VietNamNet Bridge – Glitterbeat, a branch of the German-based company Glitterhouse Records, has released a new album in Europe that features traditional Vietnamese music.

The album " Hanoi Master: War is a wound, peace is a scar " features traditional Vietnamese music released by Glitterbeat, a branch of the German-based company Glitterhouse (Photo by label.glitterhouse.com)

The album, Hanoi Masters: War is a Wound, Peace is a Scar, features folk and traditional songs in xam (folk music popular in the north) and chau van (ritual singing) written by unknown artisans and veteran musicians like Pho Duc Phuong.

It is produced by American producer Ian Brennan and musician and zitherest Vo Van Anh, known as Vanessa Vo, who has composed soundtracks for several Oscar and Emmy nominees.

The album features Anh and traditional performers such as Pham Mong Hai, Nguyen Thi Lan, Xuan Hoach, Vo Tuan Minh and Nguyen Quoc Hung.

The artists play traditional instruments, such as the dan tranh (16-chord zither), dan nguyet (Vietnamese two-chord guitar) and dan bau (monochord).   

In her interview with the Guardian, Anh said the music on the album reflects the hearts and minds of artists who lived during war and understand the value of peace.

Anh was born in Ha Noi but lives in California. She began studying dan tranh when she was 4. She graduated from the Viet Nam Academy of Music in Ha Noi and taught there later.

She is a professional dan bau, dan tam thap luc (36-string zither) and dan T’rung (bamboo xylophone) player. She also plays the drums.

She co-composed and recorded for the 2009 Emmy Award-winning soundtrack of the documentary Bolinao 52, a production on Vietnamese boat people by Vietnamese-American director Duc Nguyen, and for the 2003 Academy Awards nominee Daughter from Danang, a documentary about the life of Mai Thi Hiep, one of the children brought to the US from Viet Nam in 1975 during Operation Babylift.

The album will be introduced at the World of Music, Arts and Dance-WOMAD in London next month.

VNS