ART & ENTERTAINMENT IN BRIEF 22/2 ? Talk Vietnam

Mong Mi comes to life through her art

?Bat Kha Phuc Hoi? (Unrecoverable) by Mong Mi has opened at HCMC Museum of Fine Arts at 97A Pho Duc Chinh Street in District 1.

The exhibition features 20 paintings made of silk which are the result of two years of hard graft and marks an important turning point in the artist?s life.

Graduating from HCMC University of Fine Art in 2003, Mi worked as a copywriter for six years before she quit to focus on her painting. ?I realized that painting is my passion and I cannot wait for it any more,? said the artist.

Mi?s works make visitors feel relaxed as her soft and elegant lines together with white spaces give visitors time to think and ponder.

?When you see my works, you are seeing a part of my life experiences, feelings and private affairs,? said Mi.

The exhibition will run until February 29.

Painting exhibition on Tran Dang Khoa poems held in France

37 paintings by French painter Dominique De Miscault, depicting popular poems by Vietnamese poet Tran Dang Khoa, have been exhibitited in Choisy-le Roi city near Paris.

The event was jointly held by the Mayor of Choisy-le Roi, the France-Vietnam Friendship Association and the Aragon Information Centre.

Miscault said she was delighted to have successfully illustrated Khoa?s poems with the images of Vietnamese villages.

Her paintings were inspired by Khoa?s poems written in the 60s and 70s of the 20th century when he was a little boy.

Nicole Trampoglieri, Chairman of the France-Vietnam Friendship Association, said the exhibition shows close cooperation between the poet, the painter and the translator in promoting friendship, solidarity and mutual love of culture and arts among Vietnamese and French people.

Daniel Davisse, Choisy-le Roi?s Mayor, said the exhibition is a prelude to a series of activities which will be hosted by the city to mark the Vietnam-France exchange year 2012.

Modest photo wins coffee prize

A monochrome photo of a young girl enjoying a cup of coffee entitled Huong Vi Hang Ngay (Daily Taste) has won the top prize at a contest dubbed Coffee on a Winter?s Morning.

Taken by amateur photographer Dinh Manh Tai, 26, from the northern province of Vinh Phuc, the photo was deemed a modest but beautiful one.

?It meets the contest?s demands, such as good light, structure, character?s appearance and the angle?s focus?, said Nguyen Viet Thanh, a juryman.

?Everyone recognises the beauty in the modest photo?, he said. ?I even feel the coffee cup?s fragrance and taste radiate from the photo?.

The contest was inspired by the way that a fragrant cup of coffee to start a new day can warm people up in fiercely cold weather.

Launched last December for coffee lovers and artists alike by The Thao & Van Hoa (Sports and Culture) newspaper and sponsored by Nescafe brand, the contest closed on February 21.

The organisers had received more than 3,000 entries for two categories: photography and writing.

Many freelance photographers and writers from abroad had also sent their entries to the contest.

A story by HCM City-based Nguyen Che Quan, 30, on the love between mother and son as told from the lens of their shared habit of drinking coffee won the top prize in the writing category.

It?s based on the author?s life and his childhood, he said.

Attempts to modernize traditional music meet backlash

Audiences and Xoan artists in Phu Tho were shocked to see local authorities experiment with a modern form of Xoan singing with many unconventional arrangements.

At the cultural event titled ?Back to the Lands of Traditional Festival? on February 18 to promote tourism for the three northern provinces of Phu Tho, Yen Bai and Lao Cai, artists under the order of local authorities performed a new kind of Xoan singing, which was a mixture of cheo, trong quan and Xoan singing.

Besides the accompanying music, the traditional gesturing and costumes for Xoan singing also got changed, causing more shock to the audiences.

?I?ve been performing Xoan singing for 13 years and never seen any strange performance like that,? a Xoan artist from Viet Tri city said. ?They did not sing the ancient Xoan, they sang something like cheo,? he added.

For his part, Pham Ba Khiem, deputy director Phu Tho province?s Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism, explained that the locality is experimenting with a new kind of Xoan singing to promote the traditional music that is in urgent need of protection.

?People like vibrant tunes, but Xoan singing is not something like that,? he said.?We have not known yet which kind of Xoan, the old or the new, will go down well with the audiences, so we will take their comments and make it better.?

Nguyen Ngoc An, head of the department also expressed his agreement on the experiment and said the unconventional arrangements were a way to retrofit Xoan for modern life and bring it closer to the youths.

?The province?s project to preserve and promote the world?s heritage Xoan singing includes making Xoan a contemporary music mixed with other traditional music like cheo,? he informed.

However, the authorities? plan does not go down well with music experts.

Music researcher Dang Thanh Loan, who helped to compile the dossier on Xoan singing for UNESCO?s recognition, said the new arrangements will ruin the intangible heritage.

?They turned Xoan?s performing style into cheo,? he said.

Some expresses the concern that the modernized version of Xoan singing will make young people, with no knowledge of the traditional music, misunderstand what it really is.

?If people keep performing the new Xoan, the young generations will have no idea what the real Xoan is,? music researcher Dang Thanh Loan said.

?I have warned the authorities many times but nothing seems to have been changed.?

According to Professor To Ngoc Thanh, chairman of the Vietnam Folk Arts Association, the ancient Xoan can be preserved without any rearrangement or ?modernization.?

?There?s only one kind of Vietnamese Xoan singing. We cannot modernize culture, of which Xoan singing is an integral part, since culture is deeply embedded in history,? he said angrily.

Hue Festival tickets on sale

Thua Thien-Hue Province has announced official ticket prices for art performances during Hue Festival 2012 with the highest price of VND600,000 for the Dem Hoang Cung (royal night) with a banquet.

A three night tour and banquet night is VND650,000 and without the banquet the price is down to VND150,000. Tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies and ao dai (Vietnamese long dress) festival are priced at VND150,000, while art shows at Hue Imperial Citadel and An Dinh Palace are VND60,000 and VND30,000 respectively.

The Hue Festival will take place from April 7 to 15 with the theme ?Di san van hoa voi hoi nhap va phat trien ? Noi gap go cac thanh pho lich su? (Cultural heritages: integration and development ? where historical cities meet).

The event is the highlight of National Tourism Year in the north central region 2012, hosted by the province. So far 29 countries have registered art performances at Hue Festival 2012.

Cafes for the youth

Young people in Ho Chi Minh are frequenting caf?s not only to quench their thirst or meet friends for a chat, but also, quite recently, to have their portrait painted, to play board games or?to get married!

Chic Portrait Caf? in BinhThanh district?s Phan Dang Luu Street is a rendezvous for young people who want to have their picture drawn at a bargain price. Despite having to sit still for around 40 minutes, the youngsters patiently wait for the artists to sketch their portraits.

?The attraction is to experience Zen and wait for your portrait to complete,? said a student patron at the caf?.

Located in a small alley near the University of Fine Arts, Chic Portrait also attracts young people who are looking for a special gift for their romantic partners as the caf? also offers to do a sketch of someone based on their photo.

For those who love board games, Rich Caf? in District 10?s Su Van Hanh Street is the perfect hangout. Having more 200 sets imported from overseas, the caf? provides young people a chance to exercise their brain.

Anh Trang, a student at Ton Duc Thang University is a frequent customer at the place. Her group of friends often visits the caf? every week to enjoy some drinks while competing with each other.

?Board game is much better than online game since it does not cause addiction. Instead, it increases communication and interactive skills,? she said.

More than just a place to chill, some caf?s also promises some young people a sweet and pleasant walk down their memory lane.

Cuoi (Wedding, with the rising diacritic) caf? in an alley in District 3?s Le Van Sy Street has witnessed many fruitful relationships of the city?s young generation. The caf? owner Le Nguyen Thuy Linh recalled receiving a guest one week after the caf? was open in April last year. The young man said he was seeking for entertainment as he thought it was Cuoi (Laugh, with the falling diacritic) caf?.

After learning that the caf? also doubles as a romantic studio for couples to take wedding photos in, the man asked, ?Do single people get married after coming here??

?If you are in love, you will get married. If you are married, you will be more in love. And if you are single, you will find love,? answered the owner.

After four months drinking coffee alone there, the young man one day took his girlfriend to the caf?, who was leaving the city the next day to study overseas.

Turning to the owner, the young man gave her a mild complaint that was meant for the girl to hear: ?She is leaving me tomorrow. Yet you said people will get married after visiting this caf?!?

What he said together with his passionate love kept her from leaving. Two months later, they returned to Cuoi caf? to celebrate a simple and warm wedding reception.

Hanoi to present French piano-drum duo

Pianist Ancuza Aprodu and percussionist Thierry Miroglio will play contemporary French compositions in Hanoi on March 15.

Pianist Ancuza Aprodu and percussionist Thierry Miroglio will play contemporary French compositions at the L?Espace French cultural center in Hanoi on March 15.

The duo will present both traditional and modern music together with a program full of French contemporary works of Debussy, Ton That Thiet, Ohama, Teruggi and Yuasa, Xenakis.

Aprodu and Miroglio have shared the stage at performances all over the world for years.

Tickets, priced from VND60,000 to 120 000, are on sale at L?Espace, located at 24 Trang Tien Street, Hoan Kiem District. The show starts at 8pm.

WWF Vietnam launches 2012 Earth Hour

Nature conservation organization WWF Vietnam has announced Monday that this year?s Earth Hour will be held on March 31 in Vietnam.

This year?s campaign comes with the slogan ?I will if you will,? challenging people around the world to do more than just turning off the lights and unnecessary electric applicants for one hour for environmental causes.

Billions of people and communities in different countries are encouraged and challenged to do more for the environment, with actions ranging from recycling print papers, using environmental-friendly light bulbs, growing more greens to using more renewable energy sources, Andy Ridley, Earth Hour Co-Founder & Director said.

After three years in Vietnam, Earth Hour has developed into a social activity well-recognized and supported by individuals, state agencies and private entities.

From 6 participating provinces in 2009 when Earth Hour was first held in Vietnam, last year the environmental event swept through 30 provinces in far northern Vietnam like Lang Son, Lao Cai, Thai Nguyen to the southernmost part of the country like Kien Giang and Ca Mau.

This year WWF Vietnam will not directly hold Earth Hour activities but concentrate more on providing know-hows and consulting.

Earth Hour 2012, the world?s largest volunteer activity of human, drawing the participation of millions around the world, will be held from 8.30 pm ? 9.30 pm on March 31 in Vietnam.

Gala music event to pay tribute to Truong Son soldiers

One of Vietnam?s most famous music directors, Tran Vi My, hopes to leave a deep impression on music lovers, veterans and soldiers at the second gala ceremony to mark the SGGP charity programme ?Nghia Tinh Truong Son? (Sentimental Attachment for Truong Son Road).

The gala event and music concert will present to listeners popular revolutionary songs such as Dat nuoc (Country), Khat vong (Aspiration), Bai ca khong quen (Unforgettable song) by Pham Minh Tuan; Bai ca Truong Son (Truong Son song) by Dang Duong-Tran Chung; Dem Truong Son nho Bac (Remember Uncle Ho on Truong Son Night) by Tran Chung; Nhung ngoi sao ko tat (Forever shining stars) by Tran The Tuyen-Tran Gia Cuong; and Tinh dong chi (Comradeship) by Chinh Huu-Minh Quoc.

The director chose Vietnamese heroic mother, Nguyen Thi Thu, a mother of nine martyrs, as a typical image for the performance of the song titled Nguoi me Quang Nam (Quang Nam?s mother) by Doan Nho and performed by singer Huong Giang. Meritorious Artist Thanh Nguyet will play the role of mother Thu.

The song Nguoi linh gia va hoa hong tham (Old soldiers and a Rose) by Doan Nho, performed by Ngoc Tuyen tells about the life of an old soldier coming back home after war.

Bai ca khong quen (Unforgettable song) performed by Dam Vinh Hung honours unforgetable heroic moments of soldiers. Khat vong (Aspiration) performed by Le Quyen will arouse national pride, inspiration and ideals of young people.

There will be exchanges between veteran soldiers and audiences during the event.

The show gives a deep knowledge of the sacrifices of armed forces for the sake of national defence and security.

The gala ceremony will be held at the Ho Chi Minh City Opera House on February 24.

Hanoi cai luong theatre puts on second English opera

On February 17 and 18, the Chuong Vang (Golden Bell) Cai Luong Theatre in Hanoi staged its second special folk opera show for foreign tourists.

Unlike the first show last August, in which the English translation was recorded and emitted simultaneously to audiences through headphones throughout the entire performance, this show provided a live translation on stage by Master Pham Xuan Hong.

The highlight of the two nights was the opera titled ?Ke trom Dem Giao Thua? (The Thief on New Year?s Eve) telling the story of the rehabilitation of a thief after he received food from a old blind woman on New Year?s Eve.

After the show, Carol Orgen, a tourist from the US, said the theater should have an introduction about cai luong for foreigners before the opera.

?An explanation of what Vietnamese cai luong is will help us understand the art clearer and to classify it with other folk music like cheo, ca tru or tuong as well as with traditional music from other Asian countries,? she said.

?The theater should only focus on showcasing cai luong performances, not performing an extravaganza with too many kinds of other folk music,? a senior audience member commented on other performances which were not related to cai luong.

For his part, Tran Quang Hung, the theatre?s director said the theater will receive and consider the comments to provide better shows.

In related news, last October, the Ho Chi Minh City-based Youth World Theatre staged Oscar Wilde?s masterpiece ?The Importance of Being Earnest? in English.

Directed by Nicaraguan director Jaime Zuniga, the play captured the story of two close friends, Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff,who both pretend to be someone they are not and the problems that arise from their living a double life.

The 2-hour play, performed by local actresses Lan Phuong and Nguyen Ha Tu Trinh was in English with Vietnamese subtitles, and received positive responses from both experts and the audience.

Writer Masatsugu Ono comes to town

One of Japan?s most promising young writers will come to the city and Hanoi to discuss his award-winning novel ?The Song of Mermaid?, which has been translated and published in Vietnamese by Tre Publishing House and is now available.

The Japan Foundation Center for Cultural Exchange in Vietnam, in cooperation with Tre Publishing House will host a talk show with Ono at 9 a.m. tomorrow at Trung Nguyen Cafeteria, 36 Dien Bien Phu Street in Hanoi?s Ba Dinh District ? and at 9 a.m. on Thursday at Main Hall, Hoa Sen University, 93 Cao Thang Street in HCMC?s District 3.

Ono, who is equipped with a Phd in Literature from the University of Paris VIII, has strong opinions on the youth of Japan.

He said: ?Haruki Murakami (a contemporary Japanese writer) writes stories in the context of globalization and he attracts youth from around the world. But I feel comfortable writing stories about elderly people and local people and I love to throw in some humor.?

The talks will feature an introduction from Ono and his thoughts on writing, followed by conversations with public intellectuals, writer Nguyen Qui Duc in Hanoi and journalist Le Hong Lam in HCMC.

Literature fans can also enjoy a 30% discount when purchasing Ono?s new book, and will have a chance to get a signed copy at the end of the talk.

Ono received the Asahi New Writers? Award for his first novel Mizu ni Umoreru Haka (Graves Buried in Water) and the Mishima Yukio Prize for second novel Nigiyaka na Wan ni Seowareta Fune (The Ship Piggybacked by the Jolly Bay).

He has also written On the Edge of the Forest (2006), Micro Bus (2008) and Bigger than the Nights (2010). Admission to both talks is free.

*Heinz Hermanns, director of Berlin International Short Film Festival (Interfilm), will talk to students on the ?art of short films? at Hoa Sen University, 93 Cao Thang Street in District 3 at 10 a.m. on Friday.

The talk is a great opportunity for young Saigonese film-makers to pick at the experienced Hermanns? brains and see if he can help them make the great leap forward into the big time.

Hermanns will share his knowledge on short films and its advantages, script development and the production process to bring shorts to international festivals.

Hermanns established and managed the Eiszeit Cinema in Berlin 1981. Since 1982 he has directed the Berlin International Short Film Festival and he was also the director of Pollicino Short Film Festival in Catania, Italy from 1990 to 1996.

He has organized numerous seminars on short films for students worldwide.

HanoiLink opens at Exhibition House

?Five Years? group exhibition by HanoiLink opens from Tuesday until Saturday at Exhibition House, 29 Hang Bai Street in Hanoi.

The show displays videos and installation artworks from five creators, reflecting each artist?s views on society, their experiences, lessons learnt and the feelings towards Vietnamese society.

Nguyen Thanh Hoa?s installation of embroidery works is named Only a thread, Virginie Faivre D?arcier?s installation The Cocoons, Nguyen Hoa Van offers video art Haven?t thought about, Nguyen Ban Ga displays video art installation The party, and there is also live video installation Bu by Nguyen Tran Nam

The show marks the sixth anniversary of HanoiLink.

Source: http://talkvietnam.com/2012/02/art-entertainment-222/

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