ĐÀ NẴNG — Japanese violists Masakazu Saito, Shunichiro Sato, Kumiko Nakagawa and Tetsuya Osawa are set to perform in Việt Nam’s central city of Đà Nẵng to mark the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries on June 26-27.

Usuda Reiko, a member of the Japan-Việt Nam Friendship Association in Kawasaki, said the quartet will take the stage at the city’s Nguyễn Hiển Dĩnh Theatre from 7.30pm to 9.30pm on June 26, and from 9am to 11am on June 27 at the city library.

The Japanese artists will also play a live show at the city’s oncology center from 3.30pm to 4pm on June 27, Reiko said.

It’s part of a series programmes that will be held in the city and central Việt Nam to promote friendship between Japan and Việt Nam.

The non-profit concert has been endorsed by the Japanese Embassy, the Đà Nẵng Union of Friendship Organisations, and the Japan Business Association in Đà Nẵng.

Reiko said she used inheritance money from her mother to bring the JPO quartet to Việt Nam to build future cultural and arts exchange between the countries.

The concert has been supported by musicians Lê Cát Trọng Lý and Nguyễn Thanh Tú, Tetsuji Honna (Việt Nam National Symphony Orchestra music director and head conductor), Saeko Ando (Japanese lacquer artist), and Le Ly Hayslip, a Vietnamese-American writer.

The quartet will also perform in Hội An.

Japanese donors from Kawasaki have handed over 12,000 second-hand bikes to underprivileged school children in Đà Nẵng and Quảng Nam since 2003.

Đà Nẵng and Hội An hosted the first annual Việt Nam-Japan Culture Exchange Festival in 2012.

Japan plans to open a Consulate General in Đà Nẵng to boost tourism.

Japanese lessons have been offered at some junior secondary schools as part of the city’s foreign language teaching programme for 2012-20.

Đà Nẵng has also reserved a 1.2ha area for developing the Japan-Việt Nam Culture Centre in Ngũ Hành Sơn District.

Japanese businesses have opened 27 restaurants in the city, and a large Japanese community has also settled in Đà Nẵng and Hội An. — VNS