Vietnam’s Beethoven – alone with frets

VietNamNet Bridge – VietNamNet’s “Things Everlasting 2010” concert on September 2 will introduce 86-year-old composer Nguyen Van Quy’s Sonata Number 8 for violin.

VietNamNet Concert – Things Everlasting

Quy was born in Hanoi, where his musical talent was recognized very early by teachers at his denominational school.  He then studied in a university in Paris.  Beethoven is his idol.

The composer has devoted his life to the sonata form.  He has composed nine sonatas for violin and piano. Two, No. 2 and No. 4, won the second prize of the Vietnam Composers’ Association in 1995 and 2005.

Quy receives praise from both Vietnamese and foreign experts. Six of his sonatas have been recorded by the Voice of Vietnam radio. No. 1 is part of the curriculum of the Hanoi Conservatory.  UNICEF Vietnam nominated Sonata No. 4 for presentation at the UN Conference on Protection of Children’s Rights. Sonata No. 7 has been played by many orchestras and famous pianists and violinists. Quy’s sonatas have also been used often by many Vietnamese embassies at official and charity events.

Composer Quy is the first Vietnamese member of SACEM, a French professional association collecting payments of artists’ rights and distributing the rights to the original authors, composers and publishers, with a condition: his works are used in Vietnam free of charge.

Last year the Swedish Embassy and the Patrimoenia and Gestion SA Foundation presented their Patrimoena 2009 Awards for music to Quy.

After he returning from France, on October 10 1954, Quy was photographed holding a guitar as Hanoi youth welcomed liberation troops. His image was taken by famous photographer Nguyen Van Kien and included by Russian director Roman Carmen in his documentary about Vietnam.

Asking him why he is called “Vietnam’s Beethoven,” composer Quy said that that name was given him by some people at the French Embassy.

“Composer Nguyen Van Quy is an example of labor and creativeness, the love for music. He is a Great Artist. Vietnamese artists acknowledge his whole-life contribution to Vietnam’s music,” says composer Do Hong Quan, chairman of Vietnam Composers’ Association. 

Hoai Huong

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