B: In his letter, Mr. Canalle wrote: “I really enjoyed listening to your broadcast and its content on current events and economic matters in Vietnam. I hope to tune in to it again soon.”

A: Mr. Canalle, this is the first time that we’ve received feedback from you. We’ll send you our frequency list and program schedule as well as a QSL card confirming your report. Our program is now also available on the internet at vovworld.vn, where you can hear both live and recorded programs. Check out our VOV Media App available on both IOS and Android platforms to hear our live broadcasts. We look forward to your feedback.

B: Listening to our broadcast from 16:00 to 16:30 UTC on the frequency of 7220 khz on May 4, Siddhartha Bhattacharjee of India rated SINPO all 4s. He asked about the popularity of puppet shows in Vietnam.

One guide book says “Not watching a performance of water puppetry means not visiting Vietnam yet.”

A: Thank you, Mr. Bhattacharjee, for your regular feedback on our broadcast. Vietnamese water puppetry is a unique folk art believed to be more than 1000 years old. One guide book says “Not watching a performance of water puppetry means not visiting Vietnam yet.” A water puppetry performance provides great fun and excitement for the audience. The puppeteers standing in water behind a floating stage cleverly manipulate wooden puppets.

B: In a Vietnamese water puppetry show, puppets perform on a water stage accompanied by music and singing. From beginning to end, the audience can see only the puppets and a small folk orchestra that performs live. It doesn’t see puppeteers standing behind a curtained in a waist-deep pool.

A: The themes of the show are simple and familiar to Vietnamese people - the daily life of farmers and common aspects of Vietnamese spiritual life, for example, the trance rituals and dragon, lion, phoenix, and fairy dances.    

B: Since its traditional content revolves around the daily life of Vietnamese farmers and popular spiritual elements, the characters might be a cheerful husband and wife trying to protect their ducks from a cunning fox, or 2 dragons playing ball, spouting fire and water. They might also be dancers performing trance rituals with candles in their hands, hoping for the Mother Goddess to dispel the darkness and enlighten people’s minds.

A: The puppet designs are strongly influenced by Vietnamese temple art, so they are carved and colored with the same aesthetic features characteristic of the statues of humans and mascots in Buddhist temples. All the puppets are made of fig wood.    

B: After they are carved, the puppets are painted with lacquer. Vietnamese water puppets are manipulated by 2 main systems: rods and strings, under the water.  Every puppet needs them, though the specific device for each puppet may differ. A puppet can weigh up to 15 kg, so it takes strength to control it, not to mention making it perform in a lively and believable manner.

A: Folk music is played at traditional puppet shows. A small orchestra of about 7 people performs live. The audience can see the artists singing beautiful Vietnamese folk songs, but at certain moments it is the puppeteer behind the curtain who sings or says the lines.

B: Today, water puppetry has been modernized. New techniques are being used to enhance the quality of the show. Puppet designers use employ contemporary techniques  like steel-wielding and pulleys, making puppets easier to construct and control and creating more realistic effects.

A: Vietnamese water puppetry has been introduced to many countries around the world and has received positive feedback from audiences. Foreigners enjoy the shows without needing to understand Vietnamese, as the puppets clearly demonstrate the life and culture of Vietnam through their actions.

B: We’d like to welcome Chan Siu On of Hong Kong, China to our show. He listened to our broadcast from 12:00 to 12:30 on May 6 on the frequency of 7220 khz and rated SINPO 33343. Thank you, Mr. Chan, for tuning in to VOV. We look forward to hearing more from you. We’ll confirm your report with a QSL card.

A: We’d also like to say hello to Mantoani Paolo of Italy. This is the first time we’ve received feedback from you. Mr. Paolo listened to our broadcast at 20:47 on April 28 on the frequency of 9730 khz and rated SINPO 35333.

B: This week, we also received a letter from Mr. Satoshi Wakisaka, 62 years old, of Japan. We’re not so sure how long he has been listening to our broadcast, but this is the first time we’ve received a letter from him. He wrote: “Greeting from Osaka! I am a 62-year-old Japanese shortwave listener. I’m very pleased to hear your program and to send you my reception report. Thank you very much for your program. I started shortwave listening in 1970 when I was a junior high school student. During the 1990s, I became inactive in the hobby due to my work. A few years ago, I resumed my hobby. I often listen to VOV’s Japanese and English programs. The reception condition of those programs is fair.”

A: Thank you all. We’ll send you our frequency list and program schedule and send you QSL cards to confirm your reports.

B: Well, we’ve been welcoming lots of new listeners these days. It’s great to know that shortwave listening remains popular around the world.

A: You’re so right. Many listeners in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan say they have established VOV Listeners’ Club in their countries and closely follow our broadcast on shortwave as well as on other media like the Internet and Mobile Apps.

B: Dear listeners around the world. We’re very happy to know you’re listening. Please give us more information about your club’s activities and send photos that we can post on our website and Facebook fanpage. We look forward to news of our listeners’ activities. 

A: We’d like to acknowledge letters and emails from Peter Ng of Malaysia, Fmuito Hokamura, Toshiki Tsuboi of Japan, Tapan Basak, Ram Babu Kumar, Dilipkumar Sarkar, Debakamal Hazarika, Bhaikan Hazarika, Anand Mohan Bain, Shyamal and Kumar Banerjee of India, Abdur Razzak of Bangladesh, Eddy Prabowo of Indonesia, and David Ansell of the UK. We greatly appreciate your feedback and comments on the technical aspects of our programming. We’ll confirm your reports with QSL cards soon.

A: We welcome your feedback at: English section, VOVworld, Radio the Voice of Vietnam, 45 Ba Trieu Street, Hanoi, Vietnam. Or you can email us at: englishsection@vov.org.vn. You’re invited to visit us online at vovworld.vn, where you can hear both live and recorded programs. Check out our VOV Media App available on both IOS and Android platforms to hear our live broadcasts. We look forward to your feedback on the mobile version of vovworld.vn. Once again, thank you all. Good bye until next time.