The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the five Tay Nguyen (Central Highlands) provinces will organise the first international festival titled the Space of Gong Culture of the Central Highlands in March 2009.

The festival will draw the participation of 11 gong bands from the five Central Highlands provinces and ethnic minority groups, including Muong, Thai, Cham and Khmer.

The organising board also plans to invite gong troupes from Laos, Cambodia, China, Thailand and Japan to participate in the festival.

Besides art performances, the festival will include a photo exhibition on the cultural space of the Central Highlands’ gongs with many photos taken before 1954 by French scholars.

The space of gong culture in Vietnam’s Central Highlands was named in UNESCO’s third list of “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” in November 2005.

The cultural space of the gongs in Vietnam covers the five Central Highlands provinces of Dac Lac, Dac Nong, Kon Tum, Gia Lai, and Lam Dong with ethnic groups of Ba Na, Brau, Chu Ru, Co Ho, E De, Gia Rai, Gie-Trieng, Ma, M’Nong, Ro Mam, Xo Dang, Cham, Raglai, Bru-Van Kieu, Ta Oi, Coh, Hre, Choro, Xtieng and Cotu living in the Central Highlands and neighbouring provinces as well. (VNA)