THE SURVIVAL OF THE TRADITIONAL MUSIC (NHAC CO TRUYEN)

Abroad, the Vietnamese refugees do not have time to appreciate the sound of the zither dàn tranh, or to go to attend representations of theatre renovated hat cai luong. The child S which arrived abroad towards the age among 7 and 10 years, have now between 32 and 35 years. They are really completely indifferent vis-a-vis the culture Vietnamese. They do not speak almost any more their native language. They prefer to listen to the songs of Michael Jackson, Madonna, Prince, Celine Dion or others, because for them it is the music of their current world. 

The spectacles of theatre renovated hat cai luong, the concerts of traditional music are less and less numerous for lack of spectators. The parents do not encourage the children to attend the Vietnamese spectacles, “tedious” for the young people who include/understand Vietnamese less and less, and in more it is necessary to pay expensive. 

In Paris, only the couple of artists Trần Quang Hải and Bạch Yến has been devoted to the diffusion of the traditional music Vietnamese in the world for more than thirty years in the form of concerts, animations musical in the schools, conferences, recitals in the universities and museums, participations in many international festivals of traditional music. Among the taken refuge Vietnamese artists in particular three groups are noticed: Phương Oanh and its groupPhương Ca (song of the Phoenix), Hội Nghệ Sĩ Tỵ Nạn (Association of the Taken refuge Artists of Paris) and Quỳnh Hạnh, musician and ethnomusicologist. 

Phương Oanh, former professor of zither at the school Hoa Sim in Saigon, arrived to France in 1976. She founded her group Phuong Ca (song of the Phoenix) in order to create a school of traditional music in Europe. She could join together forty girls and young people who manage to play rather well of the zither with 16 cords. Her work had a favorable echo among young Vietnameses, because the goal of Phuong Oanh is to combine to the traditional music Vietnamese with the Western harmony to create a acculturée new music, even occidentalized. 

The Association of the Artists taken refuge of Paris, created in Paris in 1986 byHữu Phước, celebrates actor of renovated theatre (deceased in Paris in 1998), joined together a significant number artists known as Kiều Lệ Mai, Hà Mỹ Liên, Phương Thanh, Minh Đức, Kim Chi, Minh Thành, Hoàng Long. Hữu Phước tried to make revive the theatrical art of the South Vietnam, and obtained the soutine of a public increasingly many. 

Quỳnh Hạnh arrived to France towards the end of the Eighties. She was a musician of zither with 16 cords and monocorde.She made her musicologic studies at the University of Paris 4-Sorbonne and currently she prepares a thesis of doctorate of musicology on the Vietnamese monocorde.She gave courses of music Vietnamese, courses of instrumental practice to young people of the community Vietnamese and concerts with the European and Vietnamese public. 

In the United States, other artists seek to present the traditional music. The flutist Nguyễn Đình Nghĩa and his children, made at the United States in 1984 and now installed in Virginia, gave concerts very noticed during rounds in the American universities. Nguyên Dinh Nghia, known by his original interpretation of the musical part Phụng Vũ (dance of the Phoenix), continues his personal research while trying to remake suspended xylophones trung, lithophones starting from the stones found in the United States. 

Mrs Bích Thuận, big actress of theatre renovated, arrived to France in 1983, but installed in the United States since 1985, did not succeed in gathering around her artists of value in exile to form a theatre company as there were some at one time in Saigon. She takes part of time in other in artistic evenings or the realization of video films for the Vietnamese public. 

Việt Hùng, cofounder of the troop Hoa SEN with another actor Minh Chí, husband of the actress Ngọc Nuôi, arrived at the United States in 1975, carries out a calmer artistic life with plays turned for the video. 

Hùng Cường, one of the young first of the renovated theatre with Saigon, settled in the United States since 1982. He was converted into music of varieties. After a transitory success at the beginning, he worked for the post synchronization of Chinese films and carried out rounds a little everywhere in the world. He is deceased in 1998. 

Dũng Thanh Lâm, an actor famous with Saigon for his physique, after a beginning noticed in Paris, left to the United States. He earns his living there while playing in parts recorded into video and taking part in artistic evenings. Since the beginning of the year 2000, he carried out a project of several CD and Video for known parts of theatre renovated in California and obtained a growing support of the public. 

La Thoại Tân, very appreciated in Saigon for its talents of actor, becomes organizer of spectacles and traditional instrumentalist. Finally he lends his voice to double Chinese films in California. 

Kim Tuyến, big actress of renovated theatre, finally ceased playing of the theatre. She has sung now in the Vietnamese cabarets and starts to be known as singer of varieties for a few years. 

Other artists like Hà My Hạnh, Thiên Trang, Bich Liễu, Ánh Hoa carry out an artistic life without glares. 

Lữ Liên, father of the artists known as Bích Chiêu, Khánh Hà, Tuấn Ngoc and the group pop The Up Tight, arrived to France in May 1975, took part in the beginning with spectacles in America and Europe. Now he withdraws artistic life and begins the new life of lyric writer of the modern songs. 

The actor Xuân Phát does not have any more artistic activities. 

Huơng Lan, daughter of the actor Hữu Phước, is at the present time one of the actresses most popular among the Vietnamese taken refuge artists. She is the “uncontested queen” of the renovated theatre because her voice is the harmonious mixture of the famous voices of Út Bạch Lan, and Thanh Nga. Since her arrival in France in 1978, the renovated theatre did not go. She was directed towards the music of varieties and known as singer of varieties in the spectacles organized in the Vietnamese cabarets and restaurants. Since 1985, she left France for the United States and becomes the artist most asked in the community Vietnamese. She has been gone back to Vietnam several times for 5 years to be able to sing and play of the theatre in video films published in Vietnam. 

Phong Nguyên, ethnomusicologist, specialist in Vietnamese music , after his studies in Paris, obtained the title of doctor in musicology. He then took refuge in the United States by finding there posts of teacher at the University of Kent (Ohio, the USA). He carried out a career of researcher but also of musician. 

In Germany, live two “stars” of the renovated theatre : Phượng Mai and Thành Được. Phuong Mai, “queen” of the theatre hô quang (kind of sinicized theatre) earns her living with difficulty by making theatre. She tried to sing in the cabarets and was certain success. Then, she emigrated in the United States to remake her career in the Vietnamese business show. Since 1995, she passed several stays to Vietnam and collaborated with the artists of the country for the production of the plays sinicized of which it is the best actress. 

Thành Được, since his installation in Germany in 1984, made rounds in Europe, Australia and in the United States. In spite of his reputation of “actor of charm”, is with the decline of his career. After 10 years in Germany, then in France, he left Europe for the United States where he currently opens a restaurant in San Jose in California to earn his living and leaves the world of the spectacles definitively. 

Within ten years, the renovated theatre would fall can be in the lapse of memory for lack of young artists who would take the changing of the elder ones. The traditional music would undoubtedly survive longer but a lower level, because the young people turn more to the Western pop music or the music occidentalized new Vietnamese. 

written by TranQuang Hai (France) 
Translated by lekt & onlyyou -  CLVN