1.

The above verses are taken from the epic poem The National Flag by Xuan Dieu, perhaps the earliest poem in modern Vietnamese poetry praising the red flag with yellow star that appeared on National Day September 2, 1945.

Each verse of poetry is like a cheer, like a song, like the sound of waves resounding from the hearts of people who, after nearly a hundred years of slavery, have now shaken off the mud and stood up shining brightly ( Country , Nguyen Dinh Thi).

Poet Xuan Dieu was one of the artists who witnessed the life-changing event of the entire nation on September 2, 1945 and he completed this epic poem on November 30, 1945.

Screenshot (34).png — Portrait of President Ho Chi Minh taken by Mr. Tran Van Luu's Photo Ate-lier on September 10, 1945

Regarding the cultural and artistic activities of those days, first of all, it is necessary to mention a meeting that in Those Characters Lived with Me (New Works Publishing House, 1978), writer Nguyen Hong said: “On the occasion of Tet At Dau 1945, we met at To Hoai’s house in Nghia Do village… Then came the meeting in May at Nhu Phong’s house in the middle of West Lake, the focus was on work and direct action once the resolution of the General Uprising was received. Participating were Nam Cao, To Hoai, Nguyen Huy Tuong, Tran Huyen Tran,… At that time, Nam Cao and I were both hungry from the countryside. For four days, we ate only unadulterated rice and West Lake spinach, we ate with all our might…”.

As core members of the National Cultural Salvation Association, they were also witnesses to the important event of September 2, 1945.

In the Tien Phong newspaper - the new cultural movement agency - special issue commemorating Independence Day September 2, 1946, Xuan Dieu recounted many touching details: “Thanks to Independence Day, for the first time, I was able to see President Ho Chi Minh from afar. President Ho Chi Minh wore a white hat that had turned yellow, wore rubber sandals, held a curved stick like an umbrella handle, and wore a yellow khaki shirt. This image is familiar to us now, but at first, it was an impression in people's minds. When the President began to read the Declaration of Independence, people heard a special voice, a voice that still seemed to be mixed with accents from around the world ; a voice that still echoed the mountainous war zone... Then the nation was even more surprised when the President stood on a high platform, under a white umbrella covering the sun, in front of the radio, and asked a surprising question: Can you hear clearly, compatriots? At this point, all the confusion between the President and the nation disappeared. like smoke, and an invisible electric current began to transmit between the President and the nation. It turned out that President Ho Chi Minh had never read a speech; the President's declaration was a declaration to someone, not to the people. With a sudden question that no one expected, President Ho Chi Minh went beyond all the rules, all the rituals, all the representatives, all the Government. President Ho was Uncle Ho of the Vietnamese people. "Do you hear clearly, compatriots?", through the moment of surprise when seeing President Ho throw away all the usual arrangements, everyone felt all the love of the President for the nation; everyone saw that although he was outstanding, President Ho was just a person like them, a person with them. President Ho was kind and close to us, taking care of us and asking about us with infinite love. In response to President Ho's question "Do you hear clearly?", a million people answered: Yes!

Screenshot (35).png — Discussion Southern Vietnam, Southern Vietnamese by poet Xuan Dieu Photo: DOCUMENTARY

2.

Right after September 2, 1945, the book Artists and Resistance through the lens of Tran Van Luu (Kim Dong Publishing House, 2018) said: On September 10, 1945, eight days after President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence, Tran Van Luu's Hanoi photo shop was invited by Mr. Tran Kim Xuyen, Director of the Propaganda Department's office, to take a photo of the leader.

Along with his studio, five other studios were also invited to take photos, including the famous Khanh Ky studio. Mr. Khanh Ky had the exclusive right to take photos of the French governors-general in Indochina as well as Emperor Bao Dai and the King of Cambodia in the years before the Revolution.

That day, at the former Governor General's Palace, now used as the Presidential Palace, all six groups gathered together. The Hanoi Photo Studio group included Director Tran Van Luu and two colleagues, Vu Nang An and Pham Huu Than.

Each group had 5 minutes to take the photo, which would be half an hour in total - that was all the time President Ho spent on this job. He was very busy. However, due to the revolution's need to have a photo of the leader whose name many people had only heard but had never seen, he agreed to let the Propaganda Department organize the photo session that day. Afterwards, from the photos taken, President Ho himself would choose the one that he liked best to announce to the people.

Faced with this honor and unique opportunity, most photo studios prepared bulky cameras. Mr. Luu's group was only equipped with a fairly light camera, but importantly, it was equipped with a projector to take the initiative in lighting. (At that time, Photo Ate-lier was the only photo studio in Hanoi that had this equipment).

They let the other groups take their shots first - which was what every group wanted - so they could have more time to study how to take the shot. When it was their turn, after setting up the camera, Tran Van Luu let Vu Nang An stand and take the shot. The camera flashed three times, the photographer pressed the shutter three times - time was up!

When printing and enlarging the photos, one was slightly shaky and had to be discarded. The other two were satisfactory. In particular, in the photo of the leader looking straight ahead, his eyes seemed to have two bright spots shining in the place of his face. This was the reflection from the spotlight, making many people think that Uncle Ho's eyes had two pupils.

This is the official portrait of President Ho Chi Minh that was circulated throughout the years of resistance and was used by him to give to international friends and those who had contributed. It was also the honor and pride of Mr. Vu Nang An, Tran Van Luu, Pham Huu Than, a group of photographers at the famous Hanoi photo studio at that time.

On the press side, researcher and journalist Nguyen Tuong Phuong - Chairman of the Vietnam Press Group in the North was the first person to conduct an interview with President Ho Chi Minh at 4:00 p.m. on September 13, 1945. Rereading the Half-Hour Interview with President Ho Chi Minh (printed in Tri Tan newspaper No. 205, published on September 20, 1945), we clearly see an important thing: right after the country had just gained independence, although he was worried and thinking about many issues for the people and the country, Uncle Ho was still interested in the cultural field.

In this conversation, Uncle Ho emphasized that when implementing culture, it is also the time to "instill patriotism". It can be said that this teaching, from that time until now and in the future, is still the consciousness that each of us always keeps in mind.

In the current era of the “flat world” that is moving towards global exchange and interaction, the goal of “instilling patriotism” always reminds cultural workers to never forget that eternal value.

3.

After September 2, 1945, the whole country lived in an atmosphere of independence and unity for only a few short weeks, because from September 23, 1945, the army and people of the South began to stand up together to fight against the French colonialists who returned to invade.

In Hanoi, the Northern Arts Troupe quickly organized the first National Salvation Cultural Congress at the Opera House. From October 10, 1945, all delegates turned to the Southern Delta with many active activities.

The speech "Southern Vietnam, Southern Vietnamese" by poet Xuan Dieu touched the hearts of all participants: "Our people often imagine the three regions of Vietnam as three sisters with arms around each other, and that's quite true. In terms of love for each other, the North is the eldest sister, the Central is the second sister, and the South is the third sister. Saying that is not to reduce the value of the South, but to reveal that: if it is true as people say, when people's hearts are down, the hearts of the North and Central regions are focused on the South. We are now here, in the capital of Vietnam, and when we mention Saigon, we are truly filled with love and affection. Especially when our South is hurt, we are even more moved by our blood ties."

From these documents, we see that right after Independence Day, artists across the country were imbued with President Ho Chi Minh's teaching: "Culture lights the way for the nation" and expressed it through many works of lasting value.

On this day, commemorating the 80th anniversary of National Day, we still hear the echoes of Xuan Dieu's poem written in 1945: The flag is there, this Vietnam is still there / Ho Chi Minh, forever the song of the March / Long live the Democratic Republic .

LE MINH QUOC

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/van-nghe-si-theo-su-menh-non-song-post811317.html