Hanoi, the source of "improvisation" for musician Tran Tien

The 18th Bui Xuan Phai Award - For the Love of Hanoi - 2025 has just been announced and awarded to individuals, works, and typical projects associated with Hanoi, along with a passionate love for the Capital. The Grand Prize - For the Love of Hanoi this year was awarded to musician Tran Tien, who has made contributions to Hanoi through songs imbued with love for the culture of the Red River, the Old Quarter, and the Doai region...

Musician Tran Tien. Photo: baodongnai.com.vn

At nearly 80 years old, musician Tran Tien left a huge legacy for Vietnamese music . “Improvisation” is the word he often used to describe his life and was also chosen to name many famous songs. Tran Tien’s music is beautiful from melody to lyrics, spanning the cultural landscape of the country. He wrote music with a very smooth Northern sound, a very unique Central Highlands sound, and a Southern sound like a “Southern brother” writing about his homeland. Forever with the world are immortal songs such as “Dialogue of the Fatherland”, “The Wedding Ring”, “My Sister”, “Round Footprints on the Sand”, “Little Sun”, “Improvisation of Ly Qua Cau”, “Young City”, “Chapi Dream”, “Pa-ra-nung Drum”…

In that huge legacy, musician Tran Tien devoted enough love to write about his homeland - Hanoi, a thousand years of culture. The Bui Xuan Phai Award - For the Love of Hanoi recognized his long-term contributions to the Capital, with songs that left a deep impression. These are: "Improvisation of the Red River", "Traveler of the Red River", "Hanoi of the Day", "Hanoi in the 2000s", "Street Improvisation", "Poor Street", "Little Sun", "My Mother", "Homeland"... The listener seems to hear the passionate lyrics of "Improvisation of the Red River": "The starling crosses the river against the wind/ The starling wades across the river to find someone, who loves someone". Or the gentle song "Homeland" sounds so touching, stirring the hearts of those far from home: "Oh my homeland, the distant land of Doai/ The afternoon smoke is immense, the river has let the sun set/ Missing the village, the bamboo hedges, the dike/ Dreaming of returning to hear my mother lull me to sleep beside the old stone steps".

For the 8X audience generation, many people know by heart the song by musician Tran Tien, "Hanoi in the 2000s": "Hanoi in the 2000s/ Children no longer beg/ Old people sit in the park/ Watching old women remember their youth". Musician Tran Tien wrote with pride, full of joy about the changes of his homeland and country. And about ten years ago, a new melody written about Hanoi today by musician Tran Tien was very loved by the audience with a very lovely Hanoi: "Everything in Hanoi is cheap, only friends are the most expensive/ Everything in Hanoi is cheap, only human love is the most expensive", and then the song ends with a melody that sounds like crying: "Hanoi in my heart, a distant dream of people far from home/ Oh, live and die..." - that is the song "Street Improvisation".

Musician Tran Tien truly deserves the Grand Prize - For the Love of Hanoi of the Bui Xuan Phai Award. A lifetime of refinement and dedication for the love of Hanoi of a talented musician.

Bui Xuan Phai Award - For the Love of Hanoi was established by the Sports and Culture newspaper (Vietnam News Agency) and the family of the late painter Bui Xuan Phai in 2008, and is awarded to authors, works, ideas, and deeds of high scientific and artistic value, imbued with love for Hanoi. This year, in addition to the Grand Prize - For the Love of Hanoi awarded to musician Tran Tien, the Organizing Committee also awarded 4 equal prizes for the categories: Work Prize (2 prizes), Idea Prize, and Work Prize.

DANG HUYNH

Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/ha-noi-nguon-ngau-hung-cua-nhac-si-tran-tien-a191855.html