HÀ NỘI — The Hà Nội Goethe Institute will host a concert of Vietnamese composer Nguyễn Văn Thương's work entiteld Trở Về Đất Mẹ (Return To The Homeland) on October 2. 

The piece for cello and piano will be played by musicians from Thăng Long Troupe. 

Thăng Long Troupe will play Vietnamese and German folk music at Hà Nội Goethe Institute on October 2. — Photo facebook of the troupe

Composer Thương (1919-2002) was part of the first modern generation of modern music in Việt Nam. His works such as Đêm Đông (Winter Night) and Trên Sông Hương (On the Hương River) stood out during Việt Nam's national resistance period.

After studying in Germany he wrote Trở Về Đất Mẹ and poetry symphony Đồng Khởi (Uprising), which debuted in Leipzig in 1971.

He also contributed as director of the Việt Nam National Academy of Music and as director of Việt Nam Sing, Dance and Music Theatre.

He was awarded the Hồ Chí Minh Award for literature and art in 2001.

Thăng Long Troupe was established in 2008 to focus on combining modern arrangements for traditional pieces.

The troupe has performed at big events including the 1000th anniversary of Thăng Long – Hà Nội, an International Art Festival in Huế, and Southeast Asia Art Festival in South Korea.

The concert will feature the đàn bầu (monochord); đàn nhị (two-chord fiddle); đàn tỳ bà (four-chord lute) and đàn tranh (16-chord zither), along with western instruments.

Folk songs will also be played including O Tannenbaum and Du trägst ein´grünen Zweig from Germany, and Cò Lả from the North and Lý Ngựa Ô  from the south. 

The concert is organised by Đào Minh Quang Fund and the Hà Nội Goethe Institute. Launched in 2016 in Berlin, the fund aims to promote Việt Nam-Germany co-operation in education, vocational training and culture.

The concert will begin at 7pm at 66 Nguyễn Thái Học Street. — VNS