World traveller: Vietnamese-French singer Bach Yen will stage a solo performance in HCM City tonight at a special show for fans celebrating her 58-year career. — Photo tapchithoitrangtre.com

HCM CITY  (VNS) — Vietnamese-French singer Bach Yen will stage a solo performance in HCM City tonight at a special show for fans celebrating her 58-year career.

Yen will perform with her colleagues, jazz singer Tuyet Loan and pianist Nguyen Anh 9, before an expected audience of 2,300 at the Hoa Binh Theatre.

The 72-year-old Yen said she would try her best to win over fans.

"I always respect my audience and want to provide them with the best style in voice and performance," said Yen, in her interview with local media before her show.

Though she will be singing songs in English and French that shot her to fame in 1960s, she said Vietnamese fold songs would be featured.

Her live show will be televised on Viet Nam Television's VTV9 and on channels in stations in Binh Phuoc, Da Nang, Thua Thien-Hue and Lam Dong.

Highlights will include songs written by popular musicians Nguyen Van Thuong and Lam Phuong, such as Dem Dong (Winter Night) and Cho Em Quen Tuoi Ngoc (C'est Toi).

Yen will also perform Vietnamese lullabies, which made her famous worldwide.

Born in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta River province of Soc Trang, Yen began her singing career in 1956. She performed songs not only in Vietnamese, but in English, French, Spanish, Italian and Hebrew.

In 1961, she decided to head for Paris with a dream of becoming an international pop star in the Edith Piaf style.

She signed a contract with Polydo Studio to tour in Europe and released several albums and videos.

In 1965, New York-based reporter and columnist Ed Sullivan invited Yen to perform for two weeks on The Ed Sullivan Show, one of the US's most popular TV shows at the time.

Her contract expanded to nearly 12 years, making her a familiar face on TV and on the variety shows of Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Joey Bishop, Mike Douglas and Pat Boone.

She performed with singer and actor Jimmy Durante, Carlos Almaran, and singer Frankie Avalon.

In 1978, she returned to Paris where she married Vietnamese multi-instrumentalist and ethnomusicologist Tran Quang Hai who influenced her to perform traditional Vietnamese music.

Together they have performed thousands of recitals featuring Vietnamese music in 70 countries.

One of their seven albums on Vietnamese folk songs received the Grand Prix du Disque de l'Academie Charles Cros.

Yen's first show in Viet Nam after years of living away from her native land will take place tonight in Hoa Binh Theatre, 240 Ba Thang Hai Street, District 1. — VNS