Viet Nam News
HA NOI — A line-up of famous Vietnamese singers will gather to perform at a concert dedicated to late composer and songwriter An Thuyen and his musical legacy in Ha Noi tonight.
Named after a famous song by Thuyen, Di Tim Bong Nui (Searching for Mountain’s Shadow), the concert will feature Tung Duong, Trong Tan and Ho Quynh Huong.
The concert will also present other award-winning singers such as Dinh Hien Anh, Pham Phuong Thao, Bui Le Man, Nguyen Thu Hang and Pham Thuy Dung, who will be on the stage to tell a story about the late songwriter through his music. All these singers were Thuyen’s students at the Military College of Culture & Arts in Ha Noi.
Especially, People’s Artist Thanh Hoa will return to the stage after a long absence.
According to the concert’s music director, songwriter and music producer Duong Cam, he decided to invite the 69-year-old singer because “she is a crucial piece of the puzzle completing the portrait of An Thuyen.”
“As they are contemporaries, it can be said that singer Thanh Hoa is the one who witnessed Thuyen since his very first days of becoming a songwriter and saw how his career developed,” Cam said.
The music director also revealed that all the songs performed in the concert have been remixed, aiming to bring a fresh take on the repertoire.
Several songs that brought Thuyen fame including Ca Dao Em Va Toi (Folk Song of You and Me), Ve Mien Trung (Return the Centre), Phat Ba Nghin Mat Nghin Tay (The Thousand-armed and Thousand-eyed Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva), Di Tim Bong Nui (Searching for Mountain’s Shadow), and Giac Mo Nguoi Trai Mong (The Dream of Mong Ethnic Young Man), will be presented during the concert.
Coming back from the US, Vietnamese overseas singer Thu Phuong, who is among artists performing in the concert, said she was a bit anxious on accepting the invitation to participate.
“My heart was fluttering when I received the invitation. Although I’ve never sang any song by Thuyen before but I regard this opportunity as a new challenge that makes me very eager,” Phuong said.
A part of the proceeds of the concert will be donated to disadvantaged children in the northwest region of Viet Nam.
Produced by Thanh Productions, the concert will start at 8pm tonight at Ha Noi’s Friendship Palace on Tran Hung Dao Street.
Born in 1949 in Nghe An Province, composer An Thuyen is well-known for his songs inspired by Vietnamese folk tunes. He joined the army in 1975 and two years later he became a musician in Military Zone 5’s troupe.
In 1981, he studied at the Ha Noi Conservatory of Music, now Viet Nam National Academy of Music, majoring in Music Composition.
After graduating, Thuyen worked for the Military Department of Culture & Arts, before moving to work at the Military College of Culture & Arts in 1992. He was a dedicated teacher, wrote several operas, and composed music for movies, dramas, traditional opera and reformed theatre.
In 2007, Thuyen was given the State Award for Literature and Art. He died at 65 of a heart attack in July 2015 in Ha Noi when he was Major General. — VNS