Category: Uncategorized

HANOISE (Âm thanh Hà Nội) by the Hanoi New Music Ensemble

Two Vietnamese premieres and a World premiere
HANOI
October 11, 2019, 8pm
Small concert hall, Vietnam National Academy of Music
No.77 Hao Nam str, Dong Da dist,

HO CHI MINH CITY
October 12, 2019, 8pm
Concert Hal, HoChiMinh Conservatory
112 Nguyen Du str, Dist 1
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* Conductor: Honna Tetsuji
* Guest artists:
Lucas Fels, Cello
Nina Janßen-Deinzer, Clarinet

* The Hanoi New Music Ensemble
Pham Truong Son, Violin
Dao Mai Anh, Violin
Do Huong Tra My, Viola
Ngo Tra My, Monochord
Pham Tra My, Zither
Pham Quynh Trang, Piano
Lu Manh Cuong, Percussion
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Programm:
Jörg Widmann – Fieberphantasie (1999)
Vu Nhat Tan – Hanoise (2019)
Olivier Messiaen – Quatuor Pour La Fin Du Temps (1941)
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Friday night October 11. At the Vietnam National Academy of Music, 77 Hao Nam The Goethe Institute will present a performance by the Hanoi New Music Ensemble with two famous artists: Nina Janßen-Deinzer clarinet and Lucas Fels. by German composer Jörg Widmann and French Olivier Messiaen, this will also be the launch of the latest “HANOISE” (Hanoi Sound) by Vietnamese composer Vu Nhat Tan.

Talented conductor Honna Tetsuji, who has conducted many concerts of Vietnam National Symphony Orchestra VNSO will conduct this night.

Here about Hanoi New Music Ensemble, the first professional group of contemporary music in Vietnam, with the goal of performing the best New music in Vietnam and Internationally.
Composer Vu Nhat Tan is art director and violinist Pham Truong Son is executive director.
Hanoi New Music Ensemble has performed at the Vietnam National Academy of Music in Hanoi, the Manzi Art Space, the French Cultural Institute in Hanoi-L’Espace and the Goethe-Institut. Members of the group include professional music lecturers and teachers, who are professors at the Vietnam National Academy of Music or performing in the Vietnam National Orchestra.

Works in the show also include:
FIEBERPHANTASIE (Fantasy fever)
In “Fieberphantasie” from 1999, Jörg Widmann studied the melody of Robert Schumann. He described it as a kind of “fever curve”: “suspense, flickering, steaming” with “a myriad of smaller and bigger wave crests in the big lines”. Symbols include performance points, not containing a specific sound level, but with detailed presentation instructions.
Jörg Widmann (* 1973) is one of the most interesting and versatile artists and composers of his generation …

QUATUOR POUR LA FIN DU TEMPS “Quartet for the end of the age”, the content of the work is also about the end of the world. French composer Olivier Messian finished his work with a total of eight sentences as a prisoner in a prisoner of war camp in Görlitz in Germany …

HANOISE (Hanoi Sound)
Famous composer Vu Nhat Tan extracts and condenses the sounds of the Vietnamese capital into a contemporary musical art work. In cooperation with the Goethe-Institut, Vu Nhat Tan will introduce a new piece written specifically for the string group of Hanoi New Music Ensemble entitled HANOISE (Hanoi Sound). This is an extremely valuable contribution to the treasure of contemporary art in Vietnam. As the name of the work, “Hanoi Sound” reflects the city’s unique atmosphere and mix of colorful sounds: A cultural meeting between East and West through contemporary music.

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Information about conductor, artists and program, please go to our website
https://www.goethe.de/ins/vn/en/ver.cfm?fuseaction=events.detail&event_id=21656141

Link event
https://www.facebook.com/events/491710418045776/?event_time_id=491710424712442

Videos

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Opening Night: ‘Cities In Transition’ Art Exhibition

Mukang Fields returns with some cosmic funky space jazz at Urban Gentry on the 27th, along with some great art and photography and other musicians performing too (including a set by one of the OG experimental musicians of the Hanoi scene Vu Nhat Tan). Join us for the opening night of ‘Cities In Transition’, a joint art exhibition featuring works by William P. Badger, Jr. (paintings and drawings) and Wouter Vanhees (photography). William’s work incorporates images from his time in Vietnam he sees as fleeting amid the coming industrialization of things. Wouter’s work focuses on life at street level amid the rising cities of Vietnam.
Live music by:
6pm Opening, with music by Paolo Chiabrando
8pm Mukang Fields (first set)
9pm Vu Nhat Tan
10pm Mukang Fields (second set)

Link
https://www.facebook.com/events/2201122396664598/?active_tab=about

Heritage ÉP launch: Tìm em/ Qua đêm trăng sạch

Heritage Space, re-locating to a new ‘planet’, night after night, has been preparing a tiny ‘feast’, for our new housewarming, a tiny house but sweet and dreamy (and not far, not far at all, anymore). Great gratefulness to all the South-to-North artists that gather here to take us to the moon.
We would love to invite all the old and new friends to join our language – music – movement feast: “Heritage ÉP launch: Tìm em/Qua đêm trăng sạch” (Seeking for you/Through a clear moon night). And this time, it’s gonna be a much more familiar and fun performing atmosphere.
List of main performances:
#0: Tìm em/ Qua thư viện sạch… (Seeking for you/Through a clean library…)
#1: Cánh đồng, con ngựa, chuyến tàu (The field, the horse, the train) – an experimental musical translation of the same poem – đàn tranh duo, vocal, sound objects,.. [with: Hoài Anh + Hà Thuý Hằng]
#2: Jờ Joạcx – bamboo flute, jew harp, electronic instruments and movements on “music pallete” – a special interactive D.I.Y ‘instrument’ invented by Alec Schachner [with: Alec Schachner + Duy Rùa + Kim]
#3: Hanoise – field recording, synthersizer, percussion. A project of Vu Nhat Tan, in duo with Ngo Tra My dan Bau and voice

Link
https://www.facebook.com/events/387520025268511/

New Music from VIETNAM

Hanoi New Music Ensemble introduce “New Music From Vietnam”
Date of concert: 19h30 Friday, July 19, 2019
Venue: Pasca Sarjana Concert Hall,
Suryodiningtan, No.8. Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Hanoi Goethe Institute is sponsor and partner of the concert.


New Music is rooted in history and the customs of the people where it comes from. New music from Vietnam reflects sacrifice, faith and aspirations of the people of Vietnam. Delivering this message is a challenging ambition yet justifiable and necessary. This is our statement of beliefs as the Hanoi New Music Ensemble


We are happy to share the news that Hanoi New Music Ensemble (HNME) will be performing on Friday July 19, 2019 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. This is HNME’s first concert tour to present Vietnamese New Music.
We sincerely thank the Goethe-Institute Hanoi who makes our tour possible. And we thank New Yogyakarta Contemporary Ensemble for organizing the concert. Thank you all very much!
——
Program:
01. Do Nhuan: “Tay Nguyen”, String Quartet
Pham Truong Son, Violin 1. Vu Thi Khanh Linh, Violin 2. Do Huong Tra My, Viola. Dao Tuyet Trinh, Cello
02. Ton That Tiet: “Autumn Wind”, Duo Violin and Piano
Pham Truong Son, Violin. Pham Quynh Trang, Piano
03. Vietnamese Traditional Folk Songs: “Trong Com”, “Ly Ngua O”. Piano Trio
(Arranged by Vu Nhat Tan)
Vu Thi Khanh Linh, Violin, Dao Tuyet Trinh, Cello. Pham Quynh Trang, Piano
04. Vu Nhat Tan: “Five Elements” (Special version) Full ensemble
Tran Thu Thuy, Vocal, Pham Quynh Trang, Piano. Vu Nhat Tan, Bamboo flute. Pham Truong Son, Violin 1, Vu Thi Khanh Linh, Violin 2. Do Huong Tra My, Viola. Dao Tuyet Trinh, Cello, Lu Manh Cuong, Percussion.


Event links
https://www.facebook.com/events/1595485187251477/

Photos
https://photos.app.goo.gl/jLrKgtWP5A7mwQJR6
https://photos.app.goo.gl/qMDCVazzd53LzcWL6

Vu Nhat Tan
FIVE ELEMENTs (Special Version, live in Pascasarjana ISI Yogyakarta)
HANOI NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE, Yogyakarta INDONESIA [07/2019]

HANOI NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE in Goethe Institute Hanoi [2019]

 

 

The Old Quarter Story/ Royal Court Music Program – Gold in the Old Quarter of Hanoi


Royal Court Music Program – Gold in the Old Quarter of Hanoi
The Old Quarter Music Program celebrates Vietnam Heritage Day
Center for Cultural Exchange of the Old Quarter 50 Dao Duy Tu, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
Saturday November 23rd, 2018, 8pm

Celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Royal Court Music which was honored by UNESCO as the immaterial masterpiece of humanity. The Phu Xuan Royal Court Music Group, where Hue Royal Court Music played and spread, will be accompanied by Dong Kinh Co Nhac the Ancient Music Group of Tonkin in a special music program to introduce to the audience of the capital of the precious musical heritage of the nation
The Masters of Royal Court Music from Hue, Master Thanh Tam, artist Tran Thao will harmonize with the artists of Dong Kinh Co Nhac the Ancient Music Group of Tonkin, through the Ancient Citadel Program to send to the audience the gift of Vietnamese Heritage Music

The program is free for public, because the space is small and the number of seats are limited we are expecting you to come early to have your seats
Co-host by Dong Kinh Co Nhac The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin and the VNTG

Links
https://www.facebook.com/events/1875952842502169/
https://www.facebook.com/dongkinhconhac/
https://www.facebook.com/vunhattangroup/
Live videos from the concert

An Evening with Apollo Chamber Players, Vân-Ánh Võ, and Vũ Nhât Tân – Asia Society Houston TEXAS

FB_IMG_1523640797989In an exploration of classical and contemporary Vietnamese musical traditions, the Asia Society welcomes to our stage Houston’s globally-focused Apollo Chamber Players alongside award-winning musicians Vân-Ánh (Vanessa) Võ and Vũ Nhât Tân. In this illuminating evening, these talented performers and composers will explore the themes emerging in their work through a demonstration of their instruments and an engaging panel discussion.


About the Apollo Chamber Players

Chamber Players

Matthew J. Detrick, violin; Artistic, Executive Director and Founder
Anabel Ramirez, violin
Whitney Bullock, viola; Education Director
Matthew Dudzik, cello
Houston-based Apollo Chamber Players’ mission is to explore the cultural and folkloric influences in classical music. The group presents thematically-programmed concerts both regionally and nationally. In September 2014, the organization launched a multi-year commissioning project, 20×2020, with a new work by Grammy® winning composer Libby Larsen, and the ensemble has concertized with acclaimed artists James Dunham, Ivo-Jan van der Werff, Timothy Pitts, Ismail Lumanovski, Viktor Valkov, and Robin Kesselman. Winner of HoustonPress’ 2014 MasterMinds award, Apollo was one of three organizations in Houston to be recognized for positively impacting the local arts community. Passionate about arts education, the ensemble curates culturally-enriching programs for performance through Young Audiences of Houston, and it has performed concerts and presented masterclasses for schools and festivals across the country.


About the Artists

Artist Van-Anh Vo

Vân-Ánh Võ is one of the finest performers of Vietnamese traditional instruments in the world and a rapidly emerging composer. She dedicates her life to creating music by blending the wonderfully unique sounds of Vietnamese instruments with other music genres, and fusing deeply rooted Vietnamese musical traditions with fresh new structures and compositions. Since settling in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2001, Vân-Ánh has focused on collaborating with musicians across different music genres to create new works, bringing Vietnamese traditional music to a wider audience and preserving her cultural legacy through teaching. Additionally, she has been co-composer and arranger for the Oscar® nominated and Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner for Best Documentary, Daughter from Danang (2002), and the Emmy® Awards winning film and soundtrack for Bolinao 52 (2008). Vân-Ánh recently became the first Vietnamese artist to perform at the White House. In addition to the zither (đàn Tranh), Vân-Ánh also performs as soloist on the monochord (đàn Bầu), the bamboo xylophone (đàn T’rung), traditional drums (trống) and other traditional instruments.

Artist Vu Nhat Tan

Vũ Nhât Tân is a Vietnamese composer of experimental, chamber, and piano music, as well as electronic and multimedia works that have been performed around the world. Tân studied piano at Vietnam National Academy of Music in Hanoi, where he earned degrees in secondary education in composition and musicology in 1991, as well as a Bachelor of Music in 1995. He later studied computer music and new music at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik in Cologne in 2000-2001. His honors include Third Prize in the composition for traditional instruments competition of the Vietnam Composers Association in Hanoi in 1992 for Chamber Piece for Traditional Vietnamese Instruments, and First Prize in the Saint-German-en-Laye competition in 1995, for Ky Uc – Memory. His music has been performed in Australia, Cambodia, China, France, Germany, Mongolia, Switzerland, the USA, and Vietnam, including at the Roaring Hoofs Festival in Ulaanbaatar (2000), the Louisiana Festival of Contemporary Music in Baton Rouge (2002), the Totally Huge New Music Festival in Perth (2003), and the Asian Music Festival in Tokyo (2003).


Major support for Performing Arts programs comes from Nancy C. Allen, Ellen Gritz and Milton Rosenau, the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance, and the Anchorage Foundation. Generous funding also provided by AARP, The Clayton Fund, Miller Theatre Advisory Board, New England Foundation for the Arts. Additional support provided by the Wortham Foundation, the Texas Commission on the Arts, and through contributions from the Friends of Asia Society, a premier group of individuals and organizations committed to bringing exceptional programming and exhibitions to Asia Society Texas Center. This program is presented in partnership with Apollo Chamber Players.

Performing Arts and Culture Sponsors

City of HoustonHoustonArtsAlliance

Presenting Partners

Apollo Logo

Event Details

Wed 16 May 2018
7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
1370 Southmore Boulevard. Houston, Texas 77004

more information on the link by Jeff von der Schmidt, conductor of the Hanoi New Music Ensemble
Opposites Attract: The Music of Alexandra du Bois and Vũ Nhật Tân

Apollo Chamber Players links and live video
https://www.facebook.com/pg/ApolloChamberPlayers/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1815524745158005
https://www.facebook.com/events/440634199670923/
https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/arts-culture/2018/05/18/286391/collaborative-performance-celebrates-vietnamese-culture/

MIRROR OF MEMORY A Mix of Vietnamese New and Old MUSIC

Hanoi New Music Ensemble and Dong Kinh Co Nhac the Ancient Music Group of Tonkin
Present
MIRROR OF MEMORY
Tấm Gương Ký Ức
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Program
01. Nhạc Cổ “TIẾNG LÀNG”
Biểu diễn/ Perform by
Nhóm Đông Kinh Cổ Nhạc/The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin

Vietnamese Traditional Music” The Village’s Sound”
An opening piece that presents tradition Vietnamese music scenes of Cheo, Tuong and Communal temple music, to bring forward the full spectrum of Vietnamese traditional music
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02. NGUYỄN MINH NHẬT
“Ca Trù” Prelude for/cho piano solo
Biểu diễn/Perform by Dr. Nguyễn Minh Anh

This piano Prelude is an attempt to imitate vocal fluctuations and vibrato found in ca tru using the equal tuning of the piano that has only semitones as the smallest intervals. This is contradictory as the singer is able to flexibly use microtones, which are smaller the semitones on the piano. But will using flashes of cluster to create a blur effect work?
The piece carries familiar Ca tru figures from the melody in the voice, the lute patterns and drums as the base material or inspiration for musical ideas.
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03.TÔN THẤT TIẾT
Mirror of Memory for Stringquartet
Biểu diễn/Perform by the Hanoi New Music Ensemble Stringquartet

Miroir, memoires by Ton That Tiet was written in 2011 and is dedicated to Jeff Von der Schmidt, Jan Karlin and Southwest Chamber Music. The composer presented it to us in Paris as a surprise present thanking us for our work for new music in Vietnam. In three short movements, the quartet is quietly meditative, patient, sometimes active, but always returns to a sense of centered tranquility. Tiet writes that to understand his music one must study Buddhism, Taoism and Hinduism, a spiritual journey infused by Asian thought and Western instruments.
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04. VŨ NHẬT TÂN
KIM (Metal) for the Hanoi New Music Ensemble and Dong Kinh Co Nhac The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin
Dedicated to Stephen Lesser
Biểu diễn/Perform by the Hanoi New Music Ensemble and Dong Kinh Co Nhac The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin

“Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth” are the Five Natural Elements (or Five Movements) that constitute all things in ancient Asia philosophy
These Five Elements move back and forth in a Positive or Negative direction so that by its operation it produces life on earth
“Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth” is also the name of a poem about the human, life and environment of the 20th century, written by Nguyen Duy, an important author of modern Vietnamese literature
“Kim” is a piece of music that was created in the philosophical thinking and thought of the poem
“Kim” is the first element of the Five Movements. Kim is also the first piece to be written for both the Contemporary Music Group and Vietnamese Traditional Music Group
The work has the desire to open the door to the Movement of Sound and of Creative Thinking
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Conductor Jeff Von der Schmidt
Artistic Adviser Jan Karlin
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The Artists
Hanoi New Music Ensemble
Phạm Trường Sơn, violin
Vũ Thị Khánh Linh, violin
Khúc Văn Khoa, viola
Đào Tuyết Trinh, cello
Nguyễn Quốc Bảo, clarinet
Nguyễn Trọng Bằng, flute
Nguyễn Nhật Quang, bộ gõ
Trần Thu Thủy, hát

Nhóm Đông Kinh Cổ Nhạc The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin
– NSND Xuân Hoạch
– NSND Minh Gái
– NSND Thanh Hoài
– NSUT Thúy Ngần
– NSUT Tuấn Cường
– Hiền Thảo, hát
– NSUT Văn Chính
– NSUT Đức Mười
– Nghệ nhân Đàm Quang Minh
– Nghệ sĩ Hữu Đạt
– Nghệ sĩ Thế Quang
– Nghệ sĩ Nguyễn Hải Đăng
– Nhà thơ Nguyễn Duy, đọc thơ/poet
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links
VIETNAMESE NEW MUSIC
https://www.facebook.com/hanoinewmusicensemble/
https://www.facebook.com/dongkinhconhac/
https://www.facebook.com/vunhattangroup/

“One step at a time” by Jan Karlin

2013-09-28 09.03.41
Composer Vu Nhat Tan

After the inaugural 2012 LA International New Music Festival in Los Angeles, composer-in-residence Vu Nhat Tan turned to Jeff and me, remarking that “Once is not enough!” He was wrapping up six weeks in Los Angeles, courtesy of the Asian Cultural Council in New York City, and we had spent much time dreaming of next steps for contemporary music in his hometown of Hanoi, Vietnam.

Southwest Chamber Music’s historic Ascending Dragon Music Festival in 2010, the largest cultural exchange between Vietnam and the U.S., had left us with many questions about the U.S. Department of State’s goal of identifying a new generation of cultural leaders. Had we accomplished this goal? What would be the followup to the project and would it have lasting results? Had we influenced the cultural life of another country, one with which we are tied together with a challenging history?

2013-09-26 14.56.03
Dreaming of next steps for contemporary music in Hanoi

We have observed over the past twelve years, with eight trips to Vietnam, that the country is definitely on the move. Tan is part of a generation who studied outside of Vietnam but decided to return to his country rather than make his career abroad. His participation in Ascending Dragon encouraged him to think in new directions, especially after music critic Mark Swed wrote in the LA Times that Tan was ready to take his place on the international stage.

A rapid-prototyping session about Tan’s ideas at the Drucker Institute at Claremont University during Tan’s residency identified three goals: Hanoi needed its first New Music Ensemble; the Hanoi composers and new ensemble should find ways to interact with other new music communities in southeast and east Asia; and we needed to encourage continuing interaction with the American Embassy’s cultural division as well as other countries’ cultural representatives in Hanoi.

We returned to Hanoi for the first time after Ascending Dragon in 2013. Our friends couldn’t have been more welcoming, and Tan was ready for us to help him with his new ideas. With our past experiences working in Vietnam, Jeff knew that we could only be effective if we had an official position. In the U.S., we would have been placed on a Board of Directors or an Advisory Board, but these structures do not exist in the same way in Vietnam. We suggested to Tan that we needed a title and proposed that we both be appointed as the first American artistic advisors to a new group, the Hanoi New Music Ensemble. We could share our experiences as founding directors of 30-year old Southwest Chamber Music to help establish Vietnam’s first contemporary music group.

2016-05-11 15.35.29
Ton That Tiet with Jeff in 2016

In the past, contemporary music in Vietnam reflected the Russian model of mostly encouraging composers of pop music, commercials, film, military functions and television. Experimental music was not part of the cultural environment. An older generation of serious Vietnamese composers had emigrated abroad because of the French and American wars. The two grandfathers, Nguyen Thien Dao and Ton That Tiet, moved to Paris in the 1950s and became French citizens. They both have had great international successes with major conductors and international commissions for new works. Tiet is a friend of Tan’s father and was very influential when he met Tan as a young composer. We were thrilled when Dao appeared in Hanoi for Ascending Dragon to hear a performance of his work for double bass performed by Southwest bassist Tom Peters.

2013-10-06 12.54.42
Composer Nguyen Thien Dao with Jeff in 2015

The situation in Vietnam for 20th century Western instrumental technique reflected the history of the country. During three wars with France, the U.S. and China, musicians could rarely have the luxury of looking outside of their own boundaries. We affectionately say that the instrumentalists unfortunately skipped the 20th century, with few if any performances of works by Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Messiaen, Bartok, Takemitsu, Cage, Carter and even Debussy and Ravel. Shostakovich was the token new music composer occasionally played. There are also many traditional musicians performing extraordinary Vietnamese music whose music was denigrated by colonialist powers as unimportant and unworthy of an audience; this traditional music is beginning to find an audience as the Vietnamese embrace their own historic creative culture.

The situation Tan and other Vietnamese contemporary composers found was that they had the skills to compose for instruments, but there were not experienced musicians to play their music. There also were not any conductors or teachers versed in 20th century techniques. As Rector Dr. Thanh said to me on our first meeting in 2005 when we enquired as to the purpose of Southwest coming to Vietnam, “if our students do not know all of 20th century music, they will not be able to take their place on the world stage.” Many of the composers whose works we presented on our 2006 and 2010 Ascending Dragon tours had never been heard in Vietnam.

2015-10-16 11.58.14
Jeff with Tan and composer Tran Kim Ngoc who also returned home after study in Germany and the U.S.

How should Tan set up a new music ensemble in Hanoi? As former Southwest board president Mary Schander observed, a developing country suffers from not having examples of successful organizations. When we began Southwest Chamber Music, we could look to numerous other groups such as Kronos Quartet, Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival and the London Sinfonietta as examples of success. There is a national chamber music service organization, Chamber Music America, that provides workshops, conferences, grants and networking. There are non-profits that provide lawyers for incorporation, marketing advice, and development seminars. None of this was available in Vietnam, only two American artistic advisors with a lot of expertise!

What we could offer was our experience setting up our organization from the very beginning. Unlike consultants from large orchestras or presenting organizations, Jeff and I had done it all: developed the structure, organized and performed in the ensemble, marketed and presented the concerts, found the donors, created educational programs, wrote the grants, hired the staff, developed the website, toured in the U.S. and abroad, and responded to changes in the arts environment over time. It was “one step at a time, day by day, and year by year.”

2015-10-16 09.24.08-1
Discussing the future of new music with Tan and violinist Pham Truong Son

It took two and a half years for our appointments to become reality. Navigating the government and the Vietnam National Academy of Music (VNAM) took time as this was the first appointment of Americans as cultural advisors. In August 2015 we received our official stamp from the Ministry of Culture, and we were asked to travel to Hanoi in September for three concerts in October – welcome to our new positions!

Tan had chosen three beautiful venues for the inaugural concerts of the Hanoi New Music Ensemble – the Old Quarter Cultural Center, Manzi Art Space and the new auditorium at VNAM. The ensemble would present the first music performance at the Old Quarter space, a small arts center in the historic center of the city. Geir Johnson from Norway had spearheaded the addition on the top floor of an intimate concert space with beautiful acoustics.

2015-10-30 18.18.59
(L to R) Ambassador Ted Osius, his husband Clayton Bond, myself and my husband Jeff von der Schmidt

Upon arrival in Hanoi, we met with our colleagues at the American embassy with whom we had worked closely over the past decade. We invited U.S. Ambassador Ted Osius to attend the inaugural concert and asked if the Embassy could sponsor a small reception on site following the concert. We were pleasantly surprised when we were informed that the Ambassador not only wished to attend and address the audience (in Vietnamese!) but also wanted to host a special reception at his residence for the ensemble, composers and specially invited guests, in honor of our appointments as American artistic advisors. We were thrilled, to put it mildly!

2015-10-30 19.53.32
Reception with Ambassador Ted Osius, Jeff and members of the Hanoi New Music Ensemble at the Ambassador’s residence

All three concerts were successful, with capacity crowds at the Old Quarter Cultural Center and Manzi Art Space. The concert at VNAM outdrew the local orchestra. The paying audience was overwhelmingly young and Vietnamese, enthusiastically listening to their own contemporary creativity. The reception at the Ambassador’s residence introduced the new ensemble’s members to business leaders, diplomats and other important guests. Two other concerts in the spring kept the ensemble moving forward with solo and small ensemble works without conductor. There was great enthusiasm and plans were made to invite us back the following fall.

2015-10-25 21.11.12
Inaugural concert of the Hanoi New Music Ensemble at the Old Quarter Cultural Center
2015-10-29 21.11.35
Composer Tran Kim Ngoc acknowledging the audience at the Manzi Art Space
2015-10-31 21.28.01
Tan and Jeff after the performance at the Vietnam National Academy of Music

We were off to a good start and the challenge was how to keep it growing and moving forward. Jeff and I had plenty of good ideas, but we knew the group had to proceed one step at a time. Tan and the ensemble needed to absorb their success and decide how they should proceed. Obviously there was an audience eager for what they had to offer their community. Jeff and I returned home elated. The initial steps had been positive and encouraging. We were determined to help the Hanoi New Music Ensemble inspire their audiences with new Vietnamese creativity.

Source: One step at a time

HEINE’S “LYRICAL INTERMEZZO” in collaboration with “Dong Kinh Co Nhac – The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin”


Goethe Institute Hanoi
56 Nguyen Thai Hoc str, Ba Dinh dist.
8pm

Presented by the traditional Vietnamese Music Ensemble “DONG KINH CO NHAC – The Ancient Music Group of Tonkin”
In cooperation with translator Mrs. Chu Thu Phương
Heinrich Heine (1797-1856) is one of the most important poets of Romanticism. His lyrics are in the canon of the German and world literature of the XIXth century. His “Lyrical Intermezzo” was translated into Vietnamese by the translator Chu Thu Phuong
His lyrics seems appropriate for an adaptation by the rich Vietnamese musical tradition of poetic performances. The music ensemble “DONG KINH CO NHAC” has prepared a program devoted to Heinrich Heine, entitled “Lyric and Tradition”. They will put Heine’s poems onto stage through a variety of Vietnamese theatrical such as “Tương tư khúc” of Huế singing, “Du Xuân” of Chèo, “Cờn Nam” and “Vãn” “of Chầu Văn.

Presentation and Reading Chu Thu Phương
Music ensemble DONG KINH CO NHAC
Transcription into Vietnamese lyrical forms Đàm Quang Minh
Traditional singing Künstlerin des Volkes Frau Thanh Hoài
Music edition Künstler des Volkes: Frau Thanh Hoài, Herr Vũ Nhật Tân
Musical styles Hát Chầu Văn; Ca Huế; Hát Chèo; Hát Tuồng; Hát Xẩm; Ngâm thơ Mới