From Rice Paddies and Temple Yards: Traditional Music of Vietnam

Phong Thuyet Nguyen - From Rice Paddies and Temple Yards: Traditional Music of Vietnam

cassette released in 1990

This cassette accompanied the book of the same title as the cassette.

Phong Thuyet Nguyen, Ph.D. was raised in Can Tho province in the Mekong delta of South Vietnam, in a village called Tam Ngai. He was born into a musical family that played art music, music for festivals, rituals, ceremonies, Buddhist chant, chamber music and theatrical music.
...
Over the years he concentrated particularly on the dan tranh zither, dan nguyet lute, and dan bau monochord. When he was ten he moved to a town called Tra On, and several years later resettled in Saigon, where he studied Western music, earned a degree in literature and philosophy from the University of Saigon and taught high school literature and private music students. He was appointed principal of the high school and from 1970-74 introduced and taught classes in Vietnamese traditional music, not previously taught in schools, and only recently offered for credit. He left Saigon in 1974.

Dr. Nguyen earned his Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology at the Sorbonne University in Paris, France, and served the National Center for Scientific Research through the mid-1980s. His research centered around various aspects of Vietnamese music, including traditional song, modal systems, and the mixture of Western and Vietnamese elements in the music of contemporary Vietnam and Vietnamese-American communities. He is now considered to be one of the two recognized exponents of Vietnamese music on the international scene. A well-known and widely respected teacher and scholar, he has trained a number of students (some of who have gone on to teach traditional Vietnamese music in Vietnam), performed on numerous recordings on the Lyrichord and other labels, directed and participated in international concerts in Asia, Europe and America, and has further contributed to the field of Ethnomusicology through his books and articles. He has been the recipient of a number of grants by the United States and French governments to aid in the collection and preservation of Vietnamese musics. (from biographical information in the book that included this cassette)

Tracklisting:

Side A

1. Hat Dum {0:30}
performed by an uncredited chorus

2. Cum Num Cum Niu {0:25}
performed by an uncredited chorus

3. Xay Khan {0:22}
performed by an uncredited chorus

4. Co La {4:48}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither and monochord
and an uncredited chorus

5. Ly Chim Quyen {1:38}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither
Thu Van and an uncredited chorus

6. Qua Cau Gio Bay {1:44}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither
Tinh Trang and an uncredited chorus

7. Do Doc Do Ngang {2:28}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither
Thu Van and an uncredited chorus

8. Ly Tinh Tang {2:13}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither and monochord
Tinh Trang and an uncredited chorus

Side B

1. Kim Tien {1:53}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither

2. Ly Ngua O {1:08}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither and lute

3. Voice of the Trong {1:48}
performed by Phong Nguyen and Thu Van - drum and wooden bell

4. Chinh Phu Ngam Khuc {8:52}
performed by Phong Nguyen - zither; Dan bau - monochord; Dan Nguyet - moon shaped lute; Dan Tranh - 16 or 17-stringed zither; Mo - wooden bell; Trong - drum; Phong Nguyen, Thu Van, Tinh Trang, Phuong Chi - solo vocalists; Huong Lan, Kim Van, Kim Thanh, Mong Tuyet, Thu Van, Tinh Trang - chorus

(1)