Pianist Pho Vu Thu, daughter of Pho Duc Phuong, shared about the concert at the press briefing in Hanoi yesterday. — VNS Photo Minh Thu

The show will be held at the Hanoi Opera House by his family and friends to honour his career and encourage the composer, who is in hospital for cancer treatment.

The Khúc Hát Phiêu Ly (Song of Drifting) concert is named after one of the composer's famous songs.

Phuong is one of the most important composers of Vietnamese music in the last 50 years.

Phuong was born in 1944 in the northern province of Hung Yen.

A concert celebrating his 50-year career took place in 2016 with gathering leading singers. Audiences enjoyed popular songs written since the 1960s such as Trên Đỉnh Phù Vân (On the Top of ‘Cloud Summit’), Không Thể và Có Thể (Can’t and Can), Về Quê (Back to Homeland), Một Thoáng Tây Hồ (A Glimpse of West Lake), Chảy Đi Sông Ơi (Let’s Flow, River) and Hồ Trên Núi (Lake on Mountain).

The upcoming show will feature director Nguyen Viet Thanh, choreographer Tran Ly Ly, musician Tran Duc Minh, producer Hoai Oanh and music editor Tung Duong.

Duong will also perform at the show with singers Thanh Lam and My Linh, Oplus and M4U bands, singer Minh Thu and chèo (traditional operetta) singer Thu Huyen.

Composer Pho Duc Phuong (centre) at one of his concerts in 2016. — Photo courtesy of his family

Musicians Nguyen Vinh Tien and Nguyen Cuong, two close friends of Phuong, will narrate the concert with stories about the veteran composer.

The concert will also star members of his family including screenwriter Pho Khanh Chi (daughter), pianists Pho Vu Thu (daughter) and Pho An My (niece) and composer Pho Duc Hoang (son).

Singer My Linh said the concert will once again honour his songs and his devotion to the national musical scene and encourage him to overcome his health problems.

“We visited him 10 days ago and were surprised that he was very optimistic and energetic,” Linh said.

“We know that he was in pain and struggled to eat, but he rarely talked about the disease, he just talked about music and the upcoming concert. He stressed that he would overcome the disease and come back to us.”

Linh added: “He has faced trouble with bravery and optimism. Unexpectedly, he inspired and encouraged us.”

Director Thanh said the concert will be live-streamed to the composer at the hospital. He will send some words to the audiences and artists.  VNS

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