The Hue man Cao Dinh Thang with his dream of promoting traditional music in Russia
Promoting traditional music
At the end of 2019, at the awarding ceremony of the international music contest "Golden Talents" held in Orenburg City (Russian Federation), Cao Dinh Thang was the face of Vietnam who excelled over many other contestants to win the third prize in the composition for piano category with the work "Winter Days".
Also in the past year, Thang was approved by the Moscow Music Critics Association to perform at the International Music Festival "Moscow Autumn", one of the biggest music festivals in the Russian Federation. In addition, Thang was also invited to be a member of the jury of the international competition for music composition for teenagers at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory.
Performed at the “Moscow Autumn" International Music Festival, the "Concerto" for Trumpet and the wind instruments orchestra was well-received by academics and listeners in Russia because of melodies inspired by traditional music of Vietnam. After listening to the professor’s comment, "I can feel the Vietnamese music in your work," Thang was very happy!
He shared: “In this work, I used music from 3 regions of North - Central - South, these are traditional music materials that I have collected, learned and instilled for years at home. I put my love for my country and my family in this musical work. When I wrote it, I could imagine the rice fields, bamboo trees, festivals, boats on the river ... ”.
When talking with Thang, we could feel the genuine love of national art and culture in this young man. From that, Thang applied folk music material to his works.
“During the time I studied, I realized that the world’s famous musicians and artists all had compositions shrouded their own national harmony, using traditional materials to bridge the gap between the folk music and academic music. For example, the composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky had many works of art stemming from Slavic culture, greatly contributing to the promotion of the music and culture of his people in the world,” Thang said.
This was also the reason that during the years of studying at Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, Thang always sought to exploit traditional Vietnamese music materials. Born and raised in the ancient capital, Thang's soul has been imbued with the sweet melodies of Hue Singing (ca Hue) and Hue court music.
Therefore, during the process of composing, Thang sought to incorporate these materials into a number of symphonic works, such as that of for string orchestra called "Nostalgia", for wind orchestra called "Yem dao", a prelude to the piano called" Hometown River"...
Passionate, hard-working composer
Born in 1995, after graduating from both high school and 9 - year secondary course of Piano at Hue Academy of Music, Cao Dinh Thang passed the entrance exam for the Faculty of Theory, Composing and Conducting, Hue Academy of Music. In 2014, Thang received a scholarship offered by the Government to study music composition in Russia.
Wanting to take a chance in such a professional environment: At the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory with a history of more than 150 years, the young man had to work really hard. When being sent to Russia to learn, Thang knew that in order to get into the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, he would have to take the entrance exam within only three months of preparation while his Russian at that time was at elementary level. Moreover, Thang had to take the test for native students instead of the one for international student.
Overcoming the exam, through the initial difficulties being alone in a foreign country, Thang quickly fell in line with the new environment, training his Russian and strengthening, reinforcing his professional knowledge to pursue his passion for music. Up to now, he is finishing his last year at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory and is considered a musical talent since he has won many prestigious prizes in various international music competitions.
Thang was born in a family with artistic tradition, his father was an excellent teacher Cao Chi Hai, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture and Sports, used to be a ballet instructor; his mother was a teacher of “ca Hue”. Since childhood, his parents saw in Cao Dinh Thang a musical talent and let him learn piano when he was only 5 years old. The more he studied, the more Thang felt that his passion for music had grown.
Cao Dinh Thang confided that he felt lucky and proud to attend the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory, where famous musicians and artists of Vietnam, such as Dang Thai Son, Do Hong Quan, Do Nhuan, Trong Dai ... studied. At this famous music academy, Thang was offered a good learning environment with dedicated teachers, a dynamic environment, being able to approach to modern schools of music, being facilitated to perform and to publish his works of music. Thang's works were composed of good themes, harmonies, beautiful melodies, catering to all types of audiences and are highly appreciated by professors, colleagues, friends in terms of art subjects, and beautiful melody in music.
Story: MINH HIEN
Photo: Provided by the character