H’rê troupes will continue across Gia Lai.
Weekly shows under the “Weekend Gong performances - Enjoy & experience” programme will be maintained at Dai Doan Ket Square in Pleiku, Nguyen Tat Thanh Square in Quy Nhon, and in various localities throughout the province.
The project also includes scientific seminars on gong cultural heritage, an annual Gia Lai ethnic culture day, and a biennial provincial Gong performance festival with participation from local, regional and international gong troupes.
Gia Lai will invest in restoring, exhibiting and digitising its Gong cultural space heritage, while offering policy support for People’s Artists and Meritorious Artists working in intangible cultural heritage.
Local authorities say the initiative aims to preserve gong traditions in tandem with socio-economic development, tourism growth and international integration. The long-term goal is to elevate gong music as a distinctive cultural and tourism product of the province, while reinforcing traditional values among ethnic minority communities, particularly those with gong-related practices.