HA NOI — Popular Vietnamese songs will be presented in jazz arrangements by a big band led by the nation's leading jazz musician and impresario, Quyen Van Minh, in a concert in Ha Noi next Monday.
Tenor saxophone player Minh and his 16-piece band first performed Vietnamese songs in swing arrangements last April during the Jazz & Vietnamese Songs tour through Ha Noi, Hai Phong and HCM City. The shows were an initial experiment in combining Vietnamese and American music styles, said Minh, who is also the owner of Minh's Jazz Club in Ha Noi.
In addition to a programme of Vietnamese songs, the band in Monday's concert will perform such jazz standards as In the Mood, I've Got You under My Skin, and They Can't Take That Way from Me.
Guest artists will include singer Tung Duong, winner of the 2004 Sao Mai Diem Hen (Morningstar Rendezvous) singing contest, and Minh Bien, an amateur singer from HCM City.
"While Tung Duong is a very popular singer in Viet Nam, Minh Bien will be a surprise for audiences since he possesses a very good voice," Minh said.
The Monday's concert to be entitled Quyen Van Minh and Friends with Jazz will take place at the Ha Noi Opera House at 8pm. Tickets, priced at VND300-500,000, are available at the Opera House or at Minh's Jazz Club, 92 Tran Vu Street. — VNS