Songwriter Vu Van Ky has passed away, aged 92. — Photo qdnd.vn

The veteran songwriter was born in Vu Ban District in the northern province of Nam Dinh. He joined the revolution at the age of 15. In 1945, he joined the fight of locals in Nong Cong District in the central province of Thanh Hoa to seize power from the contemporary administration and was admitted to the Vietnamese Communist Party one year later. Also at this time, he wrote his first song, Trăng Xưa (Old Moon).

After attending music classes at Interregional zone 4 in the central province of Nghe An, Ky returned to Binh Tri Thien, a former administrative grouping of three provinces in Vietnam – Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien Hue, working in the field of arts. It was also when he wrote the famous song Bình Trị Thiên Quật Khởi (Rebellious Binh Tri Thien).

The musician was head of Art Troupe of the Interregional zone 4 from 1950 - 1954 and joined the Vietnam Arts Association from 1955 -1957.

In 1957, he was a founding member and part of the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Musicians Association, and a standing member of the Association since 1963.

The songwriter has composed about 400 works including songs, musicals, dance music and symphonies on the themes of revolution and love. Some of his notable works include Bài Ca Hy Vọng (the Song of Hope) and Trời Hà Nội Xanh (The Blue Sky of Hanoi).

Particularly, The Song of Hope, which he composed in 1958, has been successfully performed by generations of artists like singer Khanh Van, My Binh and Trung Kien and become loved by many Vietnamese listeners.

The songwriter has been honoured with many prestigious prizes like State Prize in Literature and Art in 2001 and the Third Class Independence Medal in 1961.  VNS