Speaking at the ceremony, NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan expressed her deep and sincere thanks to Nghiem Thuy Bang, the composer’s widow, and her family members for their good will.

The Party and State always appreciate and highly value the significant contributions of composer Van Cao to Vietnam’s music, literature and the arts, she stressed.

She echoed that ‘The Marching Song’ will forever be a common, invaluable asset of the entire nation, adding that the lyrics and melody of the song, which are imbued with national patriotism and pride, are in the hearts of every Vietnamese citizen.

Also at the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam presented a certificate of merit from the Prime Minister to Nghiem Thuy Bang, the composer’s widow, in recognition of her efforts in preserving the composer’s works.

Composer Van Cao, born in 1923 in the northern city of Hai Phong, composed ‘The Marching Song’ in 1944 as the entire country was preparing for the uprising to gain national independence.

In 1945, the song was adopted as the national anthem of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam

It was sung proudly by Vietnamese people during the historic days of the August Revolution in 1945 and then at the flag raising ceremony at Ba Dinh Square in Hanoi on September 2, 1945 when President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence, declaring to the world the foundation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

In early July, family members of the late composer signed a letter donating the song to the State and the Vietnamese people. The letter, signed by all the legal inheritors in the family, states clearly that the family is donating the song for free use by the State in any form without asking for copyright fees.