'Medicine that helps to heal the soul': Saxophonist Trần Mạnh Tuấn on the power of music
The leading jazz artist played an outdoor concert for 10,000 patients and frontline workers at two field
Phương Mai
HCM CITY — Dozens of musicians and artists of HCM City have given special performances to inspire frontline workers and people staying in concentrated quarantine zones and COVID-19 treatment hospitals.
These performance are part of a programme to bring music to people in concentrated quarantine zones and COVID-19 treatment hospitals during the pandemic. It is initiated by MC and songstress Quỳnh Hoa, deputy director of the HCM City Youth Cultural House.
The programme has attracted more than 20 singers and artists like Phương Thanh, Nguyễn Phi Hung, Quốc Đại and Hoang Bach who have performed favourite songs, and MC Nguyen Khang and Miss Universe Viet Nam 2017 H'Hen Nie.
Hoa said that when the artists gave support at Củ Chi field hospital, they were welcomed warmly by medical staff and patients.
“Since then, with only some mobile outdoor speakers by our sides, we have hosted several performances for frontline workers and people to help them feel at ease for a moment,” Hoa said, adding that the stages were set up outdoors and people could only listen to the music from a distance.
On Saturday night, leading Vietnamese jazz saxophonist Trần Mạnh Tuấn hosted performances at field hospitals No 3 and 6 in Thủ Đuc City to pay tribute to frontline workers and encourage people to get well soon.
The 51-year-old musician played nostalgic melodies Que Hương (Homeland) and Về Que (Coming Home).
He also performed late composer Trịnh Cong Sơn’s famous songs Diễm Xưa (Diễm, My Cherished Old Flame) and Còn Tuổi Nao Cho Em (Time for You).
Tuấn shared on his Facebook page: “It was an emotional performance for me. When melodies of those songs were played, I heard cheers and claps from the special audiences in the field hospitals.”
“I have performed at numerous small and large stages during my music career, but the stage on Saturday night was the most special. I performed in front of hundreds of doctors and healthcare workers and more than 10,000 patients at field hospitals No 3 and 6.”
“Such unforgettable moments for me and my colleagues,” added Tuấn, who began playing the saxophone in 1979.
He received a scholarship to study jazz at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts in the US and became the first Vietnamese to study there.
He has released 11 solo albums and worked with well-known Vietnamese and international singers and musicians. He has toured in Europe, Russia, China, Thailand, Singapore and the US.
Đỗ Ba Sơn, a resident in Đồng Nai Province, after watching the performances on YouTube, said: “I got goosebumps right after Tuấn played his saxophone. I have loved his music for years, but watching his performance on the special stage moved me. Come on Viet Nam!”
Like Tuấn, pop star Phương Thanh and her peers have given performances for residents at Củ Chi field hospital and Củ Chi Hospital in Củ Chi District since June.
She have sung her favourite songs Mot Đời Người, Mot Rừng Cay (A Forest of Trees, A Lifetime) by veteran composer Trần Long Ẩn and Mot Thời Đã Xa (A Time to Remember) by Trường Huy.
The songstress and Quốc Đại have also presented excerpts from famous cải lương (reformed opera) plays.
Thanh, who was popular in the early 2000s, said it was hard breathing because of her mask while singing, but “I have never had such a joyful performance”.
Apart from music performances, the artists have participated in volunteer activities at quarantine zones and have given haircuts for healthcare workers. They have also cooked and bought food for people in locked-down zones across the city.
Nguyễn Phi Hung, a familiar face in volunteer activities for COVID-19 prevention and control, said: “It hurt seeing many doctors and nurses with their hair shaved off so they could care for patients easily. However, their optimistic spirit and efforts help artists like us and people across Viet Nam believe that with love and sharing, we can overcome any difficulty.” — VNS
