Ca Huế (,

Chữ Hán Chữ Hán (𡨸漢, literally "Chinese characters", ), Chữ Nho (𡨸儒, literally "Confucian characters", ) or Hán tự (漢字, ), is the Vietnamese term for Chinese characters, used to write Văn ngôn (which is a form of Classical Chinese ...

: 歌化, "Huế songs") is a form of classical Vietnamese music of Central Vietnam, particularly the Huế region. It contrasts with the ca trù genre to the North, and the

đờn ca tài tử Đờn ca tài tử (Chữ Hán: ) or nhạc tài tử (樂才子) is a genre of chamber music in the traditional music of southern Vietnam. Its instrumentation resembles that of the ca Huế style; additionally, modified versions of the European in ...

"gifted scholar" style to the South. The singer sings solo, as in the ca trù genre, accompanying herself with small wooden clappers, sometimes similar to the

phách The phách (, )) is a type of claves. A pair has two small wooden sticks which are beaten on a small bamboo platform to serve as percussion by the female vocalist during performances of ca trù ''Ca trù'' (, , "tally card songs"), also known as ...

sticks used in ca trù, sometimes shaped like small teacups. Before and between the solo songs a traditional ensemble plays instrumental sections to complement the singer. The ''ca huế'' ensemble should be of five excellent instruments, ''ngũ tuyệt.''The Garland handbook of Southeast Asian music p269 Terry E. Miller, Sean Williams - 2008 "The ensemble accompanying ''ca huế'' is that of the "five excellent instruments" (ngũ tuyệt): a board zither, a two-stringed fiddle, a moon-shaped lute, a pear-shaped lute, and a three-stringed lute; a transverse flute can replace a lute."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ca Hue Vietnamese traditional theatre Vietnamese music