HA NOI — A series of old Vietnamese songs will be rearranged and performed at a concert to celebrate the National Day on September 2.

The annual concert, entitled Dieu Con Mai (Remain Forever), will start at 2pm - the very moment Viet Nam became an independent nation 67 years ago.

The songs, by established composers such as Nguyen Van Ty, Van Cao and Pham Duy, will be performed by current A-list singers with the aim of bringing older musical works to a wider audience.

"Remain Forever was launched in 2009 to honour the songs and symphonies of veteran composers. It will be a night of pure music and not like popular entertainment music shows," said composer Duong Thu, the concert's art director.

Highlights include renditions of Truong Ca Song Lo (Lo River's Epic); Tinh Ca (Love Song) and Huong Xua (Memory of Fragrance).

Lo River's Epic was written in 1947 by Van Cao, composer of the Vietnamese national anthem, and tells the victory of Viet Nam's resistance force at Doan Hung battlefield over the French at the Lo River.

"It is really a great piece and a milestone in Viet Nam's modern music," said composer Pham Duy.

Huong Xua (Memory of Fragrance) was selected due to its composer Cung Tien, according to art director Duong Thu. "Cung Tien is a scientist living in the US but he was regarded as a prodigy musician when he was young," said Thu, before adding that pop singer Hong Nhung had expressed her wish to sing the song.

The musical works will be rearranged by leading composer Tran Manh Hung, and the concert will open with an orchestra playing the Vietnamese national anthem.

The invitation-only concert will be broadcast live on Viet Nam Television's Channel 3.-VNS