After promoting Vietnamese traditional music around the world, musician Ngô Hồng Quang returned to Việt Nam and established the Thiên Thanh Band to perform a unique concert called Về Kinh Bắc (Returning to Kinh Bắc).

Thiên Thanh Band is made up of nine members, most of whom recently graduated from prestigious music institutions in Việt Nam and have won numerous awards. They perform with traditional musical instruments such as monochord, erhu, bamboo flute, zither and traditional percussion.

Thiên Thanh's young line-up have an innovative approach to music fusing contemporary and traditional styles. 

"I want to use the contemporary music scene to elevate the significance of traditional Vietnamese music," said Quang.

In the concert, the band will perform seven songs of quan họ (love duet) in Bắc Ninh Province, two music works of Xẩm music, one Văn song and two new compositions by musician Quang.

Quang emphasises performance, rhythmic ensemble and improvisation of musical instruments to depict quintessential features of folk music of the Kinh Bắc region (Red River Delta).

“I compose and arrange all the twelve songs for the concert. In each song, we spend about 15-40 seconds for each band member to play solo and express their spontaneous creativity. This is the most special point of the concert," said Quang.

American cellist Bryan Charles Wilson and beatboxer and new media artist Trung Bảo will perform with the whole ensemble. Together, they will create a Vietnamese music ambience that is rich in cultural identity, creative expression and global influence.

Bryan said: "I love what Quang does because he does not only play the folk music of Việt Nam traditionally, but updates it in the modern scene. With the cello, which has been around for hundreds of years, I feel the same way. I want to play it in my way, not precisely as other people have done it. That's why I feel like I fit into this project."

The concert will begin at 8pm on Saturday, April 27 at Hồng Hà Theatre, 51 Đường Thành Street, Hoàn Kiếm District, Hà Nội. Tickets are available via this form or by calling the hotline on 0977 423 886 or 0348 368 124. — VNS