Belgian connection celebrated

The famous Belgian jazz band Tricycle will perform renowned pieces of music and original works in their unique style for audiences in HCM City and Ha Noi today and tomorrow.

The concerts aim to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Viet Nam and Belgium.

Tipped to dazzle: The Belgian jazz band Tricycle will perform in HCM City tonight and in Ha Noi tomorrow night.

Playing the contrebas, accordion and flute/sax, the three musicians – Vincent Noiret, Philippe Laloy and Tuur Florizoone – will dazzle with music which has been described by critics as "visual and sensual".

Tuur Florizoone, who also composes the music, describes the sound as a mix of folk, jazz, film (every piece has a story) and even a hint of chacha, world and chamber music.

The concert takes place at 8pm tonight at HCMC Opera House (7, Lam Son Square, District 1); and at 8pm tomorrow at the Ha Noi Opera House (1 Trang Tien Street).

The event is co-organised by the Embassy of Belgium and Viet Nam's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.

Vietnam’s Renovated Theatre introduced in France

Cải lương (Renovated Theatre), a traditional art form of Vietnam, was presented to the French audience at an exchange in Paris on March 16.

The event drew the participation of some well-known Cải lương artists such as People’s Artist Ngoc Giau from Vietnam and Huong Thanh, who is also an overseas Vietnamese living in France.

Director of the Vietnam Cultural Centre in France, Le Hong Chuong, thanked the artists for bringing Vietnamese Renovated Theatre to French audiences.

Cải lương first appeared in the early 20th century in the Mekong River Delta. In only a short time it has progessed to become a recognised traditional art form in Vietnamese theatre.

The Director of the Guimet Museum of Asian Arts, Hubert Laot, said Cải lương is an interesting form that originated in Vietnam’s communes, reflecting the country’s historical civilization over the centuries and therefore, it should be preserved, maintained and presented to the public.

Artists Ngoc Giau and Huong Thanh performed excerpts from some famous Cải lương works.

The artists left a good impression on the French people and other international friends who are genuinely interested in learning about Asia, particularly Vietnam.

Later on the same day, the Cải lương artists performed at the Victor Hugo Theatre in Bangeux, on the outskirts of Paris.

They will perform again in Choisy-Le-Roi on March 19-26 as part of week-long celebrations to commemorate 40 years of the Paris Peace Accords to restore peace in Vietnam.

Photographers mark field's development

Vietnamese photographers are celebrating the 60th anniversary of national Photography Day.

Artists should work on their techniques and get closer to reality so they can capture the country's integration and development progress, said Vu Quoc Khanh, president of the Viet Nam Association of Photographic Artists (VAPA) on March 15 at a ceremony to mark the occasion.

On March 15, 1953, President Ho Chi Minh signed a decree to set up the National Photography and Cinema Enterprise in Thai Nguyen Province. The enterprise grew quickly and paved the way for the development of the country's photography industry.

Photographers struggled during the wars to show the world the country's plight against the French and American invaders. Their contribution helped the Government and Communist Party to gain international support that ultimately led to victory. A total of 47 Vietnamese photographers lost their lives during the war with the US.

According to Khanh, despite the fast development of the industry in modern times, the most famous photos in the country were those taken during the war and the revolution, some of which have won prestigious international prizes.

Like their colleagues in the cinema industry, many of the most outstanding photographers of the last 25 years did their apprenticeship on the front during the American War, working side by side with first-generation war photographers.

Today, images captured by Le Minh Truong, Vu Ba, Dinh Ngoc Thong, Van Bao, Mai Nam and Nguyen Huu Thong are cherished as an important part of Vietnamese heritage.

The VAPA was set up in Ha Noi in 1965 to promote photographic creativity, theory, criticism and training in support of the revolutionary struggle and in line with socialist ideology.

The association's membership has increased rapidly, from 51 people at the beginning to 920 members today. Since 1987, a year after the beginning of the renewal process, countless photos contests and exhibitions have been organised in Viet Nam to encourage artistic creativity. Now a fully-fledged member of the International Federation of Photographic Art (FIAP), the association runs numerous short training courses and has achieved international fame.

Century of Finnish poster art on show

One hundred Finnish posters since the beginning of the 20th century, will be displayed at the National Library in Ha Noi, from tomorrow, March 19.

The week-long exhibition, 100 Years – 100 Posters. from the Lahti Poster Museum, depict not only the evolution of graphic design but also the development of Finland's society and economy.

Visitors will be given a broad picture of sports, tourism, advertising, education, etc.

Many of the posters are early advertisements of well-known Finnish companies such as Finnair, Nokia, Fazer and Sinebrychoff.

The exhibition is part of this year's jubilee programme for the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Finland and Viet Nam.

It will run until Sunday in the National Library at 31 Trang Thi Street.

Cross-country motorbike odyssey to help poor

David Seton, a New Zealander now living in Viet Nam, will lead a team of 15 on a 2,000km motorcycle journey across the country to raise money for healthcare.

They will make the trip, called Honda67, on a 1960 SS50 Honda from April 10 to May 1.

The journey, which will wind through 15 provinces and cites, aims to raise US$400,000 for women and infants' healthcare programmes in two poor districts of Phu Ninh and Phuoc Son in the central province of Quang Nam.

Seton, who is general director of Besra company, said the programme targets to provide equipment for health clinics for young babies and pregnant mothers in the poorest mountainous districts.

He said the programme has already raised $50,000 from donors around the world.

Seton, who has lived and worked in Viet Nam since 1989, said he wanted to help to local poor people.

Members of Honda67 clubs nationwide will join the team at provincial stops to promote the programme.

The SS50 Honda, known as Honda67 in Viet Nam, was revived by motorbike lovers in 2000.

US starts search for VN performers

Four cultural and performing art experts from Center Stage, a cultural exchange of the US Department of State that brings foreign performing artists to American stages, are visiting Viet Nam to find candidates for its 2014 programme.

The experts are Rebecca Blunk, executive director of the New England Foundation for the Arts, Lisa Booth, president of Lisa Booth Management, Inc., Rachel Cooper, director of Global Performing Arts and Special Initiatives of Asia Society, and Martin Wollesen, director of University Events Office and artistic director of Art Power at UC San Diego.

During the eight-day visit that began on Thursday, the group will view Vietnamese performing art ensembles in HCM City and Ha Noi that will be nominated to enter Center Stage programme.

The programme will send from six to eight ensembles from Pakistan, Morocco and Viet Nam that specialise in music, dance and puppetry to tour in the US between June and December in 2014.

Each ensemble will have a month-long tour to five or six communities. Tour itineraries will include performances, exchange activities with American artists, presenters, students and communities.

Booth said they had sent a worldwide call for the programme last November and received only 12 submissions from Viet Nam, fewer than other countries.

She added that the visit helped them know more about the country's performing art groups apart from the 12 current nominations.

In HCM City, they have seen performances of the contemporary music band Mat Troi Do (Red Sun), rock band White Noize, classic guitar duo Nguyen Thanh Huy and Huynh Ba Tho, and contemporary dance troupe Arabesque.

The name of the selected ensembles will be announced in April.     

Veterans donate war souvenirs

The Thai Binh provincial museum has received hundreds of artifacts from the war donated by the province's Association of Vietnamese Veteran Volunteer Soldiers in Laos.

All the objects were collected by Vietnamese volunteer soldiers and military experts who came to support the Lao revolution against the French and continue the fight against American aggression. The objects, which strongly reflect the friendship between Viet Nam and Laos, include those gathered during the country's doi moi (renewal) period.

The donated items include soldier's water flasks, strategic maps, and a diary of a Thai Binh native soldier that notes his thoughts and feelings while on a mission in Laos, which is described as Viet Nam's brother country. Other items include broken pieces of megalithic jars that were collected after a battle on the "Plain of Jars" – an archaeological region in Xieng Khouang Province in Lao which is home to thousands of ancient stone jars.

In addition, nearly 200 photos depicting the friendship between soldiers and people of the two countries were also given to the museum.

VNN/VOV/VNS