Young singers don traditional Dong garb as they prepare to give a choral performance. [Photo/dft.gog.cn]

The hills of Congjiang county in Guizhou province were alive with the sound of music on Nov 28.

The sounds were vocal performances from members of the Dong ethnic group and were part of the 13th Kam Grand Choirs Festival.

The opening ceremony of the festival began with a grandiose choral performed by approximately one thousand singers, which followed with a gun salute and dances.

Midway through the festival were the finals of a Dong song competition, which pitted more than 1,300 singers from 60 teams against each other to showcase their singing talents.

It was the culmination of a month-long competition held across 15 towns and villages in the county, where more than 5,000 hopefuls aged between four and 80 participated. The winning teams of the finals will take part in the province’s Third Kam Grand Choirs Competition. Kam Grand Choirs, or “Gal Laox” in the Dong language, is an indispensable part of Dong people’s culture. The Dong people did not have a writing system until they adopted simplified Chinese characters in the last few centuries. Instead, their songs were a way of communicating and passing down stories to generations. Dong songs can be traced back more than 2,500 years and tell stories and express emotions.

Dong choirs are made up of multiple people singing different harmonies and require no conductor or musical accompaniment. Choirs require at least three singers and the more singers, the better the effect. The imitation of natural sounds, such as the chirps and tweets of birds and the sound of flowing water are an integral part of Dong songs, reflecting their close association with nature.

Dong children start to learn how to sing in the traditional way from a very early age. Most of the Dong villages have their own choirs - some have as much as ten teams. Those who can sing many songs are usually regarded knowledgeable.

Performances and competitions of Dong choirs would be arranged on festivals or to welcome honored guests. These occasions are also good chances for young men and women to get to know each other and they may fall in love through singing activities.