Brother reveals about the last days of musician Nguyen Lan Cuong

Live in harmony, always willing to help

Born in 1941, Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong is the fourth child in the Nguyen Lan family - a famous scholarly family with many contributions to the country.

His father is People's Teacher, Professor Nguyen Lan, an erudite scholar. His siblings are all leading experts in their fields, such as Professor Nguyen Lan Dung, Professor Nguyen Lan Hung, musician Nguyen Lan Tuat...

During his lifetime, Associate Professor, Doctor, musician Nguyen Lan Cuong once shared a unique feature of his family tradition: "In my large family, all the male grandchildren have the word Lan in their names. Every time we meet, the extended family gathers about 80 people, creating a very special community."

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong (second from left) is the fourth child in the famous Nguyen Lan family (Photo: Family provided).

Sharing with Dan Tri reporter, Professor Nguyen Lan Dung - brother of musician Nguyen Lan Cuong - said that his younger brother is a vibrant, enthusiastic person, passionate about archaeology and music .

Professor Nguyen Lan Dung revealed that Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong lived in harmony with his friends and was loved by many people. Even when he knew he had a serious illness, he still maintained an extraordinary optimism.

"Cuong only found out he had terminal stomach cancer about 3 months before he passed away, but he was not pessimistic at all. He even joked: "When I recover, I will make a book with 300 people coming to visit me." It was so heartbreaking to hear that," Mr. Lan Dung choked up.

In a family of 8 siblings, the passing of Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong and Professor Nguyen Lan Dung is a great loss.

He confided: "Cuong is a friendly person, regardless of family or friends, always willing to help. He is an excellent, enthusiastic person, lives life to the fullest and never complains about anything."

The passing of Associate Professor, Doctor, musician Nguyen Lan Cuong is a loss not only to his family, but also to the scientific, artistic andeducational community of our country.

He is a living testament to his versatility, perseverance and dedication, a rare human being who leaves a valuable legacy for many generations to come.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong has a passion for archaeology (Photo: Nguyen Ha Nam ).

Ancient science - passion for life

Since childhood, Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong showed his artistic talent early, but he turned to the path of science following his father's direction, because his eldest brother in the family followed an artistic career.

Following his father's teachings, he passed the entrance exam to the Biology Department of Hanoi University.

However, his love for the stage still burned brightly within him. As a freshman, Nguyen Lan Cuong secretly registered for the drama team of the Ministry of Culture's Art Troupe and surprisingly passed.

The team of 15 members, including People's Artist Trong Khoi, was scheduled to be sent to the Soviet Union for 5 years of training. However, at the last minute, the plan was canceled. He returned to the lecture hall.

After graduating with a degree in biology, Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong worked at the Vietnam Institute of Archaeology and has since devoted his life to science, especially paleoanthropology - the study of traces of ancient people through remains and bones.

That initially seemingly "satisfactory" choice has brought him many great achievements. He is the General Secretary of the Vietnam Archaeological Association, the head of many national-level projects, and has participated in the excavation and restoration of famous remains.

For Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong, archaeology is not just the work of excavating and researching dry skeletons, but a vivid journey to find forgotten stories - where each skeleton is a soul that needs to be understood, respected and revived.

Working at the Vietnam Institute of Archaeology has given him the opportunity to access thousands of ancient human remains through excavations. With more than 50 years of dedication to paleoanthropology, he has studied a large number of ancient Vietnamese human remains.

In 2021, the Vietnam Record Organization awarded him a certificate of honor as the person who researched the most ancient human remains in Vietnam : 1,093 remains.

The name of Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong is associated with many major archaeological projects, typically the Vuon Chuoi site (Hanoi) and national-level projects on the restoration and repair of Zen masters' flesh statues at Dau, Tieu Son, and Phat Tich pagodas...

One of his important works is the study of the flesh bodies of two monks Vu Khac Minh and Vu Khac Truong at Dau Pagoda.

After the survey, Associate Professor Dr. Lan Cuong announced that this was a form of burial statue. In 2003, he led the scientific restoration team, helping these two statues escape the risk of deterioration.

Recently, he continued to make his mark with research on ancient human remains discovered in the Krong No volcanic cave in Dak Nong province. This discovery is considered a turning point in Vietnamese archaeology.

In his last years, he was still working hard, riding his motorbike to archaeological sites around Hanoi.

In a recent sharing, he excitedly talked about his plan to publish the book Tracing the Ancient Tombs - a collection of vivid stories about the journey to find relics, from the tomb of Princess Ly Kieu Oanh to other massive mausoleums.

During his lifetime, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong considered archaeology to be a journey back to life - where each remains is a soul that needs to be understood, respected and revived (Photo: Nguyen Ha Nam).

Sowing music between archaeological trips

Not stopping at dry research, he breathed life into science with both brush strokes and musical notes.

What Is the Skeleton Telling You? - winner of the 2024 National Book Award - is a vivid example.

Not only conveying scientific knowledge, the book was also illustrated by him with more than 320 oil paintings, making the skeletons become closer, deeply beautiful and full of humanity.

Although his career is associated with scientific research, music has always been an underground stream flowing in Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong's soul.

At the age of 10, he was sent to China to study at the Vietnam Campus in Nanning, Guangxi. Here, he studied music with teachers Tuc Nhan Kim (China) and musicians Pham Tuyen and Nguyen Huu Hieu - the first choir conductors in Vietnam.

Returning home, he quickly demonstrated his musical ability by conducting orchestras at Ly Thuong Kiet School, where he met and became friends with musician Phu Quang.

Since the age of 19, he has had award-winning compositions: Muong singing, choir Singing on wooden rafts ...

Over the past 60 years, he has composed nearly 100 musical works, ranging from choirs to songs, and has been the conductor of the Hanoi Harmony Choir and held many positions in literary and artistic associations.

Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong once shared that, after many dusty trips as an archaeologist, returning to Hanoi, wearing a tailcoat, holding a baton and going on stage to dance with choirs was the moment he "could be himself".

For him, music is not a place to escape from reality, but a space of harmony - where beauty, whether from art or science, all point towards life.

During his composing career, musician Nguyen Lan Cuong wrote many touching songs about soldiers and history: The General of the People's Heart, Come Back, After the Oath, The Feelings of the Imperial City, The Song of the Island Soldiers ...

Besides, there are many cheerful and familiar children's songs such as My Doll, Red Light Stop, Green Light Go, What Job Do You Like?, We Celebrate Dien Bien's 60th Flower Season ...

"Writing for children is not easy at all. They are innocent, fair and straightforward. If you want them to sing, the song must be good and in their language," he once shared.

However, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Lan Cuong always humbly admitted that he was just "a small pebble" in the mountain of national musical works. Before his death, he cherished composing a symphony on the historical theme of Nguyen Trai.

As a musician, Mr. Nguyen Lan Cuong has composed nearly 100 works (Photo: Provided by the character).

A quiet, simple and multi-talented person

Despite his outstanding career, Associate Professor, Doctor, and musician Nguyen Lan Cuong kept his personal life very private. It was not until 1982, when he was 41 years old, that he got married.

His wife is the one who keeps the fire burning in the house, taking care of the family so that he can work with peace of mind. Their first daughter, Hoa Cuong, was born on National Day, September 2. Their son, Nguyen Lan Chuong, majored in finance and banking and is currently a programmer and lecturer in Hanoi. Although he did not follow in his footsteps in music or science, he is still proud that his son has intellectual blood.

In the last months of his life, he discovered he had terminal stomach cancer. Because it was discovered late, he could not be treated with chemotherapy and radiotherapy, but only with targeted therapy.

Although he was sad because there were still many unfinished plans, he still maintained an optimistic spirit. He once shared: "I still jokingly tell my students that, in the other world, I will still make music, teach, and do archaeology."

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/giai-tri/anh-trai-tiet-lo-ve-nhung-ngay-cuoi-doi-cua-nhac-si-nguyen-lan-cuong-20250506222036382.htm