That person is Meritorious Artisan Hầu Phái Sếnh, who has dedicated most of his life to preserving the sounds of mountain forests and passing down love for ethnic culture to the younger generation.

The breath of mountain forests

Past the age of 60, the hands of Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh remain nimble working with bamboo tubes, wooden strips, and copper reeds to craft Hmông panpipes. To him, each finished musical instrument represents far more than a handicraft piece; it embodies the knowledge, experience, and soul of the Hmông people. Whenever the resonance of the panpipe echoes across the mountain expanses of Pú Súa, its tone oscillates from brisk and robust to deep and plaintive, carrying narratives of life, romance, joys, and sorrows of the local people.

Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh recounted that his affinity for this traditional instrument developed naturally. During childhood, whenever village festivities or ceremonies took place, the sound of the panpipe drew him to watch. Those melodies lingered in his memory, urging him to learn to play and subsequently explore how to craft panpipes independently.

“Back then, seeing the elders play the panpipe so beautifully made me fall in love with it. I followed them around to observe and then practiced at home by myself. Holding a panpipe for the first time was very difficult, demanding long practice to master breath control and finger coordination. The more I practiced, the more fascinating it became, so I simply persevered,” Sếnh recalled.

In the life of the Hmông community, the panpipe and traditional musical instruments hold a revered position. The sound of the panpipe is present across community cultural gatherings, festival occasions, and crucial life-cycle rituals.

For Hmông people, it also serves as a vehicle to convey sentiments, standing as an acoustic bridge linking individuals with community, ancestral roots, and the spiritual domain. Consequently, crafting a functional panpipe is difficult, but tuning it to achieve accurate pitch, resonant acoustics, and graceful contours demands even greater artistry. Sếnh spent decades observing, absorbing, and accumulating craft knowledge. From selecting bamboo stalks, drying timber, and shaping pipe bodies to assembling individual components, every single step demands painstaking care.

Calloused hands seasoned by the years meticulously adjust each minute detail of the instrument. He explains that if a single part is slightly off, the generated resonance changes immediately. Hence, a panpipe maker must possess infinite patience and an ear capable of listening to the instrument’s innate voice. Thanks to his talent and devotion to traditional culture, Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh is regularly invited to perform at local cultural events, arts showcases, competitions, and sports festivals. His panpipe tunes have become a familiar acoustic hallmark during festive gatherings of the Hmông community in Mường Ảng. To the inhabitants of Pú Súa, the image of the sexagenarian artisan wearing his panpipe, stepping into the festival arena, and playing familiar melodies has grown intimate and beloved. Within those tones reside the echoes of the wilderness, memories of past festival seasons, and collective pride in an identity preserved by the Hmông through generations.

Passing the torch to successor generations

Keeping cultural heritage to oneself has never been the aim of Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh. His persistent concern is how to ensure panpipe melodies do not cease with his own generation. Recognizing that contemporary youth enjoy diverse modern choices while the number of people capable of playing and crafting traditional instruments is dwindling, he proactively imparts skills to interested learners. His classes feature no elaborate setups or rigid curricula. At times, a handful of learners gather at his residence; at other times, they assemble in the open communal yard at the village entrance. When time allows, he teaches on weekends, shifting sessions to evenings when pupils are occupied with work. His initial focus is not merely having learners execute a flawless melody, but helping them understand why the Hmông must safeguard the panpipe and its associated cultural values.

Over the years, numerous individuals have received his instruction. Some began familiarizing themselves with the instrument at age 15, while others in their fifties sought instruction out of a yearning to explore their ethnic roots.

Hậu A Sở, one of Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh’s pupils, stated that previously he only listened to panpipe music during festivals, never imagining he could play it himself. Since receiving dedicated coaching from artisan Sếnh, he has gradually mastered the panpipe and can now participate in cultural performances across the village.

Moving beyond performance techniques, Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh instructs pupils in fashioning instruments by hand. He demonstrates every stage, from material selection, bamboo stalk treatment, and finger-hole boring to shaping wooden and copper elements and assembling the complete structure. Minor technical details dictate the overall acoustic quality of the finished pipe. After mastering the craft, several apprentices have become capable of making panpipes independently and teaching others. For Hậu Phái Sếnh, this brings immense fulfillment, as each proficient practitioner becomes an enduring link extending traditional culture into the future.

Alongside his artisan role, Hậu Phái Sếnh stands as an influential and respected figure within the community. In the village, he participates enthusiastically in shared undertakings, from mobilizing residents to observe Party guidelines and State policies and laws to cultivating cultural life and maintaining public order. He maintains the principle that to earn public trust, one must lead by personal example and preserve personal integrity, as words devoid of deeds struggle to convince others. His exemplary conduct and approachable nature make him a dependable spiritual pillar for villagers. Whenever families confront dilemmas or the community needs mass mobilization, residents seek his counsel. Through these concrete actions, he reinforces communal solidarity and nurtures harmony among households and clans.

Contributing to ethnic cultural preservation

The enduring contributions of Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh are acknowledged by Party committees, local authorities, and the community. He has been commended and awarded numerous times for contributions to building cultural lifestyles and promoting ethnic identity. In 2022, he was conferred the title of Meritorious Artisan in intangible cultural heritage across the domains of folk performing arts, folk knowledge, and the craftsmanship and performance of Hmông panpipes, flutes, and jew’s harps.

While formal titles represent meaningful recognition, what brings Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh deeper joy is witnessing younger generations seek panpipe instruction, hearing melodies reverberate across festival seasons, and seeing traditional instruments woven into community life. He affirms that as long as someone wishes to learn and play the panpipe, he will continue teaching, hoping younger generations comprehend the richness of their ethnic heritage so that when he grows frail, the craft endures through their hands.

In Pú Súa, cultural preservation is not the isolated mission of a single individual. It is an enduring continuum linking village elders versed in ancestral lore with youth learning to embrace, practice, and transmit their ancestors’ values. In that cultural current, Meritorious Artisan Hầu Phái Sếnh tends a burning flame - a flame ignited by childhood affection for panpipe melodies, sustained through decades of study and safeguarding, and passed forward today to successor generations.

As dusk settles over Pú Súa peak amid the green mountains, panpipe melodies echo once again. Carried by the breeze past village rooftops and echoing across mountain slopes, the music evokes a cultural way of life cherished by the Hmông across generations. As long as practitioners like Meritorious Artisan Hậu Phái Sếnh quietly impart the heritage, Hmông panpipe notes will continue to resound, defining the distinctive cultural identity of the Điện Biên highlands.